Go to Ninety Nine and See the World

If you want to see the world, you don't have to join the Navy anymore -- just earn a spot on The Amazing Race.

And Merrimack Valley residents get their chance this week.

The globetrotting CBS reality/game show will be hosting auditions for the upcoming season Saturday from 7 to 10 a.m. at the Ninety Nine Restaurant on Main Street (Route 38) in Tewksbury.

Joe Perdicaro, manager of the Ninety Nine, said he got word that the restaurant had been booked for the auditions just a few weeks ago.

"(Amazing Race Producers) went through our corporate offices, so it came down through our marketing department," Perdicaro. "It's pretty exciting."

Perdicaro, who was appointed as manager just prior to the auditions being announced, said the restaurant will take advantage of the opportunity to show off some of their culinary specialties.

"We will be doing some special things that morning. We'll be sampling some of our food dishes," he said. Perdicaro said he expects there will be a big turnout on Saturday.

"Yeah, we expect there will be a line outside in the wee hours," he said with a chuckle.

The Amazing Race is a competition featuring two traveling teams all over the globe. It is part scavenger hunt, part survival skills challenge and part relationship test.

Teams are eliminated each week, with the winning team walking away with $1 million.

Teams can be made up of friends, co-workers, family members, or couples.

The auditions on Saturday are open to the public and pre-registration is not required. However, there are certain basic eligibility requirements that Amazing Race outline on its web site.

They include the following:

● Both members of each team must be 21 years or older at the time of application.

● Both members of each team must be United States citizens and be living in the

United States.

● Both members of each team must be in excellent physical and mental health.

● Both members of each team must authorize producers to conduct a background

check.

● All semi-finalists will be required to complete and timely return the Medical

History Form (to be furnished to the selected applicants).

At the auditions, each team will have one minute to tell and/or show the talent scouts why they would make outstanding contestants.

Show producers say the types of people they are looking for are "strong-willed, outgoing, adventurous, physically and mentally adept, adaptable to new environments and have interesting lifestyles, backgrounds and personalities."