For Bellevue Cop, Journey To 'The Amazing Race' Began Years Ago

BELLEVUE, WA - Bellevue police Officer Seth Tyler's journey to compete on CBS' globe-hopping reality series "The Amazing Race" has been pretty great for him - but maybe not for his younger brother.

Two years ago , Tyler, a big fan of the show, asked his younger brother, a firefighter in Portland, Ore., if he would join him in applying to be on the show. His brother agreed, but that season's theme was couples on blind dates, and so the Tyler brothers had to put the idea aside.

Then, out of the blue, the producers called Tyler last spring and asked him if he'd like to audition for the 29th season. This season, unlucky for Tyler's brother, pairs up strangers, not brothers.

"My brother was very understanding; he said, 'go for it,'" Tyler, 37, told Patch.com.

He flew down to Los Angeles and interviewed with casting directors and producers; he took IQ tests and background tests. The process was pretty similar to becoming a police officer, he said.

The season filmed over four weeks last summer. Tyler took a month off from work - he told his coworkers he was going on a back-country hiking trip with his dad - and traveled around the world filming the season. The only people who knew were his parents, Chief Steve Mylett, and City Manager Brad Miyake.

Tyler can't say what happened during that month, however - you'll have to watch the show. He did say that the filming is exhausting. There's no down time, and participants are constantly traveling, mostly sleeping on planes or in airports.

Working in Bellevue gave him some unique preparation for the show. Participants have to rely on the people in the countries they travel to for guidance. Because of Bellevue's diversity - the city is split evenly between whites and minority groups - Tyler has experience communicating with all different types.

"Working in a city that's essentially a microcosm of the world is huge," he said.

Tyler's been with Bellevue police for 11 years. He began as an officer in Oregon - he grew up in the Portland area - and then got a business degree from Oregon State University. He started out in Bellevue as a motorcycle traffic cop, but for the last three years, he's been the department's public information officer.

Because of this season's "strangers" theme, Tyler was hoping to be paired with someone else with military or law enforcement experience.

"That was my biggest hope and fear, that I'd get a partner who wouldn't be able to do something or would cause drama," he said.

Tyler broke the news this week that he would be on the show as CBS released details about the new season. And it turns out he has a built-in fan base at work.

"There are some 'Amazing Race' super-fans in the Bellevue police department, and so they had to have their selfie taken with me as soon as they found out," he said.

Super-fan or not, you can watch Tyler compete starting March 30 at 10 p.m. on KIRO 7.

Image via CBS/The Amazing Race