Amazing Race's Internet Lovers

There's one thing you can say for sure about Bob and Joyce: These senior citizens definitely don't look like your typical Internet-dating couple. Still, the latest team to face Philimination on CBS's The Amazing Race (Tuesdays, 10pm/ET) was also one of the most popular thanks to their upbeat attitudes, strong racing skills and all-around good-heartedness. Here the New Jersey natives reminisce about their first date, and look ahead to the future.

TV Guide Online: So tell us the story of how you met.
Joyce: We met through Match.com. I had been a widow for a long time and didn't have much of a personal life. I was raising my three children and working hard. My son, who is a software engineer, told me, "Mom, you need a life. Go on the Internet. It's the only way you'll be able to do this." And I said, "No way." But he insisted and helped me put my profile on Match.com. Lo and behold, Bob came on...
Bob: And I saw her profile. Actually, I passed over it several times because she looked like a girly girl and I was looking for someone who liked outdoor things. But one day, I read her profile and it said she likes outdoor activities. So I sent her an e-mail and the rest is history.
Joyce: For our first date, we had drinks at a local restaurant. Afterwards, Bob walked me to my car and when I got in, I thought, "Yes!"
Bob: I got back home that night and my daughter walked in. She knew I had had several dates on the Internet and so she asked, "Well, how'd this one go?" And I said, "This one went really well."
Joyce: We knew immediately that this was going to be a long-term thing. The race just sealed it.

TVGO: Whose idea was it to apply for TAR?
Bob: [Raising his hand] I was a fan of the show and, actually, I was already planning to do it with my brother-in-law. My hook was "Meet two brothers-in-law who actually get along." But then, I met Joyce and thought, "This will be a lot more fun." I knew she would go along with the application and I knew we were going to get picked. Two widowed people who met on the Internet and are active — we've got a few things going. Joyce didn't think so. Then we were picked.
Joyce: And I was like, "I really have to do this now! What in the world did I get myself in to?" But I would do it again in a heartbeat, as long as I didn't have to eat any more caviar!

TVGO: Yeah, that caviar challenge looked positively brutal.
Joyce: It was awful! We had already decided that I was going to do all the eating challenges because I eat virtually anything, and I do love caviar. But when I saw the amount of caviar, I was shocked! When I first started eating it, I was like, "Okay, this is gross, but I can eat it." But after a while you felt like you just had to throw up.

TVGO: Since you're both so Internet savvy, are you thinking of putting up your own website after the show is over?
Bob: I don't know. It would be nice to hear "Hey Bob and Joyce, I took your advice and I met someone." That's part of our story. We hope we can encourage people to take a chance and get out there and try again. Maybe they can be as lucky as we were.
Joyce: I would like to do that, if only to give people like us a means of support. If you are widowed or divorced, it doesn't make a difference how old you are. Put yourself out there. Take a chance. Every day is another experience. I tell my children this all the time: "Do something every day that scares you and you always will remain fresh." Bob laughed at me when I first told him that.
Bob: I had heard to do something that scares you every once in a while, not every day.
Joyce: Every day!

TVGO: Knowing what you know now, what would you do differently if you ran the race over again?
Bob: We'd probably try to work with the other teams a little bit more. Also, don't always believe the information you're given. Double-check and triple-check everything.
Joyce: Definitely stay connected to the other teams more; you never know what you can pick up. And the teams that are racing are very smart. It's so nice to see young people with so much intuition and the absolute moxie to put themselves out there and work it.
Bob: Overall, we're happy with the way we ran the race. We didn't want to screw anybody over or embarrass our children or ourselves. We knew we had a life to come back to after this — that was always in the back of our minds. We felt real good about doing the race the way we wanted to do it. And I think we had more fun than most people!
Joyce: Because of this experience, Bob and I are going to backpack in Greece next year. You can go anywhere in this world — you don't need a tour and you don't need luggage. You can carry everything you need on your back.

TVGO: So now that you've survived the race together, have you taken the next step?
Bob: We're not engaged yet, but we're confident that we have met the partner we want to spend the rest of our lives with. We're taking it a day at a time. This is real.
Joyce: This is for real. We'll be together. He knows that and I know that about him. What will follow will follow, and we'll just take each day as it comes. I always said I don't need $1 million, because $1 million is fleeting. I got the biggest prize of all: I got Bob. It sounds corny, but it's true.