Long Island Team Stars on ‘The Amazing Race’

"Tears of a Clown (Santa Barbara, Argentina)"--In this Active Route Marker, Friends Joey (left) and Danny (right) must make 120 empanadas. (Photo: Robert Voets/CBS)

Two Long Island natives who will appear in the upcoming season of The Amazing Race might be big time partiers, but don’t think it’s lost on them that a higher power will be monitoring their every move when the show premiers Sunday night.

“I think me and Joey ran the race with a part of our mind on the fact that our moms watch the show,” said Danny Horal, who along with his partner Joey Lasalla, discussed the new season of CBS’ hit show in an interview with the Press.

Horal, 27, and Lasalla, 29, are competing in the 20th season of the reality show that takes 11 teams in a race around the world. The last team standing will win the coveted $1 million prize.

The dynamic partying-duo couldn’t reveal all the details of the race during their interview with the Press, and it was unclear where they were holed up as they spoke about how they came to be friends, but their burgeoning friendship is a story perfectly suited for a reality show.

Horal, of Holbrook, earns a living as a nightclub promoter. Lasalla, who grew up in Atlantic Beach but currently resides in Whitestone, Queens, runs his own supplement business.

Both have family members who still live on Long Island.

The two friends met about a decade ago when they were both partying in the Jersey Shore and ended up face-to-face in a battle on the dance floor.

“He was dancing,” explained Lasalla. “And I hopped in and kinda danced battled…and we’ve been good friends ever since.”

“Just want to be clear,” joked Horal, “we weren’t waltzing around the club.”

The enthusiastic pair went into the show knowing there would be comparisons to the “Jersey Shore kids” but they feel like their performance will bring a “positive perception” to others who frequent the popular New Jersey hot spot.

"Tears of a Clown (Santa Barbara, Argentina)" --Friends Joey (left) and Danny (right) make their way to the staring line at Bridlewood Winery in Santa Barbara, Ca. (Photo: Robert Voets/ CBS Broadcasting)

“We have a lot better character…and there’s a lot more than partying and drinking like those kids do on every episode,” said Danny, referring to the MTV reality show Jersey Shore.

“We’re defintley trying to shock the world,” added Lasalla.

Despite their sweet tooth for fun, the LI team said they went into the race with a “do or die attitude.” They weren’t interested in making enemies, Horal said, but they still understood what was at stake.

“It is for $1 million,” said Lasalla. “It’s not like you’re winning 50 bucks here.”

Those familiar with the Emmy award-winning show know that the stress involved with the race inevitably leads teams to heated arguments, and the pair from Long Island were no different. Fortunately, they were able to find a middle ground on occasion, the pair said.

“I wasn’t really worried about our friendship being ruined by this,” said Horal. “If anything I thought it would get better, which it has.”

And despite there athleticism they said nothing can prepare you for a race around the world.

“You just can’t really train specifically for the race,” Horal added. “Because you go through things you never go through, there’s nothing at the gym that can prepare you for this.”

So, how did they do? They couldn’t say. Long Island is just going to have to check out the show to find out if they win the $1 million prize.

But before the interview was over, they did leak one tidbit of information.

“You’ll definitely be laughing,” said Horal.