How to take a break from an amazing pace

CBS’ “The Amazing Race” winds up its eighth season this month, and the globetrotting show’s title is an apt description of its improbable journey to three straight Emmys.

Yet for co-creators/producers Elise Doganieri and husband Bertram Van Munster, the race never ends -- they’re already up and running on Season 9. “I travel 250,000 air miles a year for the show,” Doganieri said. “I think I age five years for every season.”

Eat at Joe’s

On Friday, my husband and I will get together with friends for dinner in our Venice neighborhood. The last thing we want to do on a weekend at home is to have to travel any distance, and we can walk to Joe’s on Abbot Kinney. We love their California cuisine, and they do a slow-roasted salmon that’s just so juicy and tender. The soups are all delicious, and the carrot curry soup is really spectacular.

Afterward we might go to a nearby bar, maybe Primitivo, which has great tapas and sangria, or the Other Room, which is a happy-hour type of place. It’s got a nice window and the doors are wide open. I’m from New York, and it has that kind of feel to it. It’s like a little piece of home for me.

On the bike path

On Saturday we’ll get up early and take off on our road bikes. I did the AIDS/LifeCycle ride a while back -- 600 miles from San Francisco to L.A. I trained five months for it, and I’ve been riding ever since.

We go to a restaurant on the Strand in Hermosa Beach called Good Stuff. It’s got great omelets and waffles, and the coffee’s good too. It’s about 20 miles round trip. We used to race, because we’re both very competitive people, but now we just enjoy the ocean and the fresh air and clear our heads.

When we get back home, I’ll give some special attention to our dog, a Jack Russell named Jetson. I usually bring him to the office during the week, but on weekends I like to get him outside at the dog park in Venice. I’ll play with him and read the paper. Then I’ll drop him off and go shopping for dinner. I love Whole Foods Market for the organic things, and the prepared meals are nice during the week.

If we’re having friends over on a Saturday, I’ll make something I saw in a Barefoot Contessa cookbook -- turkey meatloaf. It sounds so ordinary, but people seem to love it, and the mashed potatoes with sour cream. So I’ll do the cooking, Bertram will handle the drinks, and we’ll have some good music and good conversation. We’ve got some great stories to tell.

Staying fit

On Sunday I’ll go to Y.A.S. for a combination yoga and spinning class, then I’ll come home and make breakfast, maybe real oatmeal with bananas, brown sugar and raisins. Bertram makes a nice juice drink with beets, apples, carrots and kale.

Then we might take a drive up the coast to Malibu. There’s something about the ocean and the sand up there. Later we could have lunch with Bertram’s daughter, maybe at the Third Street Promenade, which is always fun.

After that, we might catch a movie or go to the Santa Monica Farmers Market. Then we’ll go home and rest up for our salsa lessons Monday at Mor in Santa Monica.

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-- Mark Sachs