Down with a cold and not feeling well after attending a daylong meeting in Augusta, I felt wonderful curling up in my overstuffed chair Tuesday night for an evening of nothing but reality TV.

With pints of Ben and Jerry’s in hand, the Man on the Couch and I watched Nicky G. get booted off “The Biggest Loser” on NBC and then tuned in to the premiere of “The Amazing Race: Family Edition.”

Okay, so there was nothing else on that aroused my interest at 9 p.m. But I must admit I got so hooked on CBS’ two-hour premiere of “The Race” that I forgot to change the channel halfway through to watch “Law and Order: Special Victims Unit” (which, by the way, upset the Man on the Couch when at 10:30 p.m. he realized we were still in reality world).

The “Race” isn’t the most fascinating reality TV this season, but one family impressed me. The Blacks, despite being the last team to arrive at the pit stop and having been eliminated, were my favorite to watch.

Unlike the show’s first seven seasons, this time families of four, some parents with small children and other groups of grown siblings, are racing to the finish line. The little ones haven’t slowed things down, and the pace of the show seems as if it will keep up with previous seasons.

The best part about Tuesday night was watching Reggie and Kim Black allow their two sons, Kenneth, 11, and Austin, 8, to participate in every step along the way.

Whether it was paddling a rowboat across the Delaware River or building a waterwheel in Amish country, the boys received words of encouragement and praise for trying their best.

Austin is the youngest contestant ever to appear on the show, and his big brother cheered him on rather than getting frustrated that Austin’s shorter legs slowed them down a little. It was a switch from the normal attitude that competition sometimes brings out in people.

Take the Paolo family from Carmel, N.Y., for example.

The two teenage sons belittled and yelled at their mother throughout the entire leg of the race. The Blacks on the other hand never gave up, and although sad that they weren’t the fastest, Reggie and Kim made sure to tell their sons how proud they were. Even Man on the Couch said at the end of the show that he was sad to see them go.

It just proves that family isn’t about money and being the best, and this reality TV stuff really is addictive.