5: Shell Cup Tracks

5: Shell Cup Tracks

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Shell Cup Tracks

GCN Peach Beach

Peach Beach looks wide-open, but it's pretty short, especially if you stay out of the sand. Let's just say you don't want to run into the Cataquacks patrolling the beach.
The big jumps: When you take the first turn after the start, you can sneak onto the pier, hang a right and launch off a boost jump, followed by another. It works pretty well, but you have to be mindful of the patch of land below the second jump: if the tide's in, you'll have to tread water briefly. In the worst case, you lose a place or two -- easy to get back if it's the first or second lap, maybe not so much on the final.
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Hug the wall: The track is mostly sand, but you can drive smoothly by staying on the cobblestone path that traces the right-hand cliffsides. With practice, you can successfully mini-turbo your way across, but the best opportunity will be at the final turn before the finish.
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DS Yoshi Falls

There isn't much that's remarkable about Yoshi Falls: wide tracks, a simple design, ample Item Boxes... what you'll have to watch out for, more than anything, are your opponents. Zooming ahead on such a wide-open track only to be ambushed by Blue Shells isn't too relaxing after all. At any rate, keep up the mini-turbos!
Shelter boost: The small covered bridge before the big turn in the southeast corner of the map is fitted with a boost strip, which allows you to jump the entire bridge. Get a leg up with a trick boost before leaving the ground.

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On the other hand: The waterfall on the right-hand side of the bridge can be boosted through for a slightly faster shortcut, and you have a chance of grabbing an item, to boot.

SNES Ghost Valley 2

The first SNES track is one of the more dangerous ones from the original Mario kart. Stay off the unguarded edges to avoid failure!
Watch the walls: The barriers on the track are composed of wooden blocks that will disappear when you bump into them, and will stay that way through the end of the race.
Short shortcut: After passing the first group of Item Boxes and before the second rotating one, you can boost over a small gap that effectively cuts the corner where the items are flying around. You absolutely have to boost, though, since the gap is just long enough.
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Finish line boost: A lone boost arrow lies just before the finish line, which launches you into a bumper that sends you flying forward. 427x240

N64 Mario Raceway

Mario Raceway is a simple track -- nothing but road and grass. The good thing is that grass can give you plenty of shortcut opportunities.
Shortcuts 1 & 2: Speed over the very first turn after the starting line. Then, do the same on the next corner after the first Item Boxes.
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Shortcuts 3 & 4: If you want to be bold, you could vault yourself over the edge of the big green hill to the left once you approach it. More importantly than that, though, is the grass around the big mushroom (following the second Item Boxes). Careful racers can boost between the Piranha plants standing there, and get a leg up. But it is risky, and will require some practice. 427x240
Shortcut 5: An obvious one: a lone checkerboard-patterned ramp sits out in the grass. Boost up and over when you can.
Shortcut 6 & Pipe tip: At the corner with the large Mario "GO" sign is another wide bit of grass to cut across. After that, you'll zoom through a large section of a pipe that is effectively a tunnel. It's possible to run up the side of it just before hitting the edge of the other side -- at that point you can actually perform a trick and get a little boost coming out of the pipe.
Final shortcut: Immediately after the pipe, you can again boost past a couple of Piranha plants and save one last sliver of time before the end of the lap.