Mario Kart 64 Shortcuts

It is my intention to make this site the most comprehensive list of MK64 shortcuts on the web. Any other shortcuts which are in the works or not verified may be listed in the Rumors section, which is completely separate from the legitimate shortcuts. This list will highlight the major shortcuts which can be done in 1P mode, with an emphasis on the Time Trial shortcuts.

Here you will find all of the known shortcuts plus some background of how they were discovered:

Luigi Raceway 1 - Over the wall
inventor: Jeos Oreamuno
May 1997

After coming out of the tunnel in Luigi Raceway, head toward the part where the gray wall meets the brick wall off to your left. Look for the sixth brick from the left, and use a mushroom to blast toward it (right behind a tree). Now jump with the R button as soon as you hit the wall. If all goes well, you'll jump over the wall and skip the final curve of the course, saving you some precious seconds. Note: This trick is hard to do consistently.

More comments:
One day Jeos stumbled upon this amazing shortcut, but he had some difficulty re-creating it. His friend had heard about some of my discoveries and revealed the shortcut to me after I had helped him out with some of my shortcuts. He wanted to know if I could somehow re-create the shortcut given only the knowledge that it occurred over the brick wall not too far from the gray wall. Much to my amazement, I had figured out how to re-create it within two hours of receiving the e-mail! Since that time, I have used the sixth brick from the left as a rough approximation for doing the shortcut. I give all the credit to Jeos, since he initially found it.

Here you can see the original email that was sent to me regarding this revolutionary shortcut!

Luigi Raceway 2 - Blue shell
inventor: David Wonn
April 1997

This one works really well in 1P GP mode, and it will work in any mode except Time Trial. Get the Blue Spiny Shell on the second lap and hold on to it until you reach the end of the lap. Also make sure that you are in 1st place as you approach the final lap. At the very beginning of the final lap, fire the Blue Shell straight ahead, and then make a quick turn to the left. If all goes well, the shell will knock you over the wall, and you'll land inside the tunnel, skipping half of the course!

More comments:
I had always been curious to see if the wall at the beginning could be skipped since the wall seemed suspiciously thin. I remember playing in Vs. mode with other people and knocking them off some of the courses with a well-timed shell. So I thought to myself, “What would I do if someone had fired a Blue Shell at me? I’d want to use it to my advantage, of course!” The greatest part about this shortcut is that you can do it in 1P GP mode with your own shell! I initially kept this one a secret until I decided to show it off before the final round of a local tournament. Everyone was amazed when they saw that I could use their own weapons against them! It was illegal to use shortcuts like jumping walls, but they didn’t say that I couldn’t use Blue Shells to my advantage. Unfortunately I never really had the opportunity to use it in the final round, but I still won the tournament anyway so I guess it didn’t really matter.

Koopa Troopa Beach 1 & 2

Use the ramp just before the tunnel and jump just before you reach the end of the ramp. A mushroom is helpful, but not required. The other one is just a matter of driving through a narrow sandbar by veering off to the right just after the archway. It’s not as effective as the other one.

More comments:
These shortcuts are quite possibly the only ones that were actually meant to be in the game. Since they really are a part of the course, and everyone knows about them, many pros don’t recognize these as shortcuts. They’re considered “preferred lines” by many, and I sometimes just simply classify them as “corner cutters”.

BTW, for those who don’t know, I have found out back in February 1997 that you can jump the small wall which leads to the entrance of the cave. It’s not much, but it’s very handy if you happen to miss the ramp, or if you’re playing against others who just love to set traps on the ramps.

Kalimari Desert 1 - Star shortcut
inventor: ???
circa March 1997

If you manage to get a Star on either of the first two laps, head toward the tunnel by taking a left at the second railroad crossing. Just before you enter the tunnel, activate the Star and the lap counter will increase at a certain point inside the tunnel.

More comments:
Even though this has been printed on Nintendo’s web site, I’d still like to know who actually discovered it. Since Nintendo has been known to take some of my tricks without giving proper credit (ahem, Frappe, cough, Snowland, cough), I can’t help but feel that some talented individual out there may be getting ripped off. It’s also possible that someone at Nintendo may have discovered it, but I really don’t know for sure. If anyone knows anything about who discovered this shortcut, please send me an e-mail.

Kalimari Desert 2 - Blue shell
inventor: F. Gerald Caruso
circa April 1997?

This trick requires a Shell, so it cannot be done in Time Trial. After getting a Blue Shell, take a left at the first railroad crossing and travel through the cave. Shortly after exiting, fire the shell and head directly toward it. This impact of the shell should send you over the guardrail and shorten the course significantly. Unlike my trick in Luigi Raceway, you don’t have to be in first place to make this trick work.

More comments:
Although I have encountered this shortcut myself as a corollary to my blue shell trick in Luigi Raceway, I give the credit to F. Gerald Caruso since it is quite possible that he discovered it before I did. I have to admit it’s quite a clever shortcut, and it provides a good alternative to the Star shortcut.

Toad’s Turnpike
inventor: David Wonn
revealed on March 12, 1997

Select any driver and make sure to have the map selected on your screen. Drive along the regular course until you come to the part where the map overlaps itself. Now make a sharp 90 degree turn to the right, and head for the guardrail, but keep jumping with the R button until your kart lands on top of the guardrail. At this point Lakitu will tow you back onto the course as usual. As soon as Lakitu sets you down, hold both the A and B buttons down and hold the analog stick to the right, so that your driver will do a spin turn. Do the spin turn until your kart is facing 90 degrees to the right, and release the analog stick and the B button. At this point, you will see your kart driver from a profile view. Now jump with the R button before you make contact with the guardrail. If all goes well, you will jump through the wall and off the course into a lake. Depending on where you land, Lakitu may tow you onto a later section of the course!

If you don't end up going through the wall and end up on the guardrail instead, then repeat the process beginning with the spin turn to right. You should eventually get this to work, but it takes a LOT of practice. Lakitu always tows you to whichever part of the track is closest, so make sure to aim for someplace near the later section of the track. If your jump is really precise, you may end up landing on the track below instead of in the water. Sometimes Lakitu will tow you ahead even if you just land on the guardrail, but this is quite rare. With this trick, I have managed to improve my overall score to 1'48"40 and my lap score to 32"86 [those were my scores back in March 1997!], both with Yoshi. Don't be surprised if it takes a long time before you get it to work the first time. It is possible to get this trick to work on a semi-regular basis if you are really good at it.

After 3½ years of holding back, I'm revealing an even better way to do this infamous shortcut! The AB spin turn is NOT required to pull off the shortcut. That's right, just simply turn into the wall as quickly as you can, and you can still do the shortcut. Here is Kevin Booth's video which accurately demonstrates this more efficient method.

More comments:
This is quite possibly my proudest accomplishment in MK64, and it is one of my personal favorite shortcuts. I found this one as a result of some bad habits, or instincts, that I carried over from playing the original SMK. I had accidentally come close to the guardrails, and my instincts from SMK told me to jump, so I ended up on top of the guardrail. After playing around with the guardrail enough times, I eventually fell through and even past the wall. When I saw cars off in the distance, the idea finally came to me that I should try it out at the place where the track overlaps itself. Sure enough, I was able to do it, and now the rest is history…

For those who are interested, I still have the original e-mails that I sent out on March 12, 1997, which shows my initial impressions of the shortcut. Click here to view the text.

Frappe Snowland 1 - Lap skip
inventor: David Wonn
May 1997

I have discovered a shortcut which can reduce your total score to less than the length of a single lap! Unlike my Toad's Turnpike and Yoshi Valley shortcuts, this one is actually easy to pull off. At the very end of the course drive across the bridge, but do not touch any part of the track between the bridge and the finish line. Instead, veer off to the right after you reach the end of the bridge and drive off the course into the snow until you reach the finish line. At this point, drive further off the course so that Lakitu will pick you up. If everything is done correctly, Lakitu will tow you back to the bridge, and you will skip an entire lap! If you do this on all three laps (go backwards in the first lap), your score will be reduced significantly.

More comments:
This shortcut is probably the only shortcut I invented which is both easy to do AND very effective. As a result it makes this course the fastest track in the game, second only to Wario Stadium. This shortcut is also one of the few that was intentional, rather than completely accidental. One day I was playing around near the bridge and found that the snow had some weird properties whenever I veered off into it and was picked up by Lakitu. I initially found a way to LOSE a lap. Once I had figured out why I lost an entire lap, I understood the weird properties of the snow well enough. It was then just a matter of reversing the process, and the rest is history.

BTW, some of you may have noticed in Nintendo Power magazine Volume 102, that they heard about the shortcut from “several clever fans via our web site.” If you ever wondered who they were referring to and hadn’t heard about this on the Internet many MONTHS before NP stole it, now you know its background.

Here's one of my first emails I sent out regarding my discovery.

Frappe Snowland 2 - Warp glitch
inventors: David Wonn and MK64EC independently
March 1997

This shortcut is based on a glitch that I found back in March 1997. It's not as effective as my other Frappe Snowland shortcut, but it is more fun to try out. Go to the ramp which takes you over the stream of water and veer off to the left (or to the right) so that you land in some snow, and make sure that you never touch the track. Continue to drive in the snow until you are roughly halfway around the course. Now drive outside the limits so that Lakitu will pick you up. Depending on where you do this, some very strange results could happen:
1. Lakitu takes you in the air for a while and then you "warp" to the finish line, gaining half a lap.
2. Lakitu drops you in some water for a couple seconds, and then you "warp" to the finish line as above.
3. Lakitu takes you to the finish line, but you lose half a lap instead.
4. Lakitu drops you in the water and just lets you drown.
These are only a few possibilities, so try it in many different locations to get different results.

More comments:
I found this one long before the other shortcut, but I just kept it a secret for a while. The lap-skipping shortcut is pretty much a corollary to this one. Again this is related to the weird properties of the snow, and this one often yields some of the weirdest glitches in the game, including the warp glitch, which is seen once again in Royal Raceway. I had hoped to accomplish more than just a half-lap skip with this one, but once I invented the other shortcut, I found this one to be pretty much inferior, but it still is fun to play around with.

Choco Mountain 1 - Jump the wall
inventors: numerous sources
April 1997

Drive through Choco Mountain as usual until you come to the part where you can see the overpass on your left. In the time trial mode you can see a guardrail to your left. Go to the part just before it starts going downhill and then turn 90 degrees to your left. Drive into the wall and press the R button to jump at about the moment you hit it, and you will jump right over the wall! You will not only save some precious seconds but also avoid the risk of becoming a smear on the road by one of those boulders.

More comments:
Let’s face it: The big wall in this level has often aroused suspicion to many Mario Karters out there, and I can’t imagine how many people eventually figured this one out independently. I found this one completely on my own, but I seriously doubt that I was the only one.

Choco Mountain 2 - Jump-scaling
inventor: David Wonn
June 1997

If you have fast fingers or a turbo controller, you may want to try this alternative instead of jumping over the guardrail. After completing seven-sixteenths of a lap, go immediately to the left and "jump-scale" the mountain. By this I mean to rapidly jump with R button while driving into the mountain. If you do this in the right place, you will completely clear the mountain, and your kart will flip for a few seconds and land just behind the three hills immediately behind the finish line. This shortcut can get you to the finish line just as quickly as the one where you jump over the guardrail.

Choco Mountain 3 - The biggest and most difficult
inventor: David Wonn
June 1997

This shortcut is a more difficult alternative, but it is the best shortcut of the 4 that are in this course. Just before you reach the big hill prior to the overpass area, go directly into the wall on your left. Drive into it at full speed and jump as you hit it. If you do this in the right place, you will clear the wall and land in the same area as in shortcut #2. This will save you quite a few more seconds per lap than the previous two.

Choco Mountain 4 - At the start
inventor: David Wonn
June 1997

Last and certainly least is one that is loosely inspired by my Toad's Turnpike shortcut, but this one isn't as effective. At the very beginning of the course, just drive about one kart length forward from the start line and drive into the wall on your left with the aid of a mushroom. Jump with the R button as you hit it, and you might land on top of the mountain. If you do it properly, Lakitu will pick you up and place you right at the tunnel. This works pretty well in the 150cc, especially if you have a Gold Mushroom, but it doesn’t appear to work in Time Trial mode. One nice thing about it though is that you can use it in conjunction with any one of the three previous shortcuts to really smoke the competition.

More comments:
I invented all the three shortcuts above all in the same 24-hour period! They were all simply a result of my deep curiosity, and I just knew that there had to be more than just one shortcut. This is one of the first courses where I made use of my “jump-scaling” skills, as well as Koopa Troopa Beach.

Here you can see one of the first emails I sent out to various people regarding the discoveries in Choco Mountain.

Mario Raceway
initially posted on N64HQ.com
March 1997

Drive through Mario Raceway until you reach the part where the track starts going uphill. This is just shortly before you come across the big mushroom. To your right, you will see off in the distance two walls which meet and form an upside-down T-shape. Ordinarily if you were following the track, you’d be just about to turn left. Instead, use a mushroom when you get to the corner of the turn and turn right. You will need to jump using the R button and try to aim so that you land on the right side of the wall.. If all goes well, you’ll fly over the wall and cut out a large portion of the track, and end up just shortly before the large pipe tunnel.

More comments:
At first, the N64HQ mentioned a method of jumping the wall, but it involved veering off to the left. I was one of the people who figured out that the shortcut could be improved by veering off to the right instead, so I sent them this e-mail on March 5 and they included the improvement in their strategy section.

Wario Stadium 1&2 - Double half-lap-skippers
inventors: numerous sources
established prior to February 12, 1997

The first part is easy; just drive into the wall at the beginning of the course at full speed and jump just before you hit the wall. It is recommended to use any of the four hills at the beginning to increase your chances of jumping the wall. The next step is trickier and will require some practice. Head back toward the wall which you just jumped over, but look at the part where the finish line is. Drive at full speed toward the spot where the finish line intersects the wall, and jump just before you hit the wall. If your timing is right, you will jump over the wall. Be sure that you land behind the finish line, or the trick won't work. Now drive past the finish line to get a very fast lap. If you manage to take both shortcuts on all three laps, you can finish the entire course in less than half a minute. It is possible to do both shortcuts without using any mushrooms.

More comments:
I found the first half-lap-skipper within a week of the American release date, but the shortcuts were SO obvious, that it would be nearly impossible to figure out just how many people found the shortcuts. It has even been brought to my attention that these shortcuts were even used BEFORE the U.S. version was released by some people who imported the Japanese version.

Wario Stadium - Many other wall jumps

Nearly every wall in the stadium is jumpable in at least one spot, so it would be virtually impossible to list every shortcut. There are some fairly significant ones before and after the big ramp, but the ones near the finish line are the only ones you’ll need if you’re going for the fastest possible time, at least for now…

Royal Raceway 1 - Skip the creek
inventor: ???
March 1997

In Royal Raceway, you would normally take the big ramp to get across the water. However, if you have mushrooms, then you can skip a large portion of the course. At the start of the course, drive past the first few turns, and drive roughly halfway across the stretch of track which is parallel to the stream of water. At this point, turn 90 degrees to the left, use a mushroom, and press the R button to try to jump over the water. You will hit the land on the other side and fall into the water. If this is done in the right place, Lakitu will tow you onto the ramp itself, and you'll skip a significant portion of the course.

More comments:
Again this is another shortcut I have found on my own, but I believe that someone else may have found it before I did. If anyone happens to know who was first to find this one, please send me an e-mail.

Royal Raceway 2 - From the bridge in 150cc
initially posted on N64HQ.com
March 1997

When you reach the big ramp, power-slide to the left and try to take off from the left-most corner of the ramp. You will want to aim between the mountain and where the item boxes are located in GP mode. If this shortcut is done properly, Lakitu will place you right where the item boxes are located.

More comments:
This shortcut was originally found in the 150cc GP mode since it’s much easier to do with enough speed. From what I read on their site, I had the impression that it could be done in Time Trial as well. So I tried it out and one day back in March I managed to pull it off. I tried many times to re-create it, but I had no luck getting it to work again. It took several MONTHS before I finally figured out how to do it in Time Trial once again, and I even found a glitch in the process. See the trick below for more details.

Royal Raceway 3 - Warp glitch
inventor: David Wonn
first occurrence in March 1997
recreated and finally revealed in August 1997

The shortcut from the ramp can be done in Time Trial as well the one where you jump across the river, but it is difficult. First use a lightweight and do the shortcut across the river, so that Lakitu takes you to the ramp. As soon as Lakitu sets you down, start a power-slide to the left. Make the smoke turn red and try to get close to the leftmost corner of the ramp. Turn approximately 45 degrees to the left, but DON'T execute the mini-turbo. Hold the R button for the duration of the jump. Ideally you will want to travel as far as possible, but land on some dirt. When you land, you'll hear your character make a sound as if a mini-turbo had just been executed (e.g. Toad will say "Yahoo"). If you did this in the right place, Lakitu you place you where the last set of item boxes are normally located in GP mode. This shortcut doesn't really save you as much time as you would think, but if you are REALLY lucky, Lakitu might hold you high in the air for a couple seconds, and then you'll "warp" to the finish line, just like he does in one of my Frappe Snowland shortcuts. You may want to practice this in 150cc mode before you attempt to try it in Time Trial mode. Good luck!

More comments:
Since many people consider the warp glitch a separate shortcut, I decided to list it separately. There was some controversy over a time that Jim Quinn had claimed, so I decided to see if I could reach a time close enough to his. In some ways, it was his time that inspired me to look for another shortcut, but it was mostly due to the fact that I had made the shortcut from the ramp in Time Trial mode and had difficulty re-creating it. The warp glitch still eludes me to this date, and I’m not exactly sure what causes it other than the fact that you just have to hit the right spot with near-perfect precision. I’ve only been able to get the warp glitch to work occasionally, but never on all 3 laps. Even if I do get it to work on all 3 laps, I’m still not sure if I can reach Quinn’s alleged score with this technique. See the Rumors section for possibilities for more potential shortcuts and unconfirmed rumors.

DK’s Jungle Parkway 1 - Lap skip
inventor: ???
March 1997

At the beginning of the course, go backwards to get into the cave, and then start heading back in the right direction until you approach the very end of the cave. Drive straight into the part where the left wall of the cave meets the ground and jump with the R button. If you did it correctly, you will fall off the course and land in some hidden lake. If you did this with the correct angle, Lakitu will put you back into the cave, but you will have skipped almost an entire lap. If the angle is wrong, Lakitu will not place you inside the cave, so you may need to keep trying the trick until you've figured out precisely which angle you should use before you jump off the course. I have found out that it is possible to land inside the cave instead of the water, but you have to land at the rightmost edge of the cave to pull that one off. It is possible to achieve scores which are less than a minute if you do this on every lap.

More comments:
Once again, I’d really like to meet the talented individual who found this shortcut. I don’t know whether or not someone is getting ripped off again, as in the cases with the Kalimari Star Shortcut and my Frappe Snowland shortcut. I have to admit that I probably wouldn’t have ever come up with the DK’s JP shortcut myself, so I’d really like to be able to give credit to someone. I did, however find that the original shortcut could be improved by landing just inside the cave rather than into the water, and as a result I was among the first to reach a score in the lower 30s.

DK’s Jungle Parkway 2 - Warp to bridge
inventor: David Wonn
February 1997

Near the beginning, drive to the part where you can see a small island on your left and the bridge to your right. Instead of turning right to go in a loop to reach the bridge, turn left and jump in order to land on the small island. A mushroom or mini-turbo is highly recommended here. Lakitu will then place you at the bridge, but it won’t save a whole lot of time.

More comments:
This shortcut was completely intentional, as I wanted to see if I could force Lakitu to put be on the bridge. It doesn’t really save much time, and I’d rather just use the lap-skipper to get the best possible time.

DK’s Jungle Parkway 3 - Jump the guardrail
February 1997

When you reach the part where you can see the bridge off to your right, try to jump over the guardrail. This will save a couple seconds of time.

More comments:
I found this one shortly after figuring out how to jump walls in Wario Stadium. The real trick to this one is to make sure to turn around after you make the jump.

DK’s Jungle Parkway 4 - Veer off to the left
most likely known before February 12, 1997

This is really just a corner-cutter, and it’s well known to everyone. When you get to the bridge, veer off to the left and try to see how far you can veer without falling into the water.

DK’s Jungle Parkway 5 - Another warp
inventor: David Wonn
May 1997??

This one is a little bit tricky and seems to work better in 150cc GP mode on the second and third laps. After landing from the bridge, go toward the left as usual and continue down the path until you come to the part where you'd normally turn right. Instead of turning right, try to go straight ahead but veer outside the course and try to get to the narrow ledge outside of the course. Even if you don't make it, sometimes Lakitu will put you ahead on a further section of the track. It's difficult to pull off, so practice it in the 150cc mode first.

More comments:
My original intention for this one was to see if I could jump onto the narrow ledge outside the track. I was surprised when I found that Lakitu had put me further ahead on the track. The warp seems to have similar properties as the warp in Toad’s Turnpike. Now, if I could just figure out what exactly causes it…

DK’s Jungle Parkway 6 - Jump to narrow bridge
May 1997?

When you get to the next section where you can see the river off to the left (right where you'd land from shortcut 5, which is the next section beyond), go off the track as in shortcut 5 and onto a narrow ledge. Now just before you have no place left to drive, jump off and try to aim for the bridge off in the distance. This shortcut is also tricky, but if successful, you can land directly on the bridge and save a little time.

More comments:
Once again, I wanted to see if I could reach the narrow ledge outside the track. It can be difficult to hit the bridge just right, but this one is a lot of fun to pull off.

DK’s Jungle Parkway 7 - Cave detour
most likely known before February 12, 1997

This is really just a corner-cutter and nearly everyone knows about this one. At the hairpin turn inside the cave, you can drive up the wall sooner by cutting the corner much sooner. Why would anyone want to take the longer route anyway?

Yoshi Valley 1 - Lap skip v. 1.0
inventor: David Wonn
April 1997

Who says you have to go around the track in Yoshi Valley? With this shortcut, you can cut the entire track out of consideration. First picture an imaginary line extended from the finish line out to the left, and look at the spot where this line meets with another section of track (it's right about where the guardrail ends). This is the spot you will want to aim for.

At the start of the course, go forward just a little bit until the very first tree on the left is directly to your left. Now turn around so that you are facing the spot that I mentioned above. Note: these locations are only approximate, but with LOTS of practice you'll figure it out. Now use a mushroom and jump just before you start to go down a steep hill. If everything is done correctly, you will jump over the fence and hit the side of the remote track, and then you will fall down into the valley. At this point, Lakitu will tow you back to the finish line. If everything is done with perfect precision, you will skip an entire lap! Don't expect this to work the first time you try it. With lots of practice and near-perfect precision, you can get a lap score in less than 10 seconds.

More comments:
My original intention for this shortcut was to see if I could jump to the remote track from the start. I was really surprised when after trying it a few times, I actually tricked the lap counter! It took me at least an hour or two before I could re-create it a second time, but once I realized that it was similar to some shortcuts I found in the original SMK, I then knew what I needed to do.

Here is an early email I sent out regarding this shortcut.

Yoshi Valley 2 - Skip the hairpin
inventors: numerous sources
February 1997

Just beyond the section where you come across the porcupines, you'll see a hairpin turn on the map. This hairpin can be skipped by powersliding off to the left and jumping before you leave the track. Watch your speed! It's easy to jump too far, which could be a disaster. Practice is the key to perfecting this corner-cutter.

More comments:
This one has been posted just about everywhere and found by a number of sources. The varying of elevation in the track must have aroused suspicion for a possible shortcut. Many people now consider this just a corner-cutter rather than a shortcut, ever since my creation of the lap-skipper.

Yoshi Valley 3 - Lap skip v. 2.0
inventors: Iacopo Sorce and David Wonn, independently (both in 150cc GP)
circa May 1997
first Time Trial occurrence by Mike Simmons, circa 1998

Just when you thought one lap skip was good enough, think again! First, go around the track for a lap as usual, but stop when you get to the end of the end of the bridge after the giant egg. Now drive uphill just a little bit and look off to your left and see where the fence begins. This is also where the fun begins. :-) See the tree nearest the beginning of the fence? The small area between that tree and the beginning of the fence is the spot where this shortcut takes place.

Give yourself some distance and drive toward this spot. Make sure to set up a good powerslide and execute a mini-turbo just before you reach the "drop of death". Try to fall in such a way that you are almost parallel with the fence, but you will want to be slightly angled toward it, roughly 5 degrees or so. You will want to fall as far as you can into the valley, but try not to hit a wall until you are near the bottom. It's very difficult to explain, and even more difficult to do, but if everything goes well, you'll advance to the next lap just shortly before you hit the bottom. Lakitu will pick you up and place you down near where you fell off the track. Race to the finish line to get a very fast lap, possibly under 8 seconds. This shortcut is inferior to the old lap skip when it comes to setting a fast total score, but it is superior for lap scores.

If they say a picture is worth a thousand words, then a movie must be worth a million! Thanks to Jason Whalls for creating this video which accurately depicts how the shortcut is done. Please note: This movie will NOT play in Windows Media Player. For some reason, it will only work if you have Quicktime installed or if you have the Quicktime plugin for Netscape Communicator. In the future, I'll see about getting a more universally compatible movie file.

More comments:
One day I was playing Yoshi Valley in 150cc Grand Prix Mode with Bowser. One of my turns near the end of the track suddenly went ugly and I fell off the track. I was on lap 3, fell into the valley, and by accident just happened to stumble upon this shortcut. I struggled forever to try to recreate it. I was only able to do it once in 1997 and twice in 1998, but oddly enough, it happened with a heavyweight driver in lap 3 on each occasion! Since it occurred on the final lap I wasn't sure whether or not I was skipping a lap. Then later in 1998, Mike Simmons managed to hit it in Time Trial mode, so I knew there had to be a way to do it almost at will. After seeing Jason Whalls' video, I can now do it on a semi-regular basis in Time Trial mode.

Rainbow Road v. 1.0
initially posted on N64.com
February 1997

At the start, before you get air on the big, long hill, take a wide turn left off the course and into midair. If you've got the correct angle and speed, you'll fly through the air for nearly 5 seconds, and will land on the same course below. This shortcut will save you time immensely. Be careful though as it's easy to overshoot the track.

More comments:
This shortcut was revealed just shortly after the American release date, and is probably one of the most well known shortcuts to this date. It’s nice to have such a big shortcut for this enormous course.

Rainbow Road v. 2.0 - Spiral jump
inventor unknown
circa March 1997

Yes Virginia, there is a way to reach the spiral! First, make sure to select the zoom-out view. This is not required but it helps a lot. At the beginning, start off with a powerslide toward the left wall so that your kart is facing right. Make sure to get close to the left wall but don't hit it! Just as you are facing almost 90 degrees to the right, execute a SSMT (straight stretch mini-turbo) near the second red stripe past the start. You will now be heading toward the right wall. Now do a very hard left turn, nearly 180 degrees so that it is like a U-turn. As soon as you get close to the left wall, jump! You should be near the third red stripe, or possibly on a yellow stripe at this point. All of the above should occur in just under 4 seconds for this to work. If all goes well, you will clear the fence, and you may even feel a slight "lift" as you jump the leap of faith. If the angle is dead-on, and I do mean DEAD-ON, then you may be able to reach the top portion of the spiral. This will save almost ten more seconds than the regular shortcut. Please note: This is VERY hard to perform.

Here are some diagrams made by Alex Penev which will give you a pictorial idea of how this shortcut is done: (external links) Pic 1 Pic 2

More comments:
As if there weren't already enough confirmations from some very reliable sources, I had to do this myself anyway. :-) It would be very difficult to pinpoint when this shortcut was first landed and by whom. It is estimated that legitimate claims may have appeared as early as March 1997. I had a strong suspicion that it could be done, but it took me 2½ years to get it right! Many notable karters have accomplished this amazing feat, including Davey Alseike, Alex Penev, Myles Bukrim, Steven Zwartjes, Ben Miller, David Wonn, Mike Simmons, and Greg Ihnatenko.

Other shortcuts & corner-cutters:

The list above outlines the major shortcuts and significant corner-cutters. There are some minor corner-cutters such as jumping the cracks in Banshee Boardwalk and Sherbet Land, but since nearly every course has some corner-cutters, there isn’t much need to list them here.

I’d also like to point out that I have been working on some other shortcuts, some of which may even save more time than some of the ones listed above. Some of these shortcuts have only been accomplished once or twice, and I haven’t been able to re-create them. Since I haven’t perfected them yet, I have not revealed them to anyone yet (well, maybe to a few people, but they’re sworn to secrecy at this time). If I see a need to reveal them, I’ll put them in the Rumors section until either someone else or myself perfects the technique to these confidential shortcuts.

If anyone finds a new shortcut unlike anything seen before, please e-mail me and I’ll give you credit for brand new shortcuts. If I can verify that the shortcut works, I’ll include it with the list above. If I can’t verify it and if none of my reliable sources can verify it either, I may still consider putting it in the Rumors section. Even if you believe that you’ve stumbled upon a shortcut by accident, please inform me, and I may be able to help re-create the shortcut.