We’ve seen other instances of famous characters switching their main roles to the world of racing. Mario was the first one, racing in karts, and then Sonic, almost fifteen years later, followed suit. Instead of karts, Sega chose a futuristic vehicle: the hover boards, called here Extreme Gears.

These Extreme Gears can take three shapes: boards, skates or motorcycles. They are all powered by an air tank, which depletes over time, even more if you use the turbo system. To recharge, you can do special tricks during jumps, or go through special zones available at each track. These special zones not only recharge your air tank, they also sometimes allow a little shortcut. To know where each special zone starts, there’s a monitor floating above it, with the screen showcasing the color of the specialty the zone affects: blue for Speed, yellow for Fly and red for Power.

Each character has only one specialty, however, there are special boards which grant another specialty: the Access allows non-Fly characters (save Eggman) to Fly, the Destroyer allows non-Power characters (except Ulala and E-10000R) to bash whatever they may come across, the Air Broom and the Grinder allow non-Speed characters (save Eggman for both, E-10000G for the Grinder) to grind through rails, and the Omnipotence allows any character to use any specialty. Don’t rush yourself: the Omnipotence doesn’t charge air when taking advantage of any specialty, even your character’s default one, so it’s not as good as you may think. The other specialty-granting Gears do charge air when exploiting any specialty, but don’t expect them to be the fastest around the track either.

An important thing to note is how the Fly and Speed zones are deployed. Fly zones are a set of floating rings that boost you through, and Speed zones are rails, or whatever similar to it, that can be broken down in parts, meaning you must do a small jump when one part ends and the next one starts. Power zones simply have objects you can bash to get some speed and air for your tank, so they’re always consistent. One more point to note is that some jumps enable access to completely different parts of the track when jumping greatly, so you might miss the special zones. These parts of the track can be seen as a reward for jumping high, since they are free of dangers and can somewhat serve as alternate shortcuts.

One last thing to note is that, in reality, there are only 8 tracks, because the other 8 are just variants of the already existing tracks. These variants can be completely different to the original, have a similar theme or share parts of the original track. This is the explanation behind the similarities you may find below.

Getting into business, here’s a list of all tracks, the special zones available for each specialty and if they are useful or not. Also, after each track, I will add any zones that can be missed by the aforementioned high jumps, as well as a personal opinion on the best specialty to use, based on lap times and overall flow of the lap. Each original track has its variant immediately below.

Metal City

Speed: Entering the first hairpin, to the right, there’s a two-part rail that covers the whole tunnel. Not very useful as shortcut, since the hairpin is easy to deal with at high speeds. There’s another single-part rail a while before the second hairpin, to the left when exiting the traffic tunnels and before crossing the street. You must head through the “half-pipe” that goes upwards and then jump to get to the rail. It’s very complicated to get, and it ends very quickly, right before the hairpin, so it’s a waste of time, even to get some air. Sure, you will risk having very little air left if you abuse the turbo system, but your lap time will be faster whatever you do except taking the second rail.

Fly: Right after exiting the first hairpin, you will see a black/yellow platform that has FLY vertically written on it. It leads to a set of three rings that ends just before the jump that leads to the traffic tunnels. It can be useful, but since it’s a straight zone, you might want to use the turbo instead, unless you want to store some air for the rest of the lap. The second zone is right after the second Speed zone, having crossed the street. Again, a set of three rings, and again, completely useless, as it’s a very short zone that is everything but a shortcut. Also, it doesn’t allow you to avoid the traffic in the crossing street, so absolutely nothing helpful comes out of this zone.

Power: The first zone is right after the first jump, to the left. It is a straight zone with some parked cars. Completely unuseful, since the main track is also straight and features cars in movement that you can bash. The second, to the right after exiting the traffic tunnels, also has a pile of cars (plus a freakin’ train!). It can be useful, as it makes the way to the second hairpin in a straight line, saving some turns.

Missable zones: First zones of Speed and Power, due to jumping too much on the first jump of the lap.

BEST: POWER Helpful when dealing with the traffic throughout the track, as characters not having this specialty will be knocked out for a few seconds and slowed down if hit by them.

Night Chase

Speed: The first zone is right after the first jump, on the left side. It can be a simple rail that ends before the hairpin, or you can jump to the right to get the second rail and do a 90 degree turn instead. I don’t recommend the second one, since it cuts the hairpin in half, and you’re placed in a small corridor having to deal with a sharp 90 degree turn with no visibility of incoming traffic. The first one allows you to evade any obstacle, and also useful to store air to be used later on. The second zone is after the traffic tunnels, on the right. You must take the platform and jump at its very peak so as to not go through the train. It’s hard to get, and again unuseful, much easier to go along the track itself.

Fly: First section is after the first jump, in the middle between both available paths. It is a four ring set. Be careful not to hit the ceiling or you will fall down. This zone ends in the higher level, available by doing a great jump after the start/finish line, so it’s better to do a high jump (if you manage to time it correctly) rather than taking this zone. The second is at the same place as in the original variant, and as such, completely useless.

Power: First section is after the first jump, on the right side. Nice to get some air, and also useful to use a turbo, since it’s a straight line before the hairpin. The second zone is after the traffic tunnels, to the right, following the same path for the second Speed zone, but without having to jump. As happened in the original track, it basically serves as a little shortcut to the next hairpin, with a pile of cars in both sides of the track.

Missable zones: All first zones can be bypassed by doing a great jump right at the start of the lap.

BEST: POWER Again, helpful with the traffic, which plays an even bigger role in this variant.

Splash Canyon

Speed: The first zone is a single-part rail in the outside of the long right turn, before jumping. Not useful as shortcut, and not the best option to charge air. The second zone is after you’re thrown over the cascade, a two-part rail that leads to the hairpin. It’s quite useful, as you avoid some tight corners, although you don’t have much time to properly take the hairpin.

Fly: The first zone is in the inside of the long right turn, and it’s pretty hard to time the jump to get to the rings. Anyway, it’s not a shortcut of any kind, and there’s also no need to recharge air in this part of the track. The second is before the river, to the left, hidden by a curtain of water. A set of three rings that serves as an alternate path to get to the river. Be careful, alternate path doesn’t mean shortcut. Finally, the third zone is after the cascade, a platform guides you to the three rings before the hairpin. It ends way before the hairpin, giving you enough time to prepare it, and also you don’t miss the item zone like happened in Speed, so it’s substantially better.

Power: Only one zone available, right after the cascade. It’s a nice shortcut that makes the way to the hairpin in a straight line, saving a lot of distance. It can also be useful for the cave, in which some crystal blocks are sometimes deployed, as you can bash them and go in a straight line for higher speeds.

Missable zones: Second Fly zone, but since it is no shortcut and is deployed just before a recharging stretch, you actually don’t miss anything.

BEST: POWER/SPEED Both of them have very nice shortcuts in the final part of the track. Fly isn’t recommended, lap times are far slower than the other two specialties when used alone.

Red Canyon

Speed: The first zone is after the first jump. Be careful, as you pass through boosting panels right before being able to reach the rail. It’s a simple rail that doesn’t serve as shortcut, and since you come from a jump, you won’t have the need to recharge air. The second is again after the cascade, this time is a three-part rail that finishes after the hairpin, saving you a lot of distance while maintaining a nice speed. Very useful, may I say a must use if you have this specialty.

Fly: The first zone is at the right after the first jump. A set of four rings that isn’t also very useful as a shortcut, but well, it’s easier to go in a straight line to get to this zone rather than going along the track with a sharp turn. The second is after the lake you land on after the cascade, to the right of the track, hidden in the bushes. It’s a set of three rings that again cuts the hairpin into a straight line directly into the mill, serving as a very nice shortcut.

Power: The first zone is hidden behind a curtain of water, much like happened to the second Fly zone in the original track. Again, you end up in a recharging stretch, so no need to go through this. The second zone is actually the same as in the original track, to the left of the lake after you land from the cascade, going into a straight line to the hairpin. Useful, but not as much as the other two.

Missable zones: First Speed and Fly zones, a high jump gives you access to the path you eventually end in after getting any of those zones.

BEST: SPEED The speed you attain through the second set of rails, while also cutting the hairpin, easily makes it the best shortcut available.

Egg Factory

Speed: The first zone is right after the start/exit jump, to the right. It’s a simple rail that serves no purpose at all, since the distance covered is very small and your air meter will be comfortably full, so better forget about it. The second zone is after the tight uphill section, to the right of the falling columns of lava. A two-part rail that, again, serves no purpose, you will always be quicker avoiding it. The only reason to take it would be to go alone in your path until the last jump without wasting any turbos, but that’s pretty much it.

Fly: The first zone is in the same spot as the first Speed zone, only this time is on the left. A set of two rings that basically cuts short the 90 degree turn you face after the small jump. Very hard to get, since you must jump really high, and it’s not worthy for such small distance. The second zone is after the vertical fan, to the right. Again, a set of two rings, but can be useful to go a little quicker than doing the tight uphill.

Power: Only one zone, to the left where the second Speed zone is. Basically, it cuts short one of the successive 90 degree turns, meaning you will take the second turn at a much higher angle, and also the distance is very short, so absolutely nothing. The only usefulness of this specialty would be to bash all robots standing in the way, which is not bad, but doesn’t compensate everything else.

Missable zones: None

BEST: FLY+POWER The first is the only specialty to have an useful zone to take advantage off, the second can clear your way of all obstacles. Fly alone could also be useful to an extent.

Ice Factory

Speed: The first zone is in the optional jump after the starting big jump, to the left. It’s a simple rail that ends just before the next jump. Useful, but I wouldn’t bet it helps to go quicker. The second zone is on the second hairpin of the track, a simple rail that is extremely fast, twice as fast as the turbo in straight line. It clearly is one of the best shortcuts in the whole game. The third and last zone is after the last hairpin formed by two 90 degree turns in close succession, to the right. You must jump like if it was a half-pipe to reach it. It’s a three part rail that ends before the last jump. As in the first, it is useful, but I bet you 500 Viz you don’t go quicker.

Fly: The first zone is after the second jump (third if you count the optional jump mentioned earlier). Instead of going to the right, continue forward and you will see a half-pipe to the left, where a set of three rings can be reached. You then land on a special zone that can only be reached using this shortcut, and then take on another set of rings, this time two, before finally returning to the track at the point after the recharging stretch. Really useful to avoid all other participants and just do your race. The second zone is after the double 90 degree turns, on the opposite side of the third Speed zone. A set of three rings that doesn’t serve much as shortcut, and also has a difficult landing. Not as useful as you can think.

Power: The first zone is at the hairpin where the second Speed zone is. It is the inside zone of the hairpin, which has fan blades you can bash. Useful, since it cuts a little distance by doing the hairpin of a shorter radius. The second one is in the middle of the double 90 degree turns, which means that you must take the first turn at a much higher angle. Also, the distance saved is extremely short, so it’s not worthy changing the trajectory to take this zone.

Missable zones: second Speed zone, first Fly and Power zones (jump after the first hairpin)

BEST: SPEED Since you have to choose between the first Fly zone and the second Speed zone, the latter is the best choice, because it’s a lot easier to handle and much more quicker.

Green Cave

Speed: The first zone is at the left after the first jump. A two part rail that finishes right before the tight and sharp right hairpin. A good way to not consume air during the long left corner. Maybe not faster, but a lot safer, as you will not risk running out of air. The second zone is after the centipede recharging stretch. You will see a half-pipe to the right, and right after it, the single part rail that guides you to the last jump. Useful, but not extremely good.

NOTE: It seems like, when taking the second zone, there’s a rail that ends just there. Where do you take this rail, if you really can, is a mystery for me.

Fly: The first zone is before the vine split-up. Instead of taking right or left, continue through the platform to get to a set of four rings. It’s difficult to go fast through the twisted vines, even though you can’t fall off, so it’s very useful to have a shortcut like this. The second zone is in the same half-pipe as the second Speed zone, but at the start instead of the end. Use the half-pipe to jump and reach a set of three rings. Not very useful, and also the last ring is quite a distance away from the track to ensure a quick landing.

Power: The first zone is to the right after the long left corner at the start. It avoids the right hairpin, which is very difficult to take, so you can maintain a good average speed while going through this zone. The second zone is on the left side of the track, at the point where the track becomes a single path again. It is one of the few zones to actually be marked in the course map. As you can see, it serves as a shortcut for the first corner, and provides a good exit for the second one. Pretty neat, in my opinion, even better if the centipede leaves you in the straight path leading to this zone.

Missable zones: None

BEST: FLY+POWER Fly for the first zone, Power for the second zone, a lethal combination.

White Cave

Speed: The first zone is after the starting jump. A two part rail that serves as a shortcut of sorts to avoid a confusing zone in which up to three paths converge. Be careful, the second part of the rail must be taken on a zone outside the track, so if you fail to get it, you fall off, losing a lot of time. For a reason like this, this zone loses much of the effectiveness it might have. The second zone is a simple rail on the exact point where the two paths merge again after the centipede recharging stretch. It cuts the few turns that are before the last jump, so it’s pretty useful.

Fly: The first zone is a platform some time after the first jump. It’s a single ring that propels you to a special vine. Useful to ride alone for some time, although I don’t see the true point of it. The second zone is again after the centipede recharging stretch, a little to the right of the Speed zone. A set of three rings that again serves as shortcut for the few turns before the last jump, even though you don’t save the last right turn, so not as useful.

Power: Only one zone available, after the centipede recharging stretch. It’s on the outer zone of the first left turn. Instead of having multiple objects to bash, it instead is a tight zone with a lot of boosting panels to give you enough speed for the upcoming jump. Not useful to recharge air, but pretty useful as shortcut.

Missable zones: None

BEST: Hard choice here. Either Power alone or, as in Green Cave, Fly+Power.

Sand Ruins

Speed: The first zone is after the first jump. It can be either a single rail that serves no purpose at all, since it covers a short distance, or a two part rail that still serves no purpose at all. The second zone is to the left after entering the building. Again, it has a few variants that can go from a single rail to a three part rail. No matter the variant, there’s no shortcut in these rails, and this track is the last one in which you would run out of air even if you don’t take advantage of your specialty.

Fly: The first zone is to the right after the first jump. A set of four rings that makes you land on a higher plane to better perform a big jump immediately afterwards. Pretty useful, as the track on this part includes two sand waterfalls that drive you to the edge and can make you fall down. The second zone is to the right after entering the building. Again, a set of four rings that makes you land on a higher plane. And again, pretty useful, as the track here gets very tricky. Additionally, if you do a big jump after the first zone, you reach a higher level, where the second zone can still be taken, although this time you have to jump, and you have five rings instead of four.

Power: The first zone is exiting the colosseum, at the start of the lap. Instead of taking left or right, continue ahead. A nice shortcut of sorts, with a jump included at the end for some air, as there are no objects to bash here. The second zone is after entering the building. Again, continue ahead instead of taking any direction. You will have two “monuments” to bash in a straight line, but be careful, some parts of the track move on their own. Technically, there’s a third zone, or at least a panel signaling it appears in the 90 degrees left turn prior to the right hairpin. It’s a bluff, since it’s merely an object standing there that you can bash, and since said object is to the left, it means you must make the turn at a high angle to even notice it. Strange how something like this has an indicator panel, while other clear zones have no indicator panel at all.

Missable zones: second Speed zone, maybe second Power zone too.

BEST: FLY Undoubtedly the best zones available in the track by a far margin.

Dark Desert

Speed: The first zone is in the ancient “hall”. Use the blue “arrows” on the floor to guide you to it. A single part rail that will make your head spin, as seemingly gravity here is acting like its drunk. Useful when you get accustomed to the gravity. The second zone is after the utterly weird recharging stretch, to the right. A two part rail that shortcuts some turns before the last left hander that heads into the colosseum where the start/finish line is. Useful to turn the left hairpin into a 90 degree turn.

Fly: The first zone is again in the ancient “hall”. This time, the golden “arrows” on the floor will guide you to it. A set of four rings that again will make your head spin, even though it’s an useful shortcut. The second zone is after the recharging stretch, to the left. A set of three rings that lands before the last left hairpin. Although the landing is a little difficult, the shortcut is nonetheless useful.

Power: The first zone is yet again in the ancient “hall”, with red “arrows” on the floor that lead to it. It’s a complete waste, as you “jump” to another zone with a lot of blocks to bash, then “jump” to another jump and then one last jump to head to the recharging stretch. You lose a good amount of time in this zone. The second zone is before the last left hairpin that leads into the colosseum. It basically cuts short the hairpin and you go straight into the boosting panels that automatically put you in the right direction to enter the colosseum. A lot more useful than the first zone for sure.

Missable zones: None

BEST: FLY Again, a clear winner by having the best zones overall.

Babylon Garden

Speed: The first zone is in the outer part of the first left turn. A simple rail that you must get using the half-pipe style we have seen in other instances. It covers a very short distance, so it serves no purpose at all. The second zone is after the recharging stretch, in the outer path of the right hairpin. It basically does the hairpin in another way, giving you air instead of consuming it, but also increasing your lap times by the same amount.

Fly: The first zone is the center “gate” you find after the first left hander. A set of two rings that can be a useful shortcut. The second zone is after the right hairpin coming after the recharging stretch. Again, use the half-pipe style to reach the set of three rings. Completely unnecessary, as you can go faster by following the track.

Power: This is going to be tough to explain. The race starts on a higher level than usual, meaning that a normal jump on the last section will make you go through a different start/finish line. This change also doesn’t allow you to take the first zone, as it is right after the start/finish line in the lower level. This first zone saves you the various turns before the “gates”, with some obstacles to bash. The second zone is the left “gate” mentioned earlier. It has plenty of obstacles to bash to get some air, and serves as a good shortcut too. As you can see, all zones are dealt with barely 30 seconds into the lap.

Missable zones: First Power zone, as mentioned above.

BEST: POWER Even with the problems of the first zone, it’s the only specialty to have two overall good zones.

Sky Road

Speed: The first zone is at the start of the lap, although you cannot get it on the very first lap due to the starting point being located in a higher level. On the right part of the track after crossing the start/finish line there’s a single part rail that saves you some sharp turns that come ahead. It ends right before the big jump, in which you can take a massive shortcut by riding the “jet stream” if you jump high enough. The second zone is after the sharp left hairpin coming after the mentioned jump, in a straight zone filled with holes. The second hole has a jumping platform that can take you to a single part rail to shortcut the following hairpin. Pretty useful, as you might be low on air at this point and you need any external help to get both air and speed.

Fly: The first zone is at the start of the lap, although as mentioned before, you cannot get it on the first lap. This time it’s on the left part of the track after crossing the start/finish line. A platform guides you to a set of two rings that gives a major shortcut in distance before the jump, but has a difficult landing. The second zone is after the sharp left hairpin, in the first hole. You need to take the jump to reach a set of three rings that ends just before the straight leading up to the recharging stretch. Nice to get some air, since this point is critical to your tank, but the last ring is too far away from the track to be perfect. Also, remember that a not high enough jump means falling down.

Power: As before, at the start of the lap we find the first zone, unavailable at the first lap. This time, is the center path after crossing the start/finish line. It has a few obstacles to bash, but also has a different layout with boosting panels that exits just before the jump. The second zone is difficult to see at first glance. To the left of the second Fly zone you will see a pile of rocks. If you bash them, you will enter a special shortcut that guides you to the straight leading up to the recharging stretch. Even then, you can recharge very little air in these zones, and this track consumes a lot of air, so be careful if choosing this specialty.

Missable zones: All first zones, due to the starting point being located outside the main track.

BEST: SPEED It has the best shortcuts, able to recharge a lot of air, so you can go very fast.

Digital Dimension

Speed: There are three zones very close to each other after you enter the door to the “angel realm”. A one part rail will help you get to the roof of the passage, then a two part rail will guide you to the roof of the next passage and a last rail will help you land. Not much of a shortcut, and since you come from a recharging stretch, you shouldn’t have trouble of running out of air. Even though these zones come one after the other, there’s another one in the right part of the circuit between the two passages. A single part rail that again has no purpose as a shortcut or to recharge air. After the simulator breaks down, there’s a last zone with a single rail to take. It’s preferable to take it, as the track has an up and down layout that slows you down. It can be located either at the right, the center or the left of the track, changing location after each lap.

Fly: The first zone is after crossing the door to the “angel realm”. It’s a little hidden in the left part of the track, but it’s a nice set of four rings that makes you land on the roof of the second passage. The second zone is after the simulator breaks down, a set of three rings that saves you from the slow layout of the track at this point. As before, it can be located in any point of the track, and each lap it changes its location.

Power: There’s a first “zone” right after starting the lap, which lets you shortcut the right hairpin. There’s another “zone” after the first jump, a set of statues are lined up in the straight leading to the magical door that can be bashed. The last zone is after the simulator breaks down, a little straight with a few obstacles to bash. Once again, remember it changes its location after every lap.

Missable zones: Second Power zone

BEST: FLY+POWER This combination allows for the most shortcuts. You can use the first two Power zones, the first Fly zone, and the last zone of any of those, as they are located in the same place, so you can choose whichever you want. Aim for Fly if you want air, aim for Power to use a turbo and gain a lot of speed.

Babylon Guardian

This track is special. It has a simple oval layout, so no shortcuts in here, only air recharging zones. There’s also only one zone for each specialty in the back straight. The goal here is to defeat the genie, so you must go as fast as you can. Taking the shortcuts won’t make you go faster, except for Power, as it is the only one that doesn’t leave the main track.

SEGA CARNIVAL

Speed: The first zone is to the left during the first jump. A two part rail that shortcuts the upcoming hairpin. Useful to get some air, but I’m not that sure if it helps you go faster. The second zone is after the second jump. There’s a half-pipe to the left upon getting to the first left hander. It is a single rail that shortcuts the path into the recharging stretch, or at least tries to shortcut said path. Of course it’s easier to take the rail rather than following the track, but easier doesn’t always mean faster.

Fly: The first zone is a little earlier than the second Speed zone. On the same half-pipe, jump a little higher to find a set of three rings that shortcuts the path to the recharging stretch. The second zone is right after the recharging stretch, to the right. Perform a jump to catch a set of four rings that guides you through the platforms. Not as useful as it might seem.

Power: The first zone is at the start of the lap, to the left before the hairpin. As you can imagine, it basically shortcuts the upcoming hairpin, but it’s difficult to retake the course after it. The second zone is after the recharging stretch, on the second platform. Basically a set of obstacles you can bash for some air, perfectly lined up so you can go straight to the next platform.

Missable zones: First Fly zone, second Speed zone

BEST: FLY  The platforms can be difficult to deal with, so evading them with Fly is a good choice.

SEGA ILLUSION

Speed: The first zone is on the outside of the first left hander. A simple rail that shortcuts the tight hairpin coming after. Debatably useful. The second zone is after the recharging stretch, entering the TV studio, to the left. A two part rail that isn’t easy to get, and also the second part of the rail is taken outside the track, so fail to get it and you fall off. Risky, and not that useful to make up for it.

Fly: The first zone is to the right in the first jump. A set of four rings that ends just before the left hander. Not much distance covered, but can be useful at times. The second zone is after the recharging stretch, entering the TV studio, to the right. Again, difficult to get, and four rings that don’t cover a lot of distance. Of course, in this part better take this zone that going along the track, but well, no other reason I would take it.

Power: The first zone is after the recharging stretch, entering the TV studio. You can take either path, as you can bash the shooters standing in your way, which is pretty useful. The second zone is after the final jump. You will see a set of arrows on the ground. Follow the red squared ones to go through a special path with some obstacles in it. Doesn’t make much of a change though.

Missable zones: None

BEST: POWER  Easily the most useful in the whole track, maybe combined with another specialty to cover one of the special zones at the start of the lap.