Rainbow Road (Mario Kart series)

Rainbow Road is a track that has appeared in every Mario Kart game up to date. It usually involves driving on a road designed to appear like a rainbow. It usually lacks rails at crucial turns, and wavy paths have appeared in more recent appearances. In Mario Kart 7, it even involves driving on rings and the moon. Some also have constellations of various characters and items floating around space. It usually seems to be preceded by a Bowser's Castle track, but not always.
==Appearances==
===Canon Games===
====Super Mario Kart====
In Super Mario Kart Star Thwomps are placed on the track. Also this Rainbow Road entirely lacks rails. This Rainbow Road is pretty easy. The course starts of with a straight line then a right turn. Coins are placed on the right turn along with star thwomps. Then another right turn, a left turn, & another right turn.One star twomp is placed onto the turn. Then the course is divided into two for a short time along with more star thwomps. after that is a right turn with two star thwomps & the course starts over. This course appears in Mario Kart: Super Circuit but the star thwomps are removed from the course. Super Mario Kart composer Soyo Oka considers this course's theme one of her favorite compositions.
This course appears in the Lightning cup in Mario Kart 7 being one of the first Rainbow Roads to be in a retro cup (not counting Mario Kart: Super Circuit) Star Thwomps return & when they hit the ground the course makes a waving motion
====Mario Kart 64====
This Rainbow Road is the longest course in Mario Kart 64.Neon-light pictures of the eight playable characters, plus a portrait of a Boo and a Mushroom in the distance, float in the void. Moreover, a big three-dimensional smiling star lies in a section of the track. Roving Chain chomps slide through the course in reverse, tossing into the air any driver who touches them.
The twisting course starts with a huge drop followed by a gentle uphill stretch, passing through a rainbow ring halo. After the ring, racers behold the flashing neon portraits while run through a pigtail bridge, following then towards another shallower drop. Racers turn around a corkscrew to reach a hairpin bend, and then a twisting stretch to go back to the checked line finally.
Although this track may easily be the easiest Rainbow Road track (thanks to the railings), racers can perform a large shortcut by making a timed hop to the left (or right, during Extra) during the drop at the beginning.
F-Zero X also has a course just like this but the neon lights are removed. It has the same map & the same music (heavy metal version)
It Reappears in the Retro Rainbow Road Cup on Mario Kart X. Unlike The Original, Players can not take the shortcut near the beginning.
====Mario Kart: Super Circuit====
Rainbow Road in Mario Kart: Super Circuit is the last course in Mario Kart: Super Circuit.Rainbow Road has rails at the start line. Edges of the course are lined with bounce-jumps. Astute racers can use Mushrooms to perform significant shortcuts. The track has falling stars that can make racers spin out and Thunder Clouds that will shrink anyone careless enough to drive under them. Bowser's Castle from Paper Mario can be seen in the background. This track is equal with the course of Rage Racer Overpass City. This game also features the Rainbow Road course from Super Mario Kart without the flashing Thwomps.
====Mario Kart: Double Dash !!!====
This Rainbow Road has dash panels, a cannon pipe, & a city below the course (Mushroom City)
The track begins just before a ramp with a boost panel on it, which sends the player flying into a somewhat straight, downhill section of a track. This part of the track tends to be very bumpy and causes Shells and Eggs to bounce around, which hinders their homing skills. After a slight curve to the right and a straight road, there is a sharp U-turn to the left that leads to a short and straight section, then a U-turn to the right and another straight road, that soon leads into a boost ramp that sends the player flying. The ramp actually leads to a road lower than the previous, both with lengthy boost panels on a straight road that leads the player into a helix with boost panels on it.
The helix spirals upwards to the left. Boost Panels and Item Boxes are present in this helix. The boost panels can help the player speed up, or help the player plummet to their doom until Lakitu saves them. Past the long helix is a bump road that is straight, but then waves near the end of the long straight road. The road is also very bumpy here and shooting stars hit here and become Stars for the player to play around with and screw up the other racer's progress by knocking them over the cliff. Past the wavy road is a curve to the left and a pipe. Any item thrown in the pipe gets destroyed and players are invincible when blasted up the pipe.
At the end of the pipe, the player falls down and hits another boost. The boost sends the player into a long road, also with a lot of small boosts that can help or hinder the player. Stars can also spawn here. After this straight road is a ramp with boost panels on it, and it leads the player to a downwards helix. The downwards helix is sharper and shorter than the previous one, and it leads the player into the finish line again, which starts the cycle again and another lap.
It also Reappears in the Retro Rainbow Road Cup On Mario Kart X
====Mario Kart DS====
Rainbow Road is once again the Last course in Mario Kart DS.
The track starts out with three boost pads. There are four item boxes laid out across the track and a spiraling bend to the left while going upward, with four boost pads close to the left edge. There are four more item boxes with the loop close after. A right turn comes next with a small drop, four more item boxes, and a sharp turn to the left. After a short, straight road is a U-turn right. The corkscrew is next, with a slight curve to the right, four item boxes, and another U-turn to the left. With the finish line just ahead, the cycle is started again two more times.
This Rainbow Road will appear in Mario Kart X in the Retro Rainbow Road Cup. The Course has not changed & looks the same as it did on the installment.
====Mario Kart Wii====
Once again Rainbow Road will be on the Special Cup in Mario Kart Wii. Unlike the others it has earth below.
The course begins on a near 90 degree slope, located after the starting line. Light drivers are easy to push off in this area, since there are no walls that can help the player from falling off. Three boost panels are present in this slope. One stretches across the road while the other two are spread apart from each other, such as one being on the right while the other boost panel is on the left, depending on the mode. After the slope is a ramp with a boost panel in it and a sharp turn left. Any vehicle that performs a trick has a risk of falling off on the right end; the worse the drift/handling rating, the more likely the player will fall off.
After the first curve are three more boost panels that stretch across the road and a half-pipe ramp on the very right, plus a turn left. The half-pipe contains floating item boxes for the player to use. After the left turn is a slightly wavy road, in which the player may perform tricks on. Each lap, the road gets wavier, allowing for more tricks to be performed. After the wavy part is a ramp with a boost panel on it, for the player to speed up and perform a trick. The player will then see a very straight road, with two giant holes in the center for the player to fall through. Half-pipe ramps are located to the left and right of these holes, and the player may perform a stunt on the edges of these holes, since the edges of these holes contains small ramps. Both holes contain half-pipe ramps, but the latter one later on doesn't have any item boxes on top of them.
After this area is a turn left, then a curve right that has item boxes lying across the road. After the item boxes is the Launch Star which will lead the player, in very high speeds, to the other part of the course. When the player gets out of the Launch Star, there is a very minor twist in the road and a half-pipe ramp that leads the player into another section of the track, making a broad turn right for the player. After this particular ramp is two roads, which split and merge later on in the track. Both will make the player end up in the same area, but one is more elevated than the other and has boost pads in different locations. Both will lead to a ramp with two boost panels on it, with floating item boxes. Past the ramp is where the road merges again. This part has more boost panels with a sharp curve to the left and to the right. The boost panels may give the player an edge or throw the player off course and off the track. Past this area is the finish line, which starts the track over and another lap. It is the longest Nitro Course, and one of the longest tracks in the game.
Like a few other Rainbow Roads It Will appear in the Retro Rainbow Road Cup. The only thing that has changed is the star launcher as it is now a spinning tunnel with dash panels, Similar to Mario Kart 7's Rainbow Road.
====Mario Kart 7====
This Rainbow Road has three sections onto the course. Unlike past Rainbow Roads, this incarnation features the player driving on non-rainbow tile surfaces such as the moon and rings of a planet, that looks like Saturn. The first part has the drivers race on the rainbow tiles and the second part has them race on the rings of a planet, which resembles Saturn, for a short time. The third part brings them to the moon with Chomps coming out of the craters. Like in Mario Kart: Double Dash!!!, the music on the course is a remix of Mario Kart 64's Rainbow Road. There are 2 different variations of this new theme. The 1st variation plays while driving on the rainbow tiles, and the 2nd variation plays during the 2nd section when the player is driving on the Moon.
===Fanon Rainbow Road Tracks.===
Feel free to add some Fanon Rainbow Road tracks, as well. (Do not delete this message.)
====Mario Kart X====
This Rainbow Road is different from the others. Two Rainbow Roads appear in Mario Kart X The first one with The Star Launcher, & The second with Bouncy Mushrooms, Saturn, & a couple more Star Launchers.
Also an unlockable retro cup named "Retro Rainbow Road Cup" Appears. It Will Have Four Rainbow Roads From the previous installments. N64 Rainbow Road, GCN Rainbow Road, DS Rainbow Road, & WII Rainbow Road all appear here.
=== Mario Kart 10: Remastered ===
This game's Rainbow Road has some churning pipes, a bouncy mushroom and you can go inside Neptune, Remember they have asteroid goombas inside,
Another Rainbow Road is N64 Rainbow Road, It is split into three sections like Mario Kart 8 and Lap 2 is the only section with anti-gravity.
==Trivia==
*F-Zero GX also has a track similar to Rainbow Road called the "Phantom Road", but this one doesn't take place in a starry night sky or the cosmos like most Rainbow Roads, it takes place in a psychedelic cybernetic void of sorts. In addition, the track has only one color that constantly shifts through the color spectrum as opposed to having the traditional rainbow-looking appearance.
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