Josh and Matt had dreamed of this day since they first rode together east of Fortree City, when his rash but kindhearted friend could have lost his life from a high speed crash. They had been through so much together, Josh even getting an Arcanine of his own to get to Lilycove faster in order to deliver his glasses from the Ranger meeting in person. They had both experienced Arcanine's Extreme Speed, with not insignificant health concerns. They trained, trained, and trained some more for this day.

And now, it had come.

A duel between two extremely speedy specimens of one of the fastest Pokémon species on land. The Leader had called for extra paramedics on standby for a reason. When boost laps came around, Nana and Braver were going to be screaming down the long straightaways of the Aero Dive course faster than race cars with the pedal to the metal.

Provided Matt had listened to Shelly's directions, Josh would not be difficult to find; he would already be astride Braver, the extra safety straps he had recommended to Matt present and properly securing him to the fire-type. "Afternoon, Matt. I could go on about this day forever, but I'm just as antsy as you are, so I'm going to cut things short." The Leader's skin was tingling. These two friends were going to race for real. "I'm sure you know Braver and Craggro by now. These two are Mystic," Josh gestured toward the Ninetales, "and Clyde," toward the Flareon, both of which, like the rest of Josh's Pokémon, wore riding gear that seemed to beckon guests to sit atop them.

Josh had picked the Aero Dive course for one reason: out of all the courses on his entire facility, it was the most oblong, and had the longest straight stretches anywhere on site. He needed room for these Arcanine to blast into nearly uncontrollable Extreme Speed. There were some rapid-fire jumps early in the course and on the backstretch that were real stamina testers, as well as a few rounds of sharp curves to test cornering ability, but the big draw was the titular obstacle: a long series of uphill turns followed by an enormous drop. Any Pokémon exiting that enormous drop was coming out of it well above their normal top speed.

It was time. Josh showed Matt to the course's starting arch, where the race would begin. "So here's how this goes. We line up behind the arch, then pay attention to the display on it. It will count down 3, 2, 1, GO. On GO, we start. During the first lap of the race, no one is allowed to use any moves that make their Pokémon go faster. This will ease you into the second and third laps, where those moves are allowed. I want to warn you; once those moves get involved, it's gonna get really intense. Try to pace yourself. Beat me to the finish line over three laps, or otherwise prove your ability to stay cool under pressure, and the Hoenn League Quick Badge is yours. I hope you've been practicing with Nana's Extreme Speed, because don't think for one minute you're winning without it!"

You will have 8 ranks to distribute among three skills. No more than 5 ranks can be assigned to any one skill.

• SPEED: This represents how fast your Pokémon can travel. Each rank of Speed adds 10 to all your rolls.
  
• ENDURANCE: This represents how well a Pokémon can navigate difficult terrain, and affects how often a Pokémon can use its Boost during a race. Every two ranks of Endurance lets you use a Boost move an additional time per race. Each rank of Endurance reduces the Target Number of Endurance-based Obstacles by 10.
• REACTION: This represents a Pokémon’s cornering ability. Each rank of Reaction reduces the Target Number of Reaction-based Obstacles by 10.

In the OOC notes of your next post, please note your Pokémon's distribution of skills.

You do not need to roll after your next post, but you will need to [ roll ] twice at the end of every post mid-challenge. This roll will be modified according to your Pokémon's skill ranks.

Example: If a player rolls a 60 on a post involving running down a straightaway as fast as possible atop a Pokémon with four ranks in Speed, their effective roll will be 100.

The Leader's next post will include a "mod post" that depicts the course's first Obstacle: a prompt that presents a challenge for the racers to overcome. Each Obstacle will include the following information:

Target Number: This is the number the racers need to roll at or above to overcome the Obstacle without penalty. While it is uncommon, an Obstacle can have multiple Target Numbers.

Intended Skill: This is the Skill that will apply to the Obstacle. It can be Speed, Endurance, or Reaction.

Example Obstacle: The track starts out with a bang--a sharp, 135-degree left turn mere tens of meters from the starting line. The width of the turn itself makes recovering from a misjudged angle easier, but the track quickly narrows up again afterward. A guardrail on the outside keeps Pokémon from sliding off the course, but there is no such guardrail on the inside, and there’s a shallow stream that looks time-consuming for non-Water Pokémon to climb out of!

Target Number: 85 (Reaction)

After the players make their rolls, the Target Number is deducted from the player's roll, and the difference becomes the player's Track Points (TP) for the round. 100 TP corresponds to roughly one second of time differential. The race will consist of three laps, with three Obstacles per lap. After the ninth Obstacle, total Track Points will determine finishing order.

"Big words," Matt said with a smirk, as he and Nana went up to the starting arch. "Let my racing speak for me, not your jibber gabber." He said, sticking his tongue out at Josh. He was here to race, not here him go on and on about stuff! He wanted to win this race.

Nana shook out her fur, snorting out flames through her nostrils. Giving all the other fire types a look, holding her head high, like she was the best one here! Matt laughed at her attitude. It was a little infectious as he was grinning at Josh, ready to go!

Josh Devlin

"Already with the trash talk," Josh said with a smile, flicked his helmet's visor down, locking it into place as a low-pitched, loud squawk boomed from the starting arch's speakers, an indication for the Leader, challenger, and their Pokémon to get ready. "Just the way I like it. Now, let's race!" Those were the last words out of his mouth before entering a state of pure focus, Braver's reins in his hands as he stared at the display in front of them.

Once the five were ready, three still images of the sprinting Johto Beast faded into view, a "GET READY" prompt beneath them. The images of the divine electric-type disappeared, one at a time, Each change was accompanied by another brief, low-pitched squawk intended as an aural warning to when the race would start, allowing them to more easily time their leaps off the line. After the third such squawk, only one of the images remained. The final squawk accompanying the final one vanishing as the display changed to "GO" was a much higher pitched one. Josh squeezed his Arcanine's sides, all four of his Pokémon leaping off the line and fighting for position with Nana.

After each posting round, a prompt describing the upcoming section of the track will be posted. These prompts may highlight different sections of the course on each lap. You will react to the prompt, then [ roll ] twice. For the first lap, the Leader's rolls will be capped at 120 before modifiers.

The course starts out with a long, slightly uphill straightaway for the racers to get their Pokémon up to speed, though there are five short drops no more than a couple feet each to balance out the elevation gain. They are intended to prepare the racers both physically and mentally for the titular Aero Dive later in the course. Past the straightaway is a myriad of progressively tighter curves, some left and some right, forming the illusion of a roundabout-like structure from above. Course bounds form a linear path through it, making racers go the long way around. The last uphill curve in particular is deceptive, racers unable to see over the hill until just before making the turn. It is very easy to misjudge and start turning late.

Target Number: 100 (Reaction)

Tugging his own helmet to adjust it, he waited for the signal to go. Once he came, he gently smacked the side of Nana with his heel. She took off in a blaze of speed. Matt was focused on keeping his eyes on the course than paying attention to the competitors.

Nana flung dirt behind her as she began to build up her speed. Using those claws to propel herself forward. Flinging so much dirt behind her, until they came up to the first hill. Snarling, she grabbed the ground going downwards with her paws, flinging herself forward to gain more speed as she traveled down hill.

The process was repeated each time they came to the hills- until the las tone. She flung herself over the dip, paws connecting with the land on the other side with a yip of excitement. She was having so much fun, the wind in her mane, her trainer racing with her- it was a dream come true for the both of them.

Turns were always a difficult thing for Nana- but they had been practicing! Attempting the left and right turns- she was trying so hard. With Matt leaning into the turns, hooking his legs into his straps to make sure he did not get thrown off with her turns. It was all in practice!

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Josh Devlin

Braver, and Arcanine in general, were not known for their explosive acceleration... with one exception, and that exception would not come into play until boost laps started. With the acceleration force he was used to withstanding from his other Pokémon, Braver's felt like that of a typical passenger Pokémon by comparison. The large fire-type's rider had to put more trust in his mount than with most of his other Pokémon, as he had a difficult time seeing over his head until he lowered it after getting up to speed.

Even then, Josh held plenty of his Arcanine's speed back; he knew some of the turns were tight, and partially blind at that. Furthermore, his experience with Arcanine was a constant struggle with anything beyond shallow curves. He never thought braking would be important on this course, but it would be. Just before reaching the first curve, he reined the Arcanine in and loosened his leg pressure marginally, a cue for the graceful dog to slow. Even at their slowed speed, Josh found himself grunting with the force needed on his Pokémon's reins to get him to make the turns. As much as they were known for their speed, Arcanine sure were stiff to control!

The five fire-types darted off the line almost equally fast, though Mystic's quick acceleration gave her the early lead. By the time the curves came, all five of them were neck-and-neck. Josh indeed found controlling Braver stiff; those two and Craggro especially struggled with the blind left turn at the end. They didn't scrape against any terrain, but they did have to put on the brakes to avoid doing so, giving Mystic, Nana and Clyde plenty of passing room.

Matt's training with Nana was paying off in spades. While she didn't have the raw speed Josh's two Arcanine did, she handled the sharp corners at the end almost as gracefully as the Mystic did. That Ninetales had a body that was designed for tight corners, and the challenger's Arcanine was right on her tails! He still had to contend with the Flareon that ran alongside him, cutting off the right side of the track from not giving an inch of ground. Clyde had some real fight in him, despite being a fairly new member of the Gym!

After a steep uphill slope following the back-and-forth curves, there was plenty of room to build up speed before the course's titular Aero Dive. Several blue and yellow poles from the aerial course were extended, serving as guides to show where the course continued far below. While there was a minimum distance needed to be able to land on the downslope below, it would be trivial for most Pokémon to make. The drop was far enough that a human would be in pretty rough shape if they simply fell. But not for a Pokémon built to run! The challenging part would be maintaining control just after touchdown; all five of them would be coming out of the dive at well above their normal top speeds.

Target Number: 70 (Speed)

Matt's eyes were focused forward- the look of pure concentration oh his face. The bond he had with Nana right now, it was close as it was with Kazzy. The two were in synch. Hearts beating as one- Souls of Fire.

Matt leaned up in his saddle as the uphill came, trying to take the weight off Nana's back to give her more control and an edge as her claws dug into the dirt. It was something Matt found out helped make the turns- the grip allowed her control her movements better.

Nana's eyes were locked on that ninetails in front of her, growling as she was determined to get past it. No way a ninetails was going to beat her in a race! As the turns came back, Matt went leaning off to the side, right out of the saddle to try and help Nana better handle her turning.

As the new jump came up, Matt nudged Nana's side- encouraging her to kick up the speed to make the jump.

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Josh Devlin

Josh was more than impressed with how Matt handled Nana through the sharp curves, some of which were quite deceptive. The Leader had to pull on Braver's reins with an uncomfortable amount of force to get him through without losing too much speed. Either Matt was far stronger than he was, or Nana was a very special Arcanine. Either way, he had a lot of catching up to do.

Josh briefly tilted his head toward Craggro, who was running alongside him just a few hundredths back. This was the big dogs' time to shine. He squeezed his mount's sides with almost all the force he could muster, grunting from the force of the acceleration. Just before reaching the edge of the cliff, the Leader flicked the fire-type's reins hard. His partner spring skyward, Josh felt his weight slowly leave him as gravity pulled him to the next section of the course far below.

The five Pokémon sailed through the air, the riders experiencing weightlessness for several seconds before landing on the downslope far below. It may have felt like the Arcanine were using Extreme Speed as they touched down, even though they weren't. Clyde's jump angle was perfect, the Flareon nearly landing at the end of the downslope before it started stepping down much like the start of the course did. Perhaps when Josh designed the course, he should have made that section longer?

Clyde ended up trading spots with Mystic in terms of position; the Ninetales, as well as Craggro, angled their jumps too high. Nana may have been in first place for a split second, but it was too close for anyone to tell. The wind in their faces knocked away a surprising amount of their momentum, leaving the two with nowhere close to as much speed as the rest of the field. It was still early, though! There would be plenty of room for them to recover from mistakes. With how fast the Arcanine were and how dangerous their Extreme Speeds were, anything could still happen!

After the sharpest turn on the course and a few more short drops much like the ones at the start of the course, a steep slope upward leading back to the starting arch was ahead. The grade of this slope was quite high, testing the stamina of the Pokémon that ran up it as well as the riders' balance due to its sharp angle leading to the home stretch.

Target Number: 100 (Endurance)

Special: If the total roll after modifiers is 20 or more points beneath the Target Number, Track Position loss beyond that is doubled for this Obstacle.

No, Matt had just trained his ass off. Worked hard to try and control Nana. If there was anything to be said by Matt, was once someone pointed out a flaw, he was damn determined to fix it. Which was what he was working on with Nana, controlling her turns.

As the turns came, Matt once again was leaning into the them to help Nana. Almost to the point he was right out of the saddle- he had gotten the idea from motorcycles, when one leaned into the turn to handle it better!

But soon a new problem came into view.

He looked up to the hill coming up, cursing under his breath. That was gonna be a problem- but he noted it for later. An Extreme Speed up this would probably be the best bet to reduce the speed drop. Though he felt Nana snarl under him, her eyes glued to that Flareon who was barely in front of her.

Smirking, he nudged her side. Edging her forward to keep going and going. Nana flung herself into the hill, kicking up dirt behind her as she ran.

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Josh Devlin

Josh's two Arcanine started putting on the brakes the moment they reached the end of the downslope, knowing the fire-types had nowhere close to the agility to slide around the corner like Mystic did. Unfortunately, there was no one able to eat their dust because they were at the rear of the pack! Nana's dust cloud flew toward Josh's helmet, Braver shaking his head as he took his time rounding the U-turn.

The home stretch was before the two. It was long and straight, but also steeply uphill. That wouldn't be a problem for Braver and Craggro, but it might be for Josh! He made small adjustments to the fire-type's trajectory to ensure they would be going straight down the middle, then took one hand off the reins and buried both of them in the Arcanine's fur. This was going to be a rough ascent. And it was going to be even rougher on boost laps, which would begin in mere seconds...

All five Pokémon had positioned themselves wonderfully on the home stretch, the challenger and Leader leaning in to minimize resistance and help their mounts make the demanding climb as easily as possible. With fire in his eyes, Matt spurred Nana up the slope, the Arcanine leaving a trail of embers in the wake of her footfalls. She surged past Clyde well before the line, though their persistence kept the race fairly close at the conclusion of the first lap. Mystic and Craggro were not far behind.

All except Josh and Braver. He had done too much braking before the steep ascent, the Leader able to feel his mount's heartbeat getting dangerously high as she struggled to climb. He had lost almost all his speed by the time, which was doubly punishing. Not only did he bleed a lot of time to his challenger and the rest of his Pokémon, but he would end up losing more from how long it took Braver to reach his top speed. It wasn't an irrecoverable miscalculation, but he had to play the rest of the race perfectly if he wanted a chance. He would be in his element as soon as he crossed the line...

You Got Boost Power! Speed-increasing moves, such as QUICK ATTACK, AGILITY, and EXTREME SPEED are now allowed. Tara will be able to use such speed-increasing moves up to three times for the rest of the race. Speed-increasing moves will grant you ADVANTAGE for the posting round, meaning you will [ roll ] four times instead of two for that post and ignore the lower set of rolls. Please separate the first two rolls from the second two rolls with a delimiter of some kind. For the second lap of the race, the Leader's rolls will be capped at 140, before modifiers are applied.

Beware! Taking tight turns and stamina-draining Obstacles at high speeds can result in dire consequences, and may impose DISADVANTAGE, meaning the lower of the two rolls will be taken. If the lower of the two rolls would still pass the Obstacle, Track Position for that Obstacle will be calculated based on the higher of the two rolls.

The minute Nana passed the line- Matt roared towards her. "GO!"

Go.

Go go go.

Nana howled, finally able to let loose. Show all that training her and Matt worked on. Her body tensed as she sprang forward, her legs going faster, and faster, and faster- until he legs were a blur. Everything was a blur. Matt had tucked into Nana's mane, to keep himself low and stable to her back.

As the jumps came, it looked like a white and orange line was hopping over them. Her claws kicked up chunks of dirt, flames left far behind in her trail now. The two were almost in perfect synch, Matt holding her tightly, feeling the speed. His ears were ringing, but luckily his gear was protecting him from the harsh winds.

Even if he didn't win this race, there was one thing for sure.

He was going to prove Josh wrong. He knew what he was doing!

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---


Josh Devlin

Josh was behind as he cross the line. Way behind.

Matt's lead wasn't insurmountable, but it would take perfect execution and some luck for the Leader to catch up now. He had raced alongside Nana before on the most open road in Hoenn, and their Extreme Speeds were an even match. He felt this race would not come down to Pokémon endurance, but the riders' grit. Better hold on tight! This was about to get rough!

"Braver, use EXTREME SPEED!" Josh cried. At least he knew what to expect this time.

The Arcanine's legs became blurs of orange and white, Josh himself difficult to recognize as the Arcanine's gait became more rapid than the fastest sprinting cat Pokémon he knew of. Well, except for three, with one of those being the electric Pokémon he desperately chased. The Leader had to pull on his mount's stiff reins with considerable force to get Braver to make even slight turns. Even those slight turns were stressful, if not painful. That was the reason Arcanine were typically only used by beginning racers that didn't understand how to control them, or the strongest pros that had the skill needed to control them at their highest speeds. One thing hadn't changed, though; the Arcanine's sprint was causing Josh's thighs and hips to ache, stressing his focus.

Arcanine's EXTREME SPEED was the fastest sprint any Pokémon not one of Arceus's Most Sacred Creation had to offer, and the gallery's excitement showed. Even the QUICK ATTACKs and Craggro's WILD CHARGE could not compare. Both the Arcanine riders were likely aware of just how difficult controlling the speed was, but when it actually hit, it reinforced the point for both of them.

The numbingly fast gait of EXTREME SPEED worked well at first, Nana surging farther ahead and cementing Matt's lead. The price was control. Though the other fire-types' speed bursts weren't nearly as fast, control was key, allowing them to take the inside line and keep the race close. If Matt was to take a quick look behind, he would see the tail end of Craggro's WILD CHARGE threatening Nana's lead. The big jump was coming up, too, and it was going to be far more intense at such high speeds. Perhaps even painfully intense.

After the huge dive that begun the backstretch were more step-like drops: eleven of them in rapid succession. These steps would quickly reduce Pokémon back to their normal top speed after they felt like they were flying for nearly three full seconds. For the Pokémon, the repeated shocks to their paws would be their biggest test of stamina, as one poor landing could send them flying toward the outer or inner walls, and maybe even out of bounds if they carried too much speed.

Target Number: 110 (Endurance)

Special: Any Pokémon that misses the Target Number by 40 or more will instead receive a flat -150 TP penalty as a result of landing OFF COURSE.

"Come on, Nana!"

Matt's voice would not travel to anyone but Nana. Who was still keeping her eyes forward, dashing over the small jumps, as Matt buckled down to keep himself from bouncing to high out of the saddle. Knuckles white as he held to her mane and the reigns.

They had to make these turns! To show off that training- they just had too! Matt tore one glance behind him, seeing Josh far in the back- well far enough behind him, anyway, that brought a strange sense of pride, but he went back to focusing forward.

He had to make sure they stayed in bounds!

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Josh Devlin

While the downhill charge after the big jump was Josh's favorite part of the track, what with being able to ride Braver faster than Raikou ran at full unboosted speed, the stress it put on his body dulled the sense of touch in his limbs. These tiny jumps, which Josh had Braver simply run over, were rougher on him than his Arcanine. The fire-types' paws were designed to absorb that kind of shock repeatedly. Josh's rear end and thighs were not.

Braver's tendency to run in slightly crooked paths at high speed significantly complicated matters, as well. The more sure-footed fire-types on the course, like Clyde and Mystic, would have far fewer issues. The impatient Craggro made a move on Nana, rocky fur flying backward in the wind with a WILD CHARGE. Braver barked, wanting to enter another burst of Extreme Speed, but Josh reined him in. Even his well-trained body could not take that kind of punishment yet. Maybe if he got the chance to ride Raikou, they would by then. But not now. "Not yet, Braver!"

Craggro's risky bid for position paid off, the Hisuian Arcanine's rocky paws able to take the added force of the harsh landings and stay within striking distance of Matt and Nana. Clyde remained a close third, ready to make his move when the white flag waved. And that would be soon.

Josh and Braver for the most part kept pace, looking to pass Mystic. The Ninetales' awkward landing caused her to lurch to the right hard, barely recovering her footing to remain in bounds and remained in the race. While Josh, Matt, and the Pokémon they rode would simply suffer time penalties for going OFF COURSE, the rest of his Pokémon weren't so fortunate. If they went OFF COURSE even a single time, they would be RETIREd from the race.

The course's single sharpest curve was upon them: it was a full U-turn on a fairly narrow section of the track only five wide. After the high speed descent of the huge downhill, braking of some kind would almost certainly be required for most Pokémon to navigate it without trouble. It was better than the alternative of pinching or scraping one's leg against the outer wall! A right-angle left turn very shortly followed, testing the racers' abilities to rapidly change direction as the home stretch loomed.

Target Number: 125 (Reaction)