Chao Races [SA1]
One of the main reasons that people raise Chao is to race them. There are many different races, and winning them all is essential as they have five out of the 130 emblems needed to complete the game. In order for your Chao to be good enough to win all the races, you need to raise your Chao’s four main stats (Swim, Fly, Run, and Power) up to a respectable level. The exact stats needed depends on the specific race category and course. With high enough stats, your Chao should be able to win all the races and emblems with ease.
The Chao Stadium
Welcome to Chao Stadium! Home of the Chao Races!!!
Race Mechanics
Basics
During the race, you can see the current race-rank position of the Chao on the left hand side of the screen. These numbers are the Chao’s lane number, and they will shift up and down depending on the current position of each Chao in the race. You can use the direction buttons to control the camera. You can focus the camera on different Chao by pressing the left and right buttons to cycle through them; an arrow on the ranking list to the left of the screen shows you what Chao you are currently following. Pressing the up button will switch to an automated, cinematic, zoomed-out camera, and pressing the down button will switch to a close-up camera that follows the Chao from behind.
Cheering
Every so often during a race, you will hear a twinkling sound and a white sparkle will appear around one of the Chao - it’s usually one that isn’t doing so well but others can get this too! If you are currently watching another Chao, then the camera will switch to show you the Chao with the sparkle. At this point, hold down the jump button to give that particular Chao a short boost of speed! The quicker you press the button after the noise, the longer the boost will last.
If it is your own Chao that is sparkling, then be sure to press the button as fast as you can! If it isn’t your Chao, then it might not be good idea to give it a speed boost. Make sure it is a Chao that you want to do well!
Stats
| Stat | Purpose |
|---|---|
| Swim | This stat determines how well your Chao can swim, or if it can swim at all. It is therefore very important for races that contain a lot of water, as a low Swim stat will cause you to lose your position to the better swimmers. |
| Fly | This stat determines how well your Chao can fly, or if it can fly at all. It can be very useful in races where your Chao has to jump down from a height, as it can use that opportunity to pull ahead if its Fly stat is high enough. |
| Run | This stat determines how quickly your Chao can walk or run, or if it can walk at all. It is probably the single most important stat for races; nearly all the races have a huge emphasis on running, and your Chao will have a significant advantage if it has a high Run stat. An extremely low Run stat will mean your Chao can only crawl very slowly across the ground. |
| Power | This stat determines how strong your Chao is. There are three situations where it is used: climbing up cliffs, shaking nuts down from trees, and pushing a beach ball along. Having a higher Power stat will allow your Chao to perform all of these tasks faster. |
The Courses
| Medal | Race Description |
|---|---|
 | This is a simple ball pushing race. This course mostly involves the Power stat, as your Chao has to push a beach ball down a long path to a marker line. There is then a very short sprint to the finish, where your Chao can get ahead if it has a high Run stat. |
 | The chao begin in the same spot as Pearl race. Chao have to run down a long, winding course that goes from the start along a clifftop before finally leading up the mountainside to the finish. There are parts of the course where some Chao may choose to take an alternative route: the first is right after the first stretch, where Chao can either continue on the direct path or fly into the river and swim; the second is at the end of the first direct path where Chao can fly off the bridge. This race is also good for strong Swim Chao. |
 | This race tests all of your Chao’s skills. It starts where the Amethyst course ended. Chao must run down a long straight that has a few rises in it before making a brief climb up a wall. Another run then leads to a flight down into the lake below, where the Chao must swim to the finish line. |
 | A pure swimming race besides a brief run from the start and to the finish. A good breakaway from the blocks will give you a clear swim to the finish if your Chao has a good swim stat! |
 | Winning all the races in Beginner and Jewel will lead in the Emerald course being unlocked in both sections. This is a long race taking up the whole course, except for the Ruby course starting point. Chao will have to run down the first straight with the beach ball before reaching the coconut trees. A coconut will have to be shaken down from the tree and then eaten, before continuing the length of the other three courses. Good luck! |
Secret Rivals
After you have completed every race (meaning you have all the Jewel Race emblems), you will unlock the secret rivals. If you enter your Chao in a race again, you may see one or more secret rivals. These are special, highly-trained Chao that will show up in the races to challenge your own Chao. They all have certain conditions that must be met before they show up.
Chacron
Chacron is a Two-Tone Black Chao that mysteriously appears lined up alongside all the other racers. The race will start, and while all the Chao race off to try and win the race - he will just lie there snoozing! Is he mad? Well… not really. You see, halfway through the race Chaclon will get up, and sprint after all the Chao at incredible speed! Unless your Chao’s stats are high enough, there is a good chance that Chacron will catch up, overtake, and win!
For Chacron to appear, the only condition is simply that you are participating in a Jewel Race, and that none of the other secret rivals are showing up. He will not show up in a Beginner Race.
Note!
On the Dreamcast (marking the first appearance of this Chao), his name is shown as CHACLON. This is very likely just a translation issue - when translating from Japanese to English usually a lot of things end up with L and R getting swapped. He will appear in lane 1 on the Dreamcast and lane 2 on all other platforms.
Chacron will start the Pearl Course immediately, without waiting at the start like he normally does. See the Chacron Wiki page for a lot more trivia!
Silver Chao
The Silver Chao rivals have extremely high stats and make challenging opponents. They can appear in the Beginner Races or Jewel Races.
On the Dreamcast you can face them if your Chao has all their four main stats (SWM, FLY, RUN, POW) are between 900-998. They will all fall asleep as soon as the race starts.
All other versions of the game you will need a Chao which has its four main stats (Swim, Fly, Run, and Power) adding up to 6,751 points or more.
Gold Chao
The Gold Chao rivals have the highest stats of any Chao that you will face. They can appear in the Beginner Races or Jewel Races.
For the Dreamcast you will meet them if your Chao has max stats (SWM, FLY, RUN, POW all at 999). All other games require your Chao to have its four main stats (Swim, Fly, Run, and Power) at 1,900 points or more.
