Finishing a race in Celestial Valley without riding on any grind rails is one of the trickier Air Ride checklist objectives in Kirby Air Riders.
Many players feel sure they have avoided every rail, only to see the challenge fail to tick at the end of the race. The objective sounds simple, but the course layout, hidden rails, and strict tracking rules make it easy to fail without realizing why.
This guide breaks down exactly how the “finish without riding on any grind rails” challenge works in Celestial Valley, explains every rail you must avoid, shows an optimal setup that makes the objective much easier, and covers common reasons why the checklist doesn’t complete even when you think you met all the conditions.
Use this as a clean, in-depth reference to finally clear the challenge and secure your reward.
Where the “Finish Without Riding on Any Grind Rails” Objective Comes From
In Kirby Air Riders, Celestial Valley is one of the returning Air Ride courses. The “finish without riding on any grind rails” requirement appears as a checklist objective tied specifically to Air Ride: Celestial Valley (Laps).
The key points about the objective are:
- It is an Air Ride objective, not Top Ride or any other mode.
- It is bound to Celestial Valley (Laps), not Time Attack, Free Run, or Road Trip.
- You must finish the race while never touching any grind rail on the course, from the starting countdown to crossing the finish line.
The game will automatically fail the objective if your rider grinds any rail, even for a split second. That includes bridge guardrails, side rails, vine rails, and elevated track rails that behave like grind rails.
Quick Reference Table: Celestial Valley “No Grind Rail” Challenge
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| Mode | Air Ride |
| Course | Celestial Valley (Laps) |
| Objective | Finish without riding on any grind rails |
| Recommended Laps | 1 lap (shorter attempt, fewer mistakes) |
| Recommended CPU Riders | 1 CPU |
| Recommended CPU Level | Level 1 (easiest) |
| Recommended Machines | Paper Star, Winged Star (high Lift, easy to glide) |
| Main Rails to Avoid | Bridge guardrails, upper cave railroad tracks, valley vines, final vine |
| Reward | Checklist Street Name (First Half): “Celestial Valley” |
| Difficulty | Medium: strict rail detection, tricky final section |
Optimal Setup for Finishing Without Riding on Any Grind Rails
Before worrying about the exact course route, it helps to configure the race to make the challenge as painless as possible. Kirby Air Riders gives you enough flexibility in the pre-race menu to drastically lower the difficulty of this objective.
1. Set Up a 1-Lap, Low-Pressure Race
From the Air Ride race setup screen:
- Select Celestial Valley as the course.
- Choose Laps as the ruleset.
- Set Number of Laps to 1.
- Set CPU Riders to 1.
- Set CPU Level to 1.
Running only a single lap means fewer chances to accidentally touch a rail. A single low-level CPU rider reduces bumping and random collisions that can knock you onto guardrails or vine rails.
Using more laps or higher-level CPUs doesn’t break the condition, but it stacks the deck against you for no benefit.
2. Choose a High-Lift Machine (Paper Star or Winged Star)
The Paper Star and Winged Star are strongly recommended because of their high Glide/Lift stats.
High Lift helps in two critical ways:
- You can clear awkward jumps and transition sections without being forced down onto rails.
- You can adjust mid-air more easily to steer away from rail hitboxes, especially near the finish line where a vine rail sits in your flight path.
Any machine with decent handling and strong glide can work, but if you are struggling with the challenge, start with one of these two.
3. Use Basic Copy Abilities or None at All
Copy Abilities aren’t required to complete the objective. In fact, going ability-less or sticking to non-movement-altering abilities can help. Some abilities can jolt your trajectory or speed enough to throw you onto rails unexpectedly.
- Avoid anything that dramatically changes momentum or height unless you are very comfortable controlling it.
- Focus on clean racing lines, light boosting, and controlled glides instead.
Every Grind Rail You Must Avoid in Celestial Valley
Where this challenge becomes tricky is that not all rails look equally obvious, and some are integrated into the environment in a subtle way. Both the original Celestial Valley layout and the new Kirby Air Riders version feature multiple grindable segments, including rails that look like vines or track edges.
You must avoid all of the following:
1. Suspension Bridge Guardrails
Early in the course, you cross a wooden suspension bridge. Its side rails function as grind rails if you land on them from a jump or glide.
To stay safe:
- Approach the bridge from the center of the road.
- Stay grounded; don’t jump or glide as you cross.
- Avoid heavy steering adjustments while on the bridge that might cause you to drift up its sides.
Even a brief auto-snap to one of the side guardrails will invalidate the objective.
2. Cave Railroad Tracks in the Upper Path
Inside the cave section, the upper route features railroad-like tracks that the game treats as grind rails.
To avoid them:
- Take the lower cave path when possible; this path is rail-free and safer.
- If you end up near the upper path, hug the non-track side of the tunnel and avoid any obvious metal tracks or narrow elevated strips.
Players often think they are staying “off” the rails but might clip the start of a grindable strip when trying to correct their line or dodge the CPU.
3. Mid-Course Valley Vines
In the valley sections, you will see vines that stretch along certain elevated portions of the track. These vines can act as grind rails when you land directly on them or slide along them while gliding.
To avoid them:
- Aim for the main roadway or the open ground rather than the vine edges.
- If you are approaching a vine at an angle, cut your turn earlier to stay on the safe inner part of the road.
- Avoid big, floaty glides that might drop you onto a vine instead of the flat surface.
Because the vines are designed to be rideable, grazing them for a moment is enough to fail the checklist condition.
4. Final Vine/ Rail Before the Finish Line
The most common run-killing rail is the one right before the finish line. After a series of boost panels and a water/rapid section, you tend to launch off a ramp or flowing surface into a final segment where a vine or rail sits in front of you.
In Kirby Air Riders, the “no grind rail” strategy revolves around avoiding this last vine/rail entirely:
- As you approach the final jump or waterfall, tilt the control stick back to gain height and keep your glide shallow.
- Aim to glide over the vine/rail, not land directly on it.
- Keep your line straight and avoid oversteering mid-air, which can drop you onto the rail shoulders.
If you float down and your machine lands on the vine or rail for even a single frame of grinding, the challenge will not count.
Step-by-Step Safe Route Through Celestial Valley
Putting it all together, here is a simple mental route to follow that keeps you safely away from every suspicious grind rail:
1. Clean Start and Bridge Approach
Off the starting line, keep a neutral line and avoid unnecessary jumps. When you reach the suspension bridge:
- Stay in the middle of the track.
- Remain on the ground; do not glide onto the side rails.
Cross it like a standard road section rather than trying to use it for speed.
2. Cave Section: Stick to the Lower Path
As you enter the cave:
- Watch for the fork that leads to upper track rails versus the lower cave road.
- Choose the lower road, which has no grindable rails to worry about.
If you find yourself drifting upward, back off on boost and steer gently downwards before you hit any track-like structures.
3. Mid-Course Valley and Vines
In the central valley areas:
- Keep your machine positioned toward the center of the main path.
- If you see vines hugging the edges, treat them as “don’t touch” zones.
- Avoid wild glides that might land you on the vines; if in doubt, keep closer to the middle or inner curve of the turns.
4. Final Rapids and Last Glide
Near the end, you’ll pass through boost-filled sections and water/rapid flows that push you toward the last big glide:
- As you exit the rapids and launch into the air, immediately tilt the stick back slightly to gain more height.
- Watch for the vine or rail directly in front of the finish straight. Your goal is to clear it entirely and land on the plain road beyond.
- Once you’re sure you’ve landed cleanly on the safe section, hold your line and cross the finish line without swerving into any side rails.
Follow this pattern and you should achieve a clean, rail-free lap.
Why the Challenge Still Might Not Complete (Hidden Rules and Bugs)
Even with perfect driving, some players report that the “finish without riding on any grind rails” objective still refuses to complete. There are a few plausible reasons for this, some mechanical and some technical.
1. Wrong Mode or Rule Configuration
The objective is specifically tied to Air Ride: Celestial Valley (Laps). If you accidentally:
- Run Time Attack, Free Run, or Relay, or
- Use a different Celestial Valley ruleset that does not match the checklist entry
the game may not mark the objective as complete even if you met the no-rail condition.
Always double-check that you are in Air Ride → Celestial Valley → Laps before starting the attempt.
2. Invisible or Short Rail Contacts
Kirby Air Riders treats rails and grind surfaces with fairly generous hitboxes, similar to how the original Kirby Air Ride handled grind rails. Even if you:
- Only brush a rail’s beginning while sliding off a wall, or
- Clip a vine/rail at the edge of the screen,
it may still count internally as a grind, and your run will silently fail.
Common “invisible” contacts include:
- The start of the cave railroad tracks if you drift too close at an angle.
- The uphill vine edges when gliding too low.
- The final vine/rail before the finish if you misjudge your landing height.
If you swear you never touched a rail, consider recording a run and reviewing it; tiny rail touches can be hard to spot in the moment.
3. CPU Collisions Knocking You Onto Rails
Even with one low-level CPU, there is still some risk that a collision:
- Pushes you sideways onto the suspension bridge rails
- Knocks you upward into a vine rail
- Sends you off-course in the cave and onto the upper tracks
The checklist does not care why you touched a rail; any grind, even caused by the CPU, invalidates the attempt. If this keeps happening, you can try:
- Staying well ahead of the CPU
- Or deliberately letting the CPU go first so you can drive undisturbed behind it
4. Unpatched Checklist Bugs
Kirby Air Riders received a Day One update that, among other things, explicitly fixed issues where certain Checklist tasks would not complete even when players met all requirements.
If you are playing:
- Offline without the latest update, or
- On a version that hasn’t downloaded the day-one patch
then it’s possible that your game is still affected by one of these checklist bugs. Make sure your console is connected and the game is updated to the newest version before grinding out tough objectives like this one.
Practical Checklist for a Successful Run
Before you try again, run through this mental checklist:
- Am I on Air Ride → Celestial Valley → Laps, not another mode?
- Is Number of Laps = 1, CPU Riders = 1, and CPU Level = 1?
- Am I using a high-Lift machine like Paper Star or Winged Star?
- Did I cross the suspension bridge staying in the center and never touching its side rails?
- Did I take the lower cave path, avoiding all upper railroad-style tracks?
- Did I carefully avoid vines and edge rails in the valley mid-section?
- Did I glide over the final vine/rail and land on the plain road before the finish?
- Is my game fully updated so checklist bugs are less likely?
If the answer to all of these is “yes,” your next run should finally complete the “finish without riding on any grind rails” challenge and award you the Celestial Valley Street Name.
FAQ: Celestial Valley No-Grind-Rail Challenge
Q1: Can I use more than one lap and still complete the challenge?
Yes, as long as you never touch a grind rail across all laps. However, more laps mean more chances to make a mistake. For consistency, 1-lap races are strongly recommended.
Q2: Do vines really count as grind rails?
Yes. Any vine or similar environmental edge that your machine can ride along like a rail is treated as a grind rail by the game. Even a short contact will break the condition.
Q3: Does it matter if the CPU touches grind rails?
No. The checklist only checks your rider’s interactions with grind rails. CPU riders can use rails freely without affecting your objective.
Q4: Can I complete the challenge in online or multiplayer races?
The objective is tied to the checklist for Air Ride races. While it may still work in some local setups, the most reliable method is to complete it solo in an offline Air Ride Celestial Valley (Laps) race with your own race settings.
Q5: I followed everything and it still didn’t tick. What now?
Double-check that your game is updated, confirm you’re using the correct mode, and consider recording your run to spot any micro-contacts with rails. If everything looks correct and the game is up to date, it is likely a rare checklist bug—trying again after a restart or patch usually resolves it.
Use this guide as your route plan, play safe with your positioning, and you should be able to finally clear Celestial Valley without riding on any grind rails and move on to the rest of the Kirby Air Riders checklist.