View source for Slow ramp

A '''slow ramp''' is a special [[Collision types | collision type]] in ''[[Mario Kart Wii]]''.

== Overview ==
Slow ramps allow the vehicle to [[trick]], decrease [[IV]] to a set value until touching the ground again, and increase its Y velocity, typically forcing it airborne. This vertical speed can be canceled by [[Hop | hopping]] on the frame that the slow ramp is touched, making [[Trick#Hop trick | hop tricks]] an effective way to reduce slow ramp airtime.

Slow ramps are only found on a few tracks. There are many different slow ramp types, each with different speed lock and vertical velocity values. The table below lists all variants in the game.<br>
If a mushroom or boost pad [[boost]] is active when touching slow ramps types 3 or 4, different values for the speed lock and vertical velocity are used. They are listed in brackets.

{| class="wikitable"   style="text-align:center;"
|-
! Variant type
! Speed lock (u/f)
! Y velocity (u/f)
! Used on
|-
! 0
| 50
| 35
| style="text-align:left;" | [[GBA Bowser Castle 3]] yellow ramps<br> [[Moonview Highway]] vehicle roofs
|-
! 1
| 50
| 47
| style="text-align:left;" | [[SNES Ghost Valley 2]] ramp
|-
! 2
| 59
| 30
| style="text-align:left;" | [[GBA Shy Guy Beach]] ramp
|-
! 3
| 73 (100)
| 45 (70)
| style="text-align:left;" | [[Mushroom Gorge]] boost ramps
|-
! 4
| 73 (100)
| 53 (65)
| style="text-align:left;" | [[Mushroom Gorge]] red mushrooms
|-
! 5
| 56
| 50
| style="text-align:left;" | Chain Chomp Roulette
|-
! 6
| 55
| 35
| style="text-align:left;" | [[DS Yoshi Falls]] umbrellas
|-
! 7
| 56
| 50
| style="text-align:left;" | Unused
|}

Immediately upon touching the ramp, [[IV#Maximum speed | max speed]] decreases to the speed lock value, at a rate of 3 u/f²; additionally, if IV is lower than the speed lock value, then it is set equal to the speed lock value. Any effect that would change IV, such as EV to IV conversion or airtime IV decay, is also disabled while the speed lock is active.<br>
In general, IV can't decrease below the speed lock value even if max speed drops below it, while if max speed increases above the speed cap then IV also increases to match it.

If a wheelie or boost is active when touching a slow ramp, the modifier continues to affect max speed as long as it is active. For example, using a mushroom before driving onto a GBA Bowser Castle 3 slow ramp sets max speed and IV to 70 u/f, until the boost runs out, after which they drop to the regular 50 u/f. Offroad also decreases max speed while the speed lock is active, as seen while [[supergliding]].<br>
This does not apply to slow ramp types 3 and 4. For these ramps, max speed modifiers have no effect while the speed lock is active; for example, driving into these slow ramps with a wheelie still sets max speed to 73 u/f. However, as noted previously, driving into these slow ramps while a mushroom or boost pad boost is active applies a higher speed lock value.

Touching a slow ramp also grants a boost which lasts for 30 frames and accelerates IV by 7 u/f². This boost causes the vehicle to briefly speed up if its IV is slower than max speed, but the speed lock quickly decreases IV to a lower value again.

Slow ramp type 4 (bouncy mushroom) is unique in that it allows the vehicle to keep turning in the air with full maneuverability, even after 20 frames. If a trick is performed, turning only affects the facing direction of the vehicle, and not the direction of the IV vector. Hopping out of this slow ramp type still disables turning entirely, but [[EV#Leaning | leaning]] for the first 20 frames is still possible.

== Techniques ==

=== Wallriding ===
:''Main article: [[Mushroom wallriding]]''
After touching a slow ramp, the IV vector remains constant in magnitude until landing on the ground, even when colliding with a wall. This can be heavily abused on [[Mushroom Gorge]] to create shortcuts; by driving into a wall with very high pitch rotation from taildiving, the IV vector points up, allowing vehicles to climb up walls.

This quirk allows for another minor application in the no glitch category; while the speed lock is active, landing on edge of a red mushroom while touching the wall collision on its sides reduces max speed, but does not affect IV, so the vehicle does not slow down.

=== Offroad glitch ===
:''Main article: [[Offroad glitch]]''
Touching a type 3 slow ramp without touching a type 4 slow ramp before landing causes max speed modifiers, such as [[Wheelie | wheelies]], boosts, or offroad, to be disabled. This is fixed by touching a type 4 slow ramp, or [[Respawn | respawning]]. This oversight is relevant on Mushroom Gorge, the only track to contain either slow ramp variant.

=== Speed lock removal ===
It is possible to remove the speed lock during airtime by performing a [[Trick#Jammed trick | jammed trick]]. After going airborne so the trick can occur, touching the ground while the trick cooldown is non-zero removes the speed lock, without triggering the trick boost; then, going airborne a second time before the cooldown expires allows the vehicle to move through the air without at its current speed, and the trick boost is triggered upon landing again.

This technique only removes the speed lock by resetting maximum velocity on the ground, but it does not affect IV by itself. If a boost is active, the vehicle can accelerate to its max speed again; otherwise, it moves through the air with reduced IV.

This technique is used for each slow ramp on [[GBA Bowser Castle 3#No Glitch 3lap | GBA Bowser Castle 3 NG]], and on the yellow ramp at the end of [[SNES Ghost Valley 2]]. It is also performed after the wooden bridge on Mushroom Gorge, albeit without a boost, recovering IV with [[Trick#Side trick abuse | STA]].

=== Mushroom abuse ===
A variation of speed lock removal, performed on Mushroom Gorge. On this track, the no glitch route involves bouncing on several slow ramps in a row. If speed lock removal is not performed on the first slow ramp, then IV is already at 73 u/f upon landing on the second slow ramp. However, the speed cap can be removed by landing on the mushroom for 1 f, then bouncing off again. By tricking off the previous slow ramp, the boost increases IV by 6 u/f for each grounded frame on the mushroom, and can be preserved in the air if the speed lock is not activated again.

The basic pattern of bounces is the following: land on the mushroom, 1 f airtime, 1 f ground, airtime. The vehicle leaves the mushroom at 79 u/f. (The first airtime can be longer than 1 frame, but it is slightly slower because it delays the speed lock removal.)

A more complex pattern, used in the no glitch TAS, is as follows: land on the mushroom, 1 f airtime, 2 f ground, 1 f airtime, 1 f ground, airtime. This sequence allows the vehicle to leave the mushroom at 91 u/f. Landing after the first bounce resets maximum speed; during the 2nd grounded frame, the speed lock is applied again, causing maximum speed to decrease while IV increases; the last grounded frame causes maximum speed to reset again.

=== Outside drift momentum ===
:''Main article: [[Outside drift momentum]]''
Outside-drift bikes can gain significant EV on slow ramps; this is particularly useful on Mushroom Gorge and GBA Bowser Castle 3, which feature several slow ramps in a row. This is done by landing on a slow ramp with a drift, with the bike facing away from the IV vector, then ending the drift on the next frame and leaning.

=== Supergliding ===
:''Main article: [[Supergliding]]''
The speed lock effect ends once the vehicle goes airborne, then lands. However, it is possible to touch a slow ramp in such a way to avoid all airtime. This is occasionally referred to as '''[[slow ramp abuse]]'''; the vehicle moves around the ground with the effects of the speed lock active. In this state, the vehicle's IV is set to the speed lock value, although max speed modifiers such as wheelies and boosts still have an effect, and turning only affects facing yaw, so the vehicle must rely on wall hits to move around. Going airborne and landing, or respawning, ends the state.

After slow ramp abuse is activated, wheel EV decay is deactivated, so bikes are able to repeatedly lean to gain EV. This is known as supergliding, and it is currently not useful on any category.

=== Respawn glitch ===
Respawning directly on top of a slow ramp causes gravity to not be applied to the vehicle once it starts moving. IV is set to the speed lock, and the vehicle falls at a constant -0.25 u/f, until it touches the ground or respawns again. This glitch can't be triggered on any Nintendo track, but is present on some custom tracks.