I'm not sure what exactly inspires Shoe to make the tracks he does, but one thing's for sure - he's pretty much in a class by himself. Wait now...don't misunderstand me here; I'm not suggesting he's better than all the other track makers out there, not at all. Besides, that's purely a subjective call, and how the heck would you fairly rack & stack them anyway? I'm merely stating that no one is doing it quite like he is. The guy sports a distinctive flare in his "products" that really catches your eye, and the truly amazing part is he hasn't been doing this that long!!!
Shoe's latest project is called "Claim Jumpin", and it's theme (if you will) is based on gold mining...panning for gold. What I like about Shoe is his ability and willingness to go beyond what most of us consider "normal" - thinking outside the box. Hahaha--no, I'm not trying to weasel in some underhanded insult by suggesting the guy's elevator doesn't quite go to the top floor. I mean, if so, then that's fine by me; heck he makes great tracks, and that's all I care about! Hehe Moving on, however, in thinking about it, there's nothing really spectacular about this this particular track except for the concept, which is where Shoe seems to excel. At the very beginning of the race, you're committed to a ride down a shallow river inhabited by boulders of varying sizes, which makes navigation a challenge. What it also provides for is a measure of unpredictability, and that translates to fun because each trip thru will be slightly different than the last. And being a stickler for details, he's even thrown in fish flopping around in the water. I'm tellin ya, this guy doesn't miss a trick!
Upon completing the short journey thru the treacherous wet stuff, you hang a left where the "orthodox" racing begins. The texture is somewhat liken to that of Scrapyard, but he's smoothed it out so that the ride is virtually bump free. He's seen fit to spare us from the kind of layout that requires use of a calculator, slide rule, and maybe a few surveyor's tools. Still, even though the route is complexity-free and the visual eye-candy is sparse, he seems to instinctively know what will give racers a heck of a ride, and this delivers that and more!
Shoe you've done it again, bud. By now you're probably a household name to those that play this great game. Heck you are around here; I've got a HotShoe screensaver, wallpaper, mug, cap and stationery set!! All I need to do now is to send him all this cra...I mean, "stuff" so he can autograph it for me!! My wife thinks I'm wacko, but that's nothing new. Hehehe
And now it's time for the not so famous, "Copey Rating". This one's a 2. Hahaha--ok, ok...I couldn't help myself; I think I'm just overly tired, ya know? Kinda silly. After 26 minutes of mind twisting adding, subtracting, dividing, and multiplying all the critical factors that comprise my "Copey Rating", this one gets a whopping 9.5!!! It's a shortcut-free thrill of a ride that's sure to appeal to every level of racer out there, and my guess is the download indicator here at KC's will reflect that!
In closing, I'd just like to say on top of being loaded with talent, Shoe...you're one heck of a nice guy, and I'd like to thank you for allowing me the opportunity to preview your work, partner. Also, my apologies for taking a few days to crank out a review on this one; there's like...a heck of a lot of great tracks being made now, and I love it!! I might have to hire a staff of writers to keep up, but still, it's great to see.
We'll see ya next time around, bud!!
