ECSL Chocobo Racing Prepares for a Second Season

Chocobos. They are born to run. They are inspired by dreams most dramatic and wonderful. Now they run ever forward, that is their destiny. No one knows how the races that lie in their futures will end. Even so, they continue to run, aiming only forward to their goal.

The Sport of Kings is probably as old as chocobo husbandry itself, with prized and noble birds over the eras going down in history. Names like Bucephalus, Boko, or Red Comet have been written in the history of the world's greatest sport. Modern legends like Caramel Crusader, Saffron Universe, and Majesté Ishgardaise have carved out their own legacies. And there are some promising newcomers to the Gold Saucer like Eternal Sphene and the Hannish mare Parvati hoping to make a mark. But it's a mistake to think a champion is only made in the house that Manderville built. 

The Etheirys Chocobo Sports League is entering it's second season, filled with hopeful young birds and jockeys hoping to have the chance to join those illustrious lists, those chocobos that will be remembered forever as chamipons. The Black Chocobo Courier spoke with the head of the ECSL, Ry'lah Dinhe, who also directs sponsoring company Invictus. 

"Last season saw us using circuit tracks, usually the jockeys find themselves going through a loop for a couple of laps, winding through streets, or racing down long stretches," Dinhe explained. "This coming season, we will be seeing the jockeys and their birds running cross country in a rally race."

That may sound like a small change to the average race fan, but it's a dramatic shift for trainers who have to change strategies. Three laps on the same course poses challenge to both consistency and endurance, but hazards and terrain are predictable. Over a longer rally run birds will be constantly be expected to improvise, and jockeys have to be always on their toes. When to break into a sprint, when to hang back, and when to position a bird is far more fluid and unexpected in a rally.

The change to the races will be plain to see at the upcoming Sunsilk Endurance Race. There wasn't a chance to implement a race of the rally style in the inaugural season, said Dinhe, so the Sunsilk Race is going to really put ECSL's jockeys, trainers, and birds through their paces. The Sunsilk Race is going to pit racers against one another across several tracks from Thanalan to La Noscea, heading into a large circuit across both Vylbrand and mainland Eorzea. 

The ECSL owes its existence to Godbert Manderville, after a fashion - it was his stranglehold on the sport that had lead to multiple fledgling competitive leagues, collimating int the ECSL's sophomore season. And it may owe its status as the Gold Saucer's main competitor to the Manderville family as well. 

"I usually get ideas in my head that sometimes I need to execute them," Dinhe said, "In this particular case, there have been several attempts at starting up competitive leagues to the Gold Saucer, for one reason or another, most of them don't last past their first couple of races, or end up being one-offs. I could go into conspiracies, but... we'll just let the readers come up with their own."

Those wishing to be a part of a league not under the golden fist of the Manderville Man should head to their local stables for a brochure, Dinhe explained. Those not wanting to race themselves can of course attend the ECSL's races. Businesses can also partner with the League - which in the interest of full transparency, the BCC has done - to further invest in both an independent league and the future of Choquestrian sport. 

As the Sunsilk Race draws closer, BCC invited Dinhe to look back on the first season of the league. That season had fond memories, and built the groundwork for a bold league to come in this and future seasons. 

"It was our very first attempt at bringing together jockeys and their birds, and there were a lot of highlights. The one that stuck out the most was that one of our jockeys, K'hasumi, was able to stick and hold down first place on the leaderboards for a lot of the season, eventually she was overcame ... it's a lot of fun to see people from all walks of life coming out and enjoying the races."

Let the story of K'hasumi be an inspiration in the coming season, jockeys. After all, for the birds born to run, there's one golden rule: eclipse first, the rest nowhere.