Overview
Mount Racing (officially called the Starsand Island Riding Competition) is an animal racing system announced by developer Seed Sparkle Lab during the game's pre-release campaign. Official promotional material shows team-based racing events where players compete on mounted animals: Team Choko, Team Piggy, Team Moomoo, and Team Wooly representing different animal types.
As of the current Early Access build (March 2026), the standalone Mount Racing competition is not yet fully implemented as a dedicated feature. However, racing-related activities exist through the Beach Festival and related seasonal events. The full riding competition system is expected to be expanded in future updates and the multiplayer release planned for Summer 2026.
Current Racing Content
While the dedicated Mount Racing competition is still being developed, several racing and competitive activities are currently available in the game.
Beach Festival
The Beach Festival is a seasonal event held on Summer 27, featuring multiple competitive activities. Preparation for the festival begins on Summer 25 and 26, when players must deliver specific crafted materials to five NPCs around the island.
Preparation (Summer 25 to 26)
The two preparation days require delivering crafted materials. Each successful delivery earns 200 Coins, 15 Starsand Points, 50 Beach Coins, and 20 Affection Points with the receiving NPC.
Day | Required Materials |
|---|---|
Summer 25 | Hardwood Planks, Glass Panes, Iron Ingots, Coal, Bronze |
Summer 26 | Coal, Hardwood Planks, Fine Salt, Iron Sheets |
Make sure to prepare these materials in advance. If you miss the preparation days, you may still attend the festival but will lose out on the Beach Coins and Affection rewards from deliveries.
Beach Festival Activities (Summer 27)
Time | Activity | Description |
|---|---|---|
8:00 AM | Crab Herding | Talk to the Crab Boss by Marston's house. Chase a crab into a glowing square to win. Costs 100 Coins per attempt. |
10:00 AM | Offshore Racing | Borrow a jet ski from Delphin and race through ocean checkpoints. Top three finishers earn exclusive rewards. |
12:00 PM | Beach Market | Vendors sell exclusive items for Beach Coins earned from preparation and event activities. |
7:00 PM | Bonfire Party | Musical performance featuring Stella and Sylvain. You can join by playing guitar on stage. |
Midnight | Festival End | Cutscene plays. Head home before 2:00 AM to avoid stamina penalties. |
Offshore Racing
Offshore Racing is the primary competitive event during the Beach Festival. To participate:
Talk to Delphin at the beach area and borrow a jet ski.
Interact with the leaderboard behind Delphin to start the race.
Race through each ocean checkpoint as fast as possible. Hold the Sprint key or button to boost speed.
Be careful with the sprint boost. The jet ski's movement is speed-dependent, and going too fast can cause you to veer off course and miss checkpoints.
Offshore Racing Rewards
Placement | Reward |
|---|---|
1st Place (under 1:30) | 200 Beach Coins |
2nd Place (under 1:40) | 100 Beach Coins |
3rd Place (under 1:50) | 60 Beach Coins |
4th Place or lower | 35 Beach Coins |
First-time completion | Exclusive outfit pieces (one-time bonus) |
Beach Coins are spent at the Beach Market stalls that open at noon on Summer 27. The market sells outfit blueprints, hairstyles, and other cosmetic items. The race is repeatable, so you can earn more Beach Coins before the Bonfire Party ends the festival. Collecting trash during beach preparation also yields Beach Coins, blueprints, and Beach Festival Treasure Maps that lead to additional treasure chests.
Rideable Mounts
All rideable animals are unlocked through the Rancher profession at Green Pasture Ranch, mentored by Pastelle. Alternatively, mounts can be rented from Pastelle for 15 to 30 Coins per hour with no profession requirement.
Tier | Riders | Special | |
|---|---|---|---|
Intermediate Rancher | Sheep variants (11 types), Puffhog, Pyrox | 1 | Pyrox can walk on water |
Senior Rancher | Horses (4 types), Deer (4+ types) | Horses: 2, Deer: 1 | Horses are the only duo-riding mounts |
Expert Rancher | 1 | Also produce wool, eggs, and feathers | |
Special | 1 | Free permanent mount from defeating the Ruin Guard boss |
To ride a mount, you need a Friendship Collar. Purchase the blueprint from the Green Pasture Ranch shop (requires Senior Rancher rank), craft it at a Worktable, then approach a fully grown large animal and interact to mount it.
Mount Special Abilities
Certain rare breed variants have unique abilities that make them stand out during traversal:
Mount | Special Ability |
|---|---|
Pyrox | Can walk on water and destroy bushes |
Cloud Sheep | Roll boost for quick bursts of speed |
Puffhog | Can destroy trees while riding |
Ink Horse | Can run on water |
Moonlight Deer | Double jump |
Cotton Candy Alpaca | Creates up to 2 teleport portals |
Phoenix Ostrich | Fastest mount in the game, plus long and high jumps |
For full details on all mounts, see the Mounts article.
Announced Features
The following details come from the official Kickstarter Update 5 (May 2025) and the Mount System trailer:
Feature | Description |
|---|---|
Team-based racing | four teams (Choko, Piggy, Moomoo, Wooly) representing different animal types |
Multiple mount racing | official material showed pigs, sheep, and cows as rideable racing animals |
Competitive events | speed-based challenges across the island |
Multiplayer racing | with co-op launching in Summer 2026 (1 to 4 player online), mount racing is expected to be a social and competitive activity |
Some animals shown as rideable in pre-release material (standard pigs, cows) are not rideable in the current Early Access build. Only the Puffhog (a pig-type variant) is rideable. Standard pigs and cows are farm animals only. These discrepancies may be resolved in future updates.
Mount Racing Teams
The four announced racing teams each correspond to a different category of ranch animal:
Team | Animal Type | Status |
|---|---|---|
Team Choko | Chicken-type mounts | Announced, not yet implemented |
Team Piggy | Pig-type mounts (Puffhog currently rideable) | Partially available |
Team Moomoo | Cow-type mounts | Announced, not yet implemented |
Team Wooly | Sheep-type mounts (currently rideable) | Available |
Known Beach Festival Issues
Community reports on Steam forums indicate several bugs with Beach Festival events during the Early Access period:
Some players have reported Beach Festival events not triggering properly if preparation tasks were skipped or partially completed.
Crab Herding has had reports of crabs not responding correctly to player movement, requiring a restart of the event.
The festival runs once per in-game year, so missing it means waiting until the next Summer 27. Save before the event to have a fallback.
Tips
Tip | Details |
|---|---|
Prepare materials early | Start gathering Hardwood Planks, Glass Panes, Iron Ingots, Coal, Bronze, Fine Salt, and Iron Sheets before Summer 25 so you can complete all preparation deliveries. |
Participate in Offshore Racing | The exclusive outfit pieces from top-3 finishes are only available through this event. |
Do not sprint the entire race | Use the sprint boost in straight sections but ease off around checkpoints to avoid veering off course. |
Rent before you buy | Test different mounts by renting from Pastelle for 15 Coins per hour before committing to raising your own. |
The Luna Deer is free | Defeating the Ruin Guard boss in the Moonlit Forest gives you a permanent mount with no upkeep cost. |
Horses are the only two-person mounts | When co-op multiplayer launches in Summer 2026, horses will let you ride together with a friend. |
The Pyrox can walk on water | This makes it useful for reaching areas that would otherwise require a boat. |
Collect Beach Festival Treasure Maps | Picking up trash during preparation yields maps that lead to treasure chests with bonus rewards. |