Papu's Pyramid

Papu's Pyramid (ひとくいばな テンプル lit. Man-eating Flower Temple in Japanese) is the home track of Papu Papu and is the seventh race course in Crash Team Racing. It and the battle arena, Rampage Ruins, are based upon the levels The Lost City and Sunset Vista (from Crash Bandicoot) as the faces on the side of the walls are the same as the ones on these levels.

It is also where Papu Papu is raced in the game. It is in the Red (as well as Crash Cove, Mystery Caves, and Blizzard Bluff) and Purple (as well as Roo's Tubes, Dragon Mines, and Hot Air Skyway) Gem Cups. It is also in the Nitro Cup grand prix (as well as Mystery Caves, Cortex Castle, and Tiny Arena). Scattered throughout the course are Venus fly traps which devour racers that get too close.

Shortcuts
This track has three shortcuts which can be very good to get players from last place to first place. All of them are in the second half of the track. Additionally, using the second shortcut, the player can leap onto the wall on the right hand side of the track from the overpass, then jump straight to the start line.
 * The first is across the loop after the first set of Venus fly traps, jumping onto a flat-top pyramid.
 * The second comes straight after, on the platform to the left before the opening stretch of the track passes over, where players can get extra wumpa fruit if they need it. It is difficult to achieve both on the same lap.
 * The third is at the hairpin bend before the final stretch, using the ascent of the track to leap over the chasm at the peak of the ascent.

CTR Challenge

 * C: After the first few Venus fly traps this letter can be found on the platform which the player will have to jump to make the gap.
 * T: This letter is on the end of the main pyramid which requires a leap.
 * R: Hidden round a tight corner near the end of the circuit.

Trivia

 * It is possible to jump off a wall near the start and land at the finish line but the game will not count it as a lap.
 * The Venus Fly Traps are in their Crash Bandicoot 2: Cortex Strikes Back design.
 * If the player is skilled enough and breaks all the relic crates, a negative time can be achieved. This track, along with Sewer Speedway and Turbo Track, are the only stages in the game where this is possible.
 * The track can be compared to the Crash Nitro Kart race track Jungle Boogie, as they are both tribal-themed tracks. Both are home tracks of tribesmen - Papu Papu and Krunk, respectively. Both tracks are comprised of stone with a set of giant stone steps, though Papu's Pyramid seems to be made entirely out of stone, whereas one part of Jungle Boogie is comprised of a dirt track, while another is comprised of a wooden bridge. Jungle Boogie also doesn't have any sharp corners while Papu's Pyramid has several of them.
 * In a 2-player race, if Player 1 stands on the pyramid where the C would be, Player 2's Missiles and Warp Orbs will not track them accurately. This could be because the pyramid is not designated as being part of the course route.

Papu's Pyramid