Cactus Canyon has two kinds of season racing: Recorded Races and TikTok LIVE Races. They have separate points and separate winners. This guide explains the current rules. Older videos may use older rules.
The Season in One Minute
- The marbles race through a 30-race Recorded Season.
- They also compete in a separate LIVE Season on TikTok.
- Each side holds a finale to find its winner.
- The Recorded winner and LIVE winner race head-to-head.
- The winner of that last race is the Season Champion.
How a Recorded Race Works
- All ten marbles start at the top of the track.
- Watch the marble in last place. The last marble to finish is out.
- The remaining marbles return to the top and race again.
- This continues until only two marbles are left.
- The last two race for the win.
A normal win earns 1 Recorded point. A race marked 2x Points earns 2 points. Recent seasons have used 2x Points for the final five races, but older seasons were different, so always follow the label on the race.
Starting places are chosen at random. If a marble does not launch, or the finish is too close to call, the host can restart the run.
What Happens When a Marble Gets Stuck?
A stuck marble is not out straight away.
- It races one-on-one against the marble that would otherwise finish last.
- The marble that finished the track gets a small head start.
- The loser of the one-on-one is out.
- A marble may use a tactical stuck to force this one-on-one. It is risky, but allowed.
The old “safe stuck” rule is no longer used in Recorded Races. If several marbles get stuck together, the host reruns the marbles involved. The exact setup can change depending on what happened.
Points Become Lives
Points help in the finale, but points alone do not make a champion.
Every marble begins its league finale with:
1 starting life + 1 extra life for every point earned in that league
For example, a marble with 4 points starts with 5 lives.
The finale uses the usual last-place rule, but last place now costs a life. A marble stays in until it loses its final life. The races continue until one marble remains. That marble wins its league.
This means a marble with fewer points can still win the finale by racing well when it matters most.
LIVE Races
LIVE points are kept separate from Recorded points. A LIVE stream may use several qualifying races followed by a Winner of the Stream race. The winner earns the LIVE point, or 2 points when the stream is marked 2x Points.
Special challenges and viewer gifts can change a LIVE race, so the host explains those rules on the stream. LIVE and Recorded rules are not always identical.
Friendly Races and Old Rules
Off-season one-on-ones are usually friendly best-of-three races. The videos do not clearly say that these races earn season points, so do not add points unless the host says they are on the line.
Older videos may also show team races, viewer bans, or the short-lived safe-stuck test. Those are part of Cactus Canyon history, not the current core rules.
The Golden Rule
When a special race changes the format, the host's announcement for that race comes first.