Hello and welcome to another RetRollSpective, where we reflect on the history of marble sports teams that have appeared in the tournaments of Jelle’s Marble Runs. This time, we’re going to discuss the history of the Limers, an inaugural team of the Marble League. Read on to find out how this team has soured the competition!
The Limers hail from the coast, and got their name from two sources—the vast reserves of limestone that are nestled slightly inland of the Gulf of Tartufo, and their favorite dessert, cassata, which is traditionally served with limes on top. The Limers began racing in Sotsevsa, a city across the sea from the gulf known for its philosophical teachings in ancient times, as well as its Syndesmarble, an ancient marble racing tournament that is still celebrated as a yearly tradition in the city. One year, the four performed so well that they caught the attention of a marble sports aficionado named Greg Woods. Woods approached the team soon afterward and invited the team to join their Fruit Circuit troupe. They accepted.
The Limers were one of the first teams in the Fruit Circuit when it began touring in 2004, alongside now-inactive teams like the Strawberry Strudels, Boysenberry Ballers, and Grape Nuts. They ended up outlasting these teams because of their persistence. According to Sublime:
“Much of the fanbase has asked us why we’re still going. Why do we keep trying every time that we do badly in an event or a season? It’s because we love this craft. We love marble sports because it gives us a purpose to be active and to make a difference in the world. We want to keep doing that for as long as we possibly can, not just for our fans, but for ourselves.”
The O’rangers, Raspberry Racers, and Mellow Yellow eventually joined the Fruit Circuit, and all three teams proved to be challenging for the Limers to shake. When the 2016 Marble League transfer spots from the Fruit Circuit were announced, the stakes rose even higher, particularly against the Raspberry Racers. Upon joining the circuit, the Racers quickly became rivals with the Limers due to their geographic proximity to each other and their contrasting team colors. The rivalry between the two teams is one of the most competitive in marble sports history, let alone in Marble League history.
“The Limers are the reason that we did not qualify for the 2016 Marble League,” Razzy remarked, almost snidely. “During the third-to-last race, Slimelime rolled into me right out of the starting gate, killed my momentum, and blocked me from moving to the front. They finished in second. I finished in sixth. If I had the momentum I needed to burst forward, I would’ve at least been on the podium for that race. But they got all the glory…and I got nothing.”
When asked, Slimelime disregarded the claim: “I maybe felt a slight nudge out of the starting gate, but I didn’t intend to block anyone out of the gate. One, that’s poor sportsmanship. Two, I wouldn’t have put it past Razzy to nudge me back, and either way, Razzy would not admit to it.”
Ultimately, the Limers came out on top, winning the Fruit Circuit in its final year and qualifying for the 2016 Marble League along with Mellow Yellow and the O’rangers. The team entered the tournament with honor, knowing that the Marble League was the modern-day realization of the ancient Syndesmarble tournament.
Sublime, Lemonlime, Jellime, and Slimelime entered the 2016 Marble League with high hopes that were soon deflated by subpar performances. The Limers went scoreless in the first half of the tournament except for the second event, the Relay Race, in which they earned two points in sixth place. The Limers’ second half proved more fruitful for the team, save for two more scoreless events, and produced a bronze medal in Quartet Diving, but the team finished the season in a disappointing fifteenth place. The Limers would have tied with the Pinkies for dead last, had the Pinkies not been disqualified in the final event.
“We were admittedly surprised by the circumstances. We expected the Marble League to reward performance with solely medals. The points system threw us off not necessarily because it was there, but because of how punishing it was. If you earned any place lower than eighth, tough luck. If you got seventh, you could’ve gotten eighth and gotten the same amount of points.” Lemonlime shrugged. “It made no sense, and we were determined to change it. We appealed to Jelle, and it was done.”
The offseason brought other substantial changes for the Limers. They began a rigorous training session in the cliffs of limestone near Tartufo and began building a training center just outside the city. Jellime left the team early in the offseason to become an advisor for the Syndesmarble and was replaced swiftly by Goolime. Jellime declined to comment on whether their leave was influenced directly by the Limers’ poor performance in the 2016 Marble League.
The Limers entered the 2017 Marble League Qualifiers with a lot to prove in a short amount of time. The team scored nothing during the Relay Race but picked up enough points in the remaining three events to qualify for the main tournament in twelfth place, four points ahead of the Kobalts and Snowballs, who both failed to qualify. The Limers became one of twelve teams that would be appearing in their second straight Marble League.
In the 2016 Marble League, the Limers went scoreless in half of the events. In the 2017 Marble League, the Limers went scoreless in zero of the events. The Limers placed in the bottom half during the first two events before earning a silver medal in the infamous Fidget Spinner Collision event. The team finished in the top half over the next four events, earning a bronze medal in the Relay Run, demonstrating a significant improvement from Qualifiers. The Limers peaked in the standings at second place after the Relay Run and remained strong at third place after Block Pushing.
Unfortunately, the Limers did not perform as strongly in the latter half of the season as they had in 2016. The Limers placed in the bottom half of the standings for every event except for Block Pushing and Steeplechase, notably around ninth to fourteenth place. As such, the Limers fell from the top half of the standings with grace and finished the season in tenth place, just one place above its starting position in the 2017 Marble League. Despite their slowdown, the Limers were still happy with their season. Goolime noted,
“The growth that I have seen this team endure ever since I joined is nothing short of astounding. I’m so proud of how far they’ve come since 2016, and I’m lucky to be a part of it this year. There is nowhere else I’d rather be.”
After a rigorous offseason of training, the Limers were invited to the 2018 Marble League Draw in the Arctic Circle and happily chose to attend. When they arrived, they were greeted with a surprise, for better or for worse: the Raspberry Racers were also in attendance. Greg Woods introduced them in the video, stating:
“They have a long history going back with the Limers, the two of them, so ideally they would like to be in separate groups, although some might say they want to be in the same just to knock each other out before they even make it…”
The two teams ended up in the same qualifying group.
“We were only separated by the Shining Swarm, but it felt like we were eons apart,” Sublime mused. “We reached out to the team after they failed to qualify in 2016, but they had already disbanded and wanted nothing to do with marble sports. We never thought we would see them again in a tournament, let alone in the Marble League.”
The return of the Raspberry Racers threw the Limers for a loop not only in concept but more importantly in the tournament. The Limers got two second-place finishes and one third-place finish, but they could only edge ahead of the Racers in Curling and the Halfpipe. At the end of Qualifiers, the Raspberry Racers qualified for the 2018 Marble League in second with 22 points. The Limers qualified in fourth with 21 points.
The Fruit Circuit was back.
“I was new to the team that year, and even I could tell that the Raspberry Racers had never performed like this before,” Limelime, a former Tour de Vellis competitor, admitted. “They had a drive like no other team to win the Marble League. And they didn’t in 2018, but we all knew that they eventually would.”
“2018 felt off from the beginning of Qualifiers. Even if we didn’t show it then, we felt it,” Slimelime added. “We were showing it by the second event.”
The 2018 Marble League resembled much of the Limers’ inaugural season. The team scored no points in a quarter of the events and placed in the top half in only a third of the events. The Limers started the season in tenth place, but by the end of the Snow Rally, the seventh event, the team had been in last place in the standings at the end of all but three events.
“It became really clear to us that we were not going to win the championship, regardless of whether it was mathematically possible or not. We did not have the gusto in us to do it. But we also didn’t want to take last place. I certainly didn’t,” remarked Sublime. They glanced at their gold medal, which was enclosed in a small display case at the Limers’ training facility. “We had taken last in the Snow Rally, and the team voted for me to do the Snowboard Cross. They said that they had a funny feeling that I would do well. And somehow—somehow, they were right.”
In a surprise turnaround for the Limers, Sublime eased their way down the course during the heat, finishing barely a second behind the Raspberry Racers, and dominated during the final, finishing two seconds before Anarchy from the Balls of Chaos narrowly edged ahead of Bolto from the Thunderbolts. The result was the Limers’ first-ever gold medal, and a pathway out of the basement of the standings for the rest of the 2018 Marble League.
The team performed in the middle of the pack throughout the remainder of the season, save for a last-place finish in Ice Hockey, which surprised fans due to the Limers’ silver medal in Collision the year before. The Limers finished the tournament in fourteenth place with the same amount of points as Mellow Yellow but a medal to edge above their fellow Fruit Circuit competition. However, the Limers were more focused on the performance of another Fruit Circuit team.
“The Raspberry Racers beat us in every single event except for the 5-Meter Ice Dash and the Snowboard Cross,” Coach Keylime said without hesitation. “When I joined the team as coach in the offseason, I made sure that my team knew that. The fans wanted a rivalry, but we gave the other team the championship.”
In the 2018 offseason, the Limers placed second in the 100 Meter Water Race, above the Raspberry Racers in thirteenth, and ascended to the finals of the Amazing Maze Marble Race against the Raspberry Racers, O’rangers, and Savage Speeders. The team’s drive ground to a halt, and the Limers placed fourth with only twenty-five points scored. The Raspberry Racers won the tournament with forty-three points scored and became known as a strong contender for the 2019 Marble League. The Oceanics were revealed as the hosts for the season, denying the Limers’ bid to host.
“Things were not looking good. My team’s morale had fallen over the past year. That hosting bid would have done a lot to raise their spirits, and it also would have done a lot for the Marble League as a whole. We were in contact with Jellime and the whole Syndesmarble advisory board to make it something really special.” Coach Keylime sighed. “Things were getting much better for the team in the last few weeks leading up to Qualifiers. Their form was starting to look much like their 2017 selves. I was hopeful.”
The Limers remained in a safe position in the standings for much of Qualifiers, boosted by a second-place finish in Block Pushing. However, the Underwater Race changed their fate for the worse. Slimelime finished in nineteenth and earned only one point, bringing the Limers’ total number of points to thirty-five. The Chocolatiers finished in fourth and earned fifteen points, bolstering them three points above the Limers and earning the final qualifying spot for the 2019 Marble League. Had Slimelime been four milliseconds faster, the Limers would have qualified.
Granted, the Limers’ presence in Qualifiers was soured when their fans started throwing debris into the Relay Race arena, disrupting the flow of the event and allegedly blocking Team Primary from finishing the race (an allegation that the JMRC denied). Needless to say, the fans’ actions in the stands were reckless, and Goolime agreed:
“We do not condone actions like that—in fact, these types of things distract us too. We’re marble athletes and we’re focused on that—we’re trying to do the best we can. That’s all.”
The Limers did finish in third in that heat, and twelfth place overall in that event. Had their fans not disrupted the flow, the result could have changed. Instead, the team missed out on its first Marble League ever. Here’s what Lemonlime had to say about that:
“I know what the fans are thinking. ‘Wow, Limers finally didn’t qualify. They’ve always been in the bottom half of the standings. They didn’t deserve to be in the Marble League.’ And they have every right to feel that way. Our response is this, plain and simple: we’ve enjoyed the opportunity to compete in these tournaments. We’ve loved to do what we do, no matter how well we’ve placed. It’s been far from perfect, but it doesn’t stop here. Right now, it hurts. But trust me when I say that we’re going to do everything we can to keep pushing. Thank you to the fans. We’ll see you soon.”
The Limers were ready to take a hiatus from training, but they were pleasantly surprised to hear the news that there would be a Marble League Showdown that would give the unqualified teams of the 2019 Marble League a chance to compete and prove their worth for the 2020 Marble League Qualifiers. The Limers immediately regrouped and began training again, rebuilding their team mentally, emotionally, and physically. The more they spent time together, the more optimistic they felt. As the weather got warmer, they returned to the Cliffs of Tartufo to train there without any disruption from the happenings of the world.
They were finishing their dinner with cassata when the sixteenth and final event of the 2019 Marble League was on television and watched silently as the Raspberry Racers secured the championship. The event was followed by a lengthy news recap, which covered the Racers’ season in-depth and also discussed Showdown predictions. After some time, in which the cassata stayed on the table, uneaten, the waiter rolled over to the table and asked the Limers,
“Are you finished with your dessert yet? Or would you like some raspberry syrup to sweeten the dish?”
Needless to say, the Limers entered the 2019 Marble League Showdown under immense pressure from the marblebase—fans that were flocking back from the Green Ducks, fans that had virtually no hope in the Limers, and fans in the middle of it all, who hoped that the Limers would at least get by.
They say that a picture is worth a thousand words, but not one of the thousands of words that compose this RetRollSpective could equate to the emotions that Limers fans felt when the Limers finished last during the 2019 Marble League Showdown. One of the fans that were banned from the Seven Seas Stadium expressed their disconcert,
“I guess I understand how the Oceanics fans feel, but at least they got to be a part of the Marble League championship. We won’t even get a chance to be in the championship until 2021, and that’s if we can score in more than half of the events, and score well. I have a right to be angry.”
The Limers declined to comment on the Showdown and its aftermath, although sources claimed that the Limers were beyond heartbroken. The public did not hear from the Limers until they were revealed as the sixteenth and final team invited to the inaugural season of Marbula One. Coach Keylime submitted Sublime and Limelime to compete in the tournament, stating:
“Sublime is our strongest individual athlete. It’s clear from their gold in the Snowboard Cross, but they’re also there in terms of being our team captain. Sublime’s leadership will take us far. And as for Limelime? Well, they finished last in the Funnel Race…so we expect them to be fast in Marbula One.”
Out of the Limelight
an addendum by Orbitball and Vector
Just a short while later, Sublime proved to be the team’s weakest individual athlete. With their highest finish being a tenth place at Momotorway, Sublime earned only one point and didn’t even finish the race at the Short Circuit, letting down both the team and their fans who had high expectations for the athlete.
“I just didn’t have enough energy to finish the race. Being so far behind the pack, I figured I would finish in sixteenth either way, so stopping was just what my body told me to do.” Sublime told the press shortly after the race. Sublime’s Short Circuit downfall began after they dropped eleven spots from fifth to sixteenth after taking the pit lane on the first lap.
Limelime, the reserve of the team, carried the Limers in terms of points, earning 24 points through two fourth places (at the O’raceway and Greenstone). However, with not even a single medal earned, it didn’t seem to be enough.
Finishing in fifteenth, only beating out the Hornets, the team was understandably disappointed. The Limers once again had to worry about potential retirement, and how their performances would impact their future as a team.
“Our fans are getting us through this. We’ve been just as let down as they’ve been, but they’ve held up hope for us, and have pushed us to keep competing,” Sublime stated in an interview following the Midnight Bay Grand Prix, “We feel like we’re past our prime.”
During their extended offseason, Stynth visited the Limers as they prepared for the 2020 Marble League Showdown. The team’s new manager, Blimey, welcomed Stynth upon their arrival in Cassata.
“The team hired me just after the Marbula One season, so I’m new here,” Blimey said. “And hoo boy, do we have a lot to work on.”
“Blimey has been such a big help. We were running out of funding after appearing in Marbula One, but they’ve helped us get back on our feet,” Coach Keylime tells Stynth, “I just don’t know if we’re too late.”
“No, we did not compete at a milk tournament. We spent our offseason training for the Showdown. And no, that training didn’t involve milk making, heh.” Goolime said at a fan Q&A, joined by Superball.
After a poor start to the Showdown, placing eighth in the Relay Run, it seemed the Limers would sink further and further down. They continued to sink in the standings, even holding the distinction of last place after the Black Hole Funnel. However, after the final event, Lemonlime managed to bring the team back up to eleventh place in the standings through a sixth-place finish in the Sand Mogul Race. It would be a valiant effort, but the team would manage to finish in an unsatisfactory position once again.
“Going into the event, I was hoping this could be their turning point after a rather disappointing M1 and terrible results in the 2019 Showdown,” former Limers fan, Lego, tells us, “Needless to say, the final result of the Limers solidified the fact for me that they aren’t the team to root for anymore.”
The team stayed silent for several months following the Showdown, leading many to wonder if the team would retire. However, to just about everyone’s surprise, it was revealed on 30 October that the Limers were invited to compete in Marbula One Season 2. This season, Lemonlime, “Citrus Quickness”, would be replacing Sublime in their Marbula One duo, with Limelime staying on the team.
Following an interview, Sublime expressed their dismay at not returning to the series. Coach Keylime had been quick to overrule the team captain’s request to compete in Season 2, sending Lemonlime instead.
“We decided to put in Lemonlime after seeing their potential in the Sand Moguls. If it wasn’t for the quick times of Azure and Bonbon, Lemonlime may have secured the wildcard spot and brought us out of the Showdown,” Keylime explains, somewhat despondent, “Either way, Lemonlime is a fast racer, and we’re all excited to see them compete.”
Due to recently acquired funding, the Limers submitted their Marbula One track, Monte Citrus, for review to be in Marbula One Season 2. The JMRC declined the track, instead opting to hold the seventh GP at the Jungle Jumper’s Raceforest, feeling the Limers track was “not exciting enough”. Redesigns were immediately put into action following the decision, with the Limers hoping to showcase the track in future seasons.
Despite the dissatisfaction of their hosting being denied, Limelime started the season off strong with a ninth-place after a brief stint in second during the first race of the season at Minty Mania. Lemonlime, on the other hand, proved to everyone that their concerns were justified, not even qualifying for their first GP at the O’raceway. Limelime followed suit, failing to qualify at the Honeydome, and although they qualified, Lemonlime finished in fourteenth place at the Aquamaring.
The Limers prepared for the fifth race of the season, Tumult Turnpike, sending out Limelime to compete. It was a chaotic course that played to Limelime’s strengths, with a banked turn where Limelime previously excelled. Although excited after qualifying in fifth, the team was not prepared for what would happen the next day.
Limelime accomplished what the Limers could not in over two years and earned a bronze medal during the Tumult Turnpike GP. With the rest of the team watching from the stands, Limelime fought fiercely upfront with Bolt and Yellow Eye for a majority of the race, even holding the lead for a couple of laps. The stunt brought the Limers up five spots in the standings to thirteenth place, two spots over the Raspberry Racers.
“I’m just about as surprised as everyone else is,” Limelime says in an interview after the race, exhilarated, “I didn’t expect to win a medal here today, but the Balls of Chaos do pride themselves on being unexpected, so maybe I should’ve seen it coming.”
After the team’s medal, the Raspberry Racers were the final team from Season 1 that had yet to medal. However, that changed during the next event at the Arctic Circuit, with Ruzzy securing a bronze, and Lemonlime finishing in 15th. Even after a bronze medal, the team immediately finished in a shameful position.
The team’s sorrows would not end there. In December 2020, JMR had announced that a five-event long Winter Special would be occurring during the Marbula One break. 16 teams would be invited personally to compete in the tournament. Unfortunately, none of these teams would be the Limers. Instead, the team continued attempting to train for their upcoming races.
During the break between the first and second half of M1S2, the team had a lot of time to think about their recent shortcomings.
“We were out of motivation. Lying around in a hotel with the rest of the team, I thought to myself that surely there must be something we can do to keep busy while so many other teams were off competing,” Lemonlime said, “So, I suggested that we should do something with the Garden Peas, a team we had previously competed with during the Fruit Circuit. They’d been out of work for a while and I wanted to meet up with them again.”
All four of the Peas had been good friends with the Limers since they had joined the Fruit Circuit and were embroiled in a friendly rivalry with them long before the days of the Raspberry Racers. The two teams kept touch for a short while after the Circuit’s last edition but eventually grew apart as the Limers went on to pursue bigger things. Goolime and Limelime had also met the Garden Peas in 2018 when they stayed together in Sotsevsa for a couple of weeks, but the teams had not seen each other since.
“Initially Sublime voiced their objections,” continued Lemonlime. “But they were quickly overruled. We phoned up Sweetpea, the former captain, and started talking. It was great to hear them again, and we ended up discussing possibly bringing other teams into the fray. Before we knew it, we had ourselves a full-on reunion.”
Another team originating from the Fruit Circuit, Mellow Yellow had also not been invited to compete in the Winter Special. The team, being very good friends with the Limers, accepted the invitation gracefully. The Raspberry Racers and O’rangers, while veterans of the Fruit Circuit, had to decline invitations due to their participation in the Winter Special. The Jalapeños and Cayenne Cavalry, two teams with a bitter rivalry that had joined the Fruit Circuit in 2013, took their spots. Teams like the Avocado Apes, Blueberry Bonanza, Cherry Pits, Passionfruits, and Pumpkin Patch (the latter of whom had won the 2005 Circuit before retiring in 2009) had previously competed in the Fruit Circuit, but either had completely disbanded or were not available.
The Fruit Circuit Reunion was not like the competition they had competed in during their glory years. 16 teams would compete over five races, each one hosted by a different team. It would be practice for Marbula One for both the Limers and Mellow Yellow. The reunion also featured a variety of teams, both old and more recent. This included teams such as the Grape Nuts, Yarble Yellers, and Zoomchinis.
The Grape Nuts and Yarble Yellers, in particular, would be quite formidable teams, with the Grape Nuts winning both the 2008 and 2009 Circuits, and having on their team one of the most decorated marbles of the Fruit Circuit, Nuthin. The Yellers won as hosts in 2006, even finishing third in the 2015 Knikkegen Marble League, narrowly missing out on an invitation to Marble League 2016.
Cloudberry Colliders hosted the first race at their very own Cloud Caverns, located in Cloudcord, also being the city all the teams would meet up in. A short distance outside the orange team’s beautiful hometown was the Cloud Caverns. The course was treacherous, with part of the track making its way through a dark and twisty cave. The Limers were no stranger to offroad racing, however, and prepared accordingly.
The teams loaded the bus to the caverns and waited in anticipation of a track they had not competed at in years. It was nostalgic. On the way there, the teams struck up chatter, happy to see each other.
“So, how are you feeling about all this so far?” Rambutan, the captain of the Silver Lychees, asked Sublime after Sublime sat down next to them.
“Honestly, I had my doubts,” Sublime paused, “But it’s nice to see you guys after all. I mean, just look how much fun Limelime’s having already, and we haven’t even begun yet.” Sublime smiled and looked over to their left to see Limelime laughing with Chickpea of the Garden Peas.
“I know what you mean. We’ve been so busy with other competitions, but it’s probably nowhere close to what you guys have been doing. Being here brings back a lot of memories,” Rambutan stared out the window at the passing trees and chuckled to themself, “especially when we beat you in our debut year, what was that, 2011?”
Sublime returned the gesture to one-up Rambutan, “Yeah, you might’ve won by a single point, but I don’t think you want to remember what happened the next year.” Rambutan started to say something, but stopped, knowing Sublime had them beat. The Silver Lychees choked the lead in the final event of the 2012 Circuit, falling to third behind the Watermelon Wanderers and the Limers. The pair sat in silence, a warm feeling in their hearts as they approached the racetrack. Sublime knew their team needed this.
The team unanimously decided that Limelime should go in the first race. They wanted to start with a bang. And start with a bang they did. With the starting order randomized, Limelime began in thirteenth. As the lights blinked, Limelime prepared themselves as they looked around to all the other competitors. They spotted the rest of the team in the stands cheering them on in the stands. Goolime had even made signs for them. Limelime smirked as the light turned green, and they were off.
Limelime burst out into the front of the pack, overwhelming the rest of the competitors as they took a particularly good left turn. Moving their way up the order, Limelime passed by Tart of the Strawberry Strudels and Ani of the Aniseed Balls to take first place. Their technical skills shown at Tumult Turnpike shone on this course, even though they had never raced on it before. They exited the cave with a burst of speed across the finish line, taking first and earning the team gold to start.
All five of the Limers were ecstatic. This was one of the biggest successes they had in years, even if it was in a friendly competition. Limelime returned to the stands and the team cheered, extremely proud of what they had accomplished. Limelime was also congratulated by the other teams as they sat atop the podium above the Strawberry Strudels in second and the Cloudberry Colliders in third on their home track.
Making their way to the next course, Seedway, hosted in Dundseed, Slimelime was elected to participate. The Aniseed Balls had only used this track one time when they last hosted the entire Circuit in 2014. Slimelime had previously scored a bronze medal here in 2005 and was the team’s best bet. However, after setting expectations too high after the first race, Slimelime did not meet those expectations. A fifth-place had the team wondering if they were returning to their typical performances. The Grape Nuts placed first and overtook the Limers for second in the standings, while the Jalapeños placed second and the Yarble Yellers third.
“Oh well,” Slimelime sighed, “We take what we can get. We’re proud of Limelime and that’s what matters. It’s just good to be here in a lighthearted competition.”
Their performance didn’t get much better throughout the final three races, placing eleventh at the Garden Peas’ Overgrowth, twelfth and the Jalapeños’ Chili Pepper Cross, and thirteenth at the Silver Lychees’ Rambutan Run. Their initial gold carried them to finish tenth in the standings, a bottom half finish they were all too familiar with. However, there was a spark of hope within them, as they considered the future of their team.
A team that did get much better in the final races, however, was Mellow Yellow. Yelley and Yellup respectively took home two golds in the final two races to give Mellow Yellow a dominant win over the Grape Nuts and Watermelon Wanderers. The Cayenne Cavalry finished with fewer than 10 points after the Banana Splits overtook them after the race at Rambutan Run.
Although the team was coming off of their highest point in years at Tumult Turnpike, they could not keep the momentum. At the Raceforest GP, after staying in midpack for most of the race, Limelime hit a curb and got stuck on the track. Razzy, who had nearly been lapped, failed to collide with Limelime, resulting in the Limer’s second DNF.
Despite a promising qualifying in fifth, Lemonlime put in another disappointing showing at the Momotorway, coming in fifteenth.
“I just wasn’t feeling up to it tonight. I’m sorry.” Lemonlime had said, after being asked about their terrible performance at the race.
Unsurprisingly, the team was in a bad mental state following this start. Talks of the team announcing retirement following M1S2 began to stir, but Goolime was quick to voice their opinions on the matter.
“The way I see it, JMR keeps throwing opportunities at us, what with M1 and the Showdown, so we must be good for something, right?”
But it wouldn’t get better at Palette Park. Limelime did well by finishing eighth and getting to Q2, but once again suffered a massive fall and ended up battling to stay out of the basement with Ruzzy. While Limelime finished fifteenth ahead of Ruzzy, it was another scoreless run, and another drop in positions for the Limers to nineteenth place, yet to pick up a point since the first half.
The Limers would finally break their pointless streak at the controversial Misty Mountain GP, with Lemonlime getting a decent ninth position.
But those who thought that the Limers may do a late-season comeback were proven wrong, as the team saw themselves slip back down to second to last after failing to score in the final two races at the Savage Speedway and Midnight Bay.
To make matters worse for the team, they didn’t even have the Qualifiers to fall back on. It looked like 2021 would be yet another farce for them, when they received some surprising news during an interview outside Goolime’s Lemono cottage.
“Yeah, we’re all a bit gutted with M1S2, and us having to sit out another Marble League and… uhh- sorry, would you excuse me for a second? This isn’t a good time, I know, but I have just been given a letter from JMR, and as I’m sure you know it’s not every day this happens, and… oh. Well then. You might have to disregard what I said earlier, because unless this is some kind of prank or forgery, and I doubt it is because it’s quite hard to forge… oh, sorry, am I rambling on a bit? Anyway, the gist of the letter is that… we’ve got another chance in the Qualifiers.”
Introduced on 13 April 2021, the new qualification system allowed the bottom four Showdown teams an opportunity to qualify for the 2021 Marble League. The Limers were sorted into Group B alongside their old rivals, the Raspberry Racers.
Before Qualifiers, the Limers traveled to Felynia to compete in the Practice Race. Lemonlime represented the team and finished eighth overall, beating all of their Fruit Circuit rivals except for Kinnowin from the O’rangers.
In RetRollSpective, the Limers are a team that has done better in earlier years, especially before the Marble League. The rise of newer teams, notably the Raspberry Racers, has put into question the Limers’ form and overall capabilities. Nevertheless, there is something to be said about the team’s resilience, and after hitting rock-bottom in both Showdowns, we can only hope that they will come back stronger than they have ever been. Best of luck to the Limers in the near future, keep on rolling!
Project Marblearth 