The Wyvern Racing Arena

This open sky arena at the edge of Clearwen overlooks the valley towards the Northern Innlands. It is best known for the big crowds that gather each summer to watch the wyvern racing.

Purpose / Function

This structure was originally commissioned by The Thinker, so she could give free lectures about scholarly topics for anyone interested. This was during the period when Clearwen mostly consisted out of tents and building housing was prioritized over building the colleges. Later, when more resources were available, the library was extended with a big lecture hall so these open lectures could continue in case of bad weather. When the crowds realized this was the perfect place to watch the wyvern racing, local bakeries seized the opportunity to sell their wares. Later, a ticket booth was installed and acces has since only been granted to those who are willing to spend the coin.

Alterations

Originally, there was a single stone platform in the lake with a reading stand for the lecturer. Now that the theatre is used for racing, the reading stand has been removed and two additional stone platforms were placed, for second and third place winners.
A steel construction holds 10 large hourglasses, filled with bright colored sand. Competitors are assigned a color (often based on the color of their wyvern) and the hourglasses are put into vertical position during the speed portion of the race. When a competitor arrives at the arena for a challenge, the hourglass is put horizontally, such that time spent on the challenge is not counted toward the final race time.

Architecture

The theatre is carved out of the mountain side. About 20 meters into the lake are three platforms, each big enough to hold one wyvern and their rider. The sound of the bustling waterfall at the end of the lake carries over all steps to the highest seats.

Tourism

Almost every tourist that visits during the summer months spends some of their coin to watch a race. The thrill of the crowd and the feeling of being near one of these magnificent creatures is often mentioned in letters to family.

Alternative Names

The open lecture

Type

Amphitheatre