the trainer hits gulls all the time. she sucks. If she gets the balloons at start (really gay when it happens), she'll usually get like 10-20 seconds. Otherwise, like 50+.
The trainer doesn't matter any except when she's stealing your d*mn balloons.
Remember it's two gulls to you, then two for the trainer, and it alternates.
Soemone on gamefaqs recommended turning sharp and zigzagging to all the balloons. This didn't work well for me b/c the chocobo tends to turn itself back straight, almost always sending you into a bird or at LEAST missing a whole clump of balloons.
What I did was control the bird LIGHTLY, turning sharp only when birds that were specifically attacking me were approaching. This way I hardly ever hit the sides (a great way to get hit by gulls and lose). This thing took my at least 2 hours, maybe 2 1/2, and by the end of it I was so pissed I was ready to throw the PS2 out the window. In fact at one point I took a break and threw some pillows and lifted the furniture and stuff to vent my anger.
The chocobo SUCKS at steering. On the part changes (turn at bottom of cliff, turn into shadow of cliff), it turns itself at least 90 degrees of the way, making it suicide to go after ballons on the outside of these turns. the chocobo WILL NOT go where you try to tell it to in these cases. That is my main gripe about this game, your commands don't actually work like they are supposed to 1/2 the time. You have to learn how the game is going to interpret what you are trying to do, and use that to beat it. It is [img]/xxx.gif[/img][img]/xxx.gif[/img][img]/xxx.gif[/img][img]/xxx.gif[/img][img]/xxx.gif[/img]ing INSANE.
I am never trying it again.
Blitzball is easy, I had the aurochs reels lined up by the time I got the airship (by that i mean the first games I played once I got the airship was the tourney that I got the aurochs reels in).
Lightning is cake compared to this.
And the other ones? Holy crap compared to chocobo racing they are almost GIVEN to you.