Did a round of processing. There are 8 processed entries (I don’t include myself, I don’t count against the limit of 25) and another 4 pending processing.
That means that there are 13 more slots, assuming all 4 pending submissions clear. For the pending submissions, either you submitted in the last 2 hours, or I’m waiting to hear back from you on something (I’ll process you all at the same time)
The Team:
Michael “Mike” Stanthorpe: The brains of the operation, he’s the go to man when anything starts making noises. He’s been working part time at his father’s workshop for the past 3 years and has a fairly extensive knowledge of all things automobile.
Thomas “Tom” Cook: The funny guy, whenever things are looking down, Tom’s always there to brighten up the spirits. Never failing to get a laugh out of the other two, Tom will be invaluable during the tough moments on this trip.
Samantha “Sam” Gordon: The logical one of the group, always providing direction when the other two are clueless, and making sure they don’t rip each other’s heads off when Tom gets on Michael’s nerves.
Their Story:
The three of them have been the best of friends since they first met in high school, all being Australian immigrants and fans of cars, they all clicked immediately. Throughout high school they had their highs and lows, but they got through it. As a kind of celebration for graduating, the three decided to join the run, using the opportunity to tour the country and bond even more than they already had.
But before they could do anything they needed a ride, and hailing from Australia, it only seemed fitting that they showed up in an Australian car. They all started searching for cars on Gumtree and the like, and before long they found something.
T: Hey Sam, come check this out, i think i found our ride.
S: Oh wow, what a find, it looks a bit beat up, but it’s cheap, only 700 bucks, which, if my memory serves me correct, is about $470 USD.
T: What did i tell ya, it’s perfect. Sure, it’s not in the greatest condition, but that’s not the spirit of this event.
S: I’ll call Mike and get him to come over and check this out.
20 minutes later, Mike arrives at Sam’s house where the other two were.
M: So where’s this so called “perfect ride” that you speak of.
T: Right here, she’s a beaut’ isn’t she.
M: rolling his eyes Right. What’s the condition like?
S: Well it’s far from the best, but nothing we can’t deal with. It says right here, it’s got uh, an A/C that doesn’t blow cold, missing foglight, cracked rear window, an exhaust leak and a blown rear left shock absorber.
M: That’s nothing I can’t fix, i should have her running right by the time we get there.
T: Well, that settles it, I’ll contact the seller and let him know we’re interested.
S: I think dad should be able to cover import costs, so we don’t have to worry about that.
The Ride:
3 weeks later, Sam got news that their chariot had arrived in the country. She arranged for it to be delivered to Mike’s father’s workshop after he got permission.
Upon looking over the car, a Volcano Orange 2001 Straker Overlander XV6 owned by a true blue bogan, they found a few goodies along with their purchase. Inside the boot, they found a half empty 24 pack of XXXX Gold cans of beer. Along with that was an ash tray full of spent cigarettes and a portable tyre inflator.
When looking over the mechanicals of the car, more issues were found that weren’t specified in the advert;
The car had arrived later than planned, so the team didn’t have as much time to work on the car as they wanted, but they still had a full weekend until they had to set off for the 300 mile trip the start line.
Over that weekend, the group managed to repair the CV boot, replace the rear damper, and fix the window switches, although their correct functioning was intermittent. However, the car was still far from perfect, having various scuffs/scratches, dents and missing trim pieces, but that didn’t matter, all that mattered was that it was driving.
With the car in good enough condition to drive, dressed in flanel shirts and thongs, the trio were just about ready to go. They packed the boot with a jar of vegemite, a mini fridge full of tim tams and snags, a portable BBQ, camping supplies, and a few spares and set off for the long ride ahead of them.
Sounds like my brother’s old commodore
Team Harcourt-Entwhistle
In a garage somewhere in an affluent part of the British Isles…….
The garage doors swing open to present a 1965 Franklin Standard to the assembly……
Gran – You bought THAT?
Mopey – Yes, Gran.
Gran – But, but, but……it’s a….
Mopey – …big car that can carry a lot of spare parts, yes!
Spanners – It IS very roomy in the back Mrs E, and it’s old school engineering so it’s easy to fix and I have a lot of spare parts too.
Gran - …………it’s a…a……
Spanners – Engine was completely rebuilt using better parts in 2007.
Gran - …………it’s a…a……
Mopey – Automatic so it’s easier to drive and it’s a classic!
Gran - ….a……HEARSE!!
Spanners and Mopey look at each other….
Both – Yes, it is!
Gran tries to regain her compure….
Gran – So how come it’s so cheap?
Spanners – Well it’s only got 3 weeks left of its MOT….and without welding a complete new floor to the bottom it’ll fail….spectacularly…….although I have welded some strengthening beams front to rear and side to side.
Gran – And will it make the whole journey?
Spanners – If it doesn’t fall apart when the plane lands…then I suppose I guess so……
Elizabeth Harcourt-Entwhistle (widowed) – “Gran”
Age – Never ask a lady her age dear
Likes – Family, classical music and old things
Driving experience – over 60 years
George Harcourt-Entwhistle IV – “Mopey”
Age - 19
Likes – Staring at his mobile phone, girls, drinkingand moping
Driving experience – Pontins Go-kart champion 3 summers in a row (2012-2014), proper cars – 20 months including 2 previous scrappy expeditions.
Dave something-or-other – “Spanners”
Age – 30
Driving experience – Anything the army put him into/on to as well as a lot of things he shouldn’t have been anywhere near!
Likes - Mechanical things, lots of hot tea, bodging stuff to make it work again.
The Car
After success with the FM HiWays the team are entering this little jaunt in a 1965 Franklin Standard. This is a hearse based on the Franklin Horizon estate. Needless to say that Gran is NOT impressed…Spanners thinks it’ll be a lot of stops, at the side of the road, to repair and Mopey thinks it’s badass!
Engine was rebuilt, completely, in 2007 with modern variants of the OEM parts.
This small team was made by 2 brothers. At first, they wanted to name the team "Stick Shifters", cause of their ability to drive stick-shift cars. However, after noting that the team name can be misunderstood, they decided to drop it. Instead, they decided to rename it to "Drive Like Brothers", because they treat everyone as their brothers, they don't want to cause any harm.
- Ben Weathers: Main driver, the calmest and most collected one of the bunch. He knows how to drive fast, as he’s driven in multiple amateur races before. Plays racing sim games often to gain some better techniques. Jokes around a lot.
- Colin Weathers: The mechanic; has more experience setting up the car than driving the car itself. Friendly guy, but prone to outbursts especially when something goes wrong. Has a lot of experience with inline engines but isn’t very comfortable with V engines. Also jokes around but slightly less frequently.
1. Alignment on the wheels are off.2. Some buttons on the radio are a bit clunky after numerous use.3. Extremely dirty and foggy headlights.4. It's straight piped so it's obnoxiously loud.5. A speaker is broken.
They fixed the alignment, speaker, and radio, but the straight pipe and dirty headlights remain.
Matthew DiCanio, 49, formerly a US army engineer at White Sands Ballistic Missile Range working on undisclosed projects, quit his job to go adventuring when he felt the 50s nearing. Leaving Las Cruces, NM, where he lived most of his life, he spent the last two years traveling and getting odd jobs. When he heard about the Once More tour, he decided to find a team together and join the competition.
John Warwick II, 58, has a rather unclear background, but has worked at Skunk Works, Los Alamos, and White Sands, though at least at White Sands, Matthew never understood what exactly he was doing there - all he knew is that he had high security clearance, and that he was great pool player (a pass time him and Matthew often indulged in at the base and in town). A good friend, he appeared to be available for the competition, calling it “useful” to compete.
Alice McNamara, 28, unknown to Matthew before today, is the third team member. She appears to be employed by John - or designated as an aide to him by their joint employer. Beautiful, smart and charismatic, John put her forward as a valuable asset should the team run into trouble. Matthew is somewhat skeptical as Alice seems to not have spent much time outside of New York and D.C., which isn’t particularly the environment they’ll be driven through, nor all that relevant for the people they’ll meet.
The car
Although Matthew had a number of ideas for potential cars, it was Alice that quite quickly got her hands on a car in her native New York. A fullsize Ardent Manhattan from 1999. With two previous owners and 262.400 miles on the clock, the car is not exactly in mint condition, but with the reliable V8 in front, the large trunk, and extremely comfortable seats for long distance cruising, Matthew and John are quickly enthusiastic about their ‘Manhattan Project’.
There’s some rust, the steering wheel bearing isn’t in the best of states, the air-conditioning unit appears to be nothing but a few asthmatic mice blowing through the vents, the gearbox and its third gear appear to be no longer on speaking terms, the ABS and TCS systems shouldn’t be relied on, most things electronic in the dash don’t work anymore (the fuel gauge does at least; and an aftermarket radio is crammed in the space where the original sound system was) - the Ardent was never known as reliable for its electronics, but the chassis and engines were solid.
Even-so, the $429 that the team paid for this car was likely not possible without Alice charming her way into getting a low offer accepted.
Zack;
Jayson “JayZ”
Kadett Beat Van Conversion
some morning in Geroge’s Garage
Zack is, as always, tidying up his hair in the reflection of the shops service car before heading out helping stranded customers.
A few feet away, Jayson is rehearsing some of his (crappy) freestyle rap-lines.
George, the owner of this location, leaves his office and this conversation ensues:
G: [while having an oversized cogar in his mouth] “HEY! We gotta talk once you’re done tuning yourself about the Kadett.”
Z: [mumbling] “Just because your so-called wife does not allow fun anymore…”
[to George] “What’s up, Boss?”
G: “Bad news… the Kadett has to go but the new one doesn’t arrive until next week.
You and that Pseudo-Eminem guy back there have some time off.”
Jayson arrives.
J: “Yo yo my big G, wat 'sup?”
Z: [does not acknowledge him being there]
J: “Chill down bro…”
Z: “Sure… speaking of the devil, i’ve got stuff to do.”
J: “Fucking chicks.”
G: “Could you discuss that somewhere else?”
Z: [still focused on Jayson] “Jep. Your Mom you wannabe-rap-god.”
[to George] “Listen… there’s a challenge going on and my Corus is a bit too… “special” for it.
I’ll give you 350 bucks for the Kadett and some parts.”
G: “350 bucks… you wanna screw me over?
But since you are my man… Deal. BUT you have to take this Kiddo back there with you.”
Z: [obviously not amused] “…”
to be continued
the service used to upload the pics is irrelevant if the ISP is the culprit.
(which it is in this case)
Fuck. I forgot that.
Thanks, m8.
Also to @Ryan93: You can try uploading it later if you want.
Crew members
Gary Bowman - 42-year-old mechanic from Los Angeles who knows a lot about anything with wheels and an engine, and how to fix them. Is especially skilled in restoring Youngtimer cars - his favorite era of motoring by far.
Denny Travers - 25-year-old semi-pro racer originally from Greenville, South Carolina on the verge of being signed to a long-term contract in the Pirelli World Challenge. He will serve as the team’s lead driver.
Hayley Mason - 28-year-old journalist from the Midwest, now based on the West Coast to follow Mr. Travers’ career as a sports car racer. An avid enthusiast, she will act as navigator for this rally.
Wanda Sanders - Gary’s wife, now 37, and very supportive of his hobby. Her daughter is not old enough to drive yet, but will be following this rally with interest.
The car
The Maroon Marauders will be taking a 1992 GEC GC4 3.0 along with them. It was used first as a company car, and then as a motorway hack, covering hundreds of thousands of miles in the process. Known for its soothing blend of economy, comfort and reliability when new, it nevertheless has some issues; some of the in-dash electronics have stopped working (to the point that an aftermarket stereo has been fitted), and the steering seems a tad vague. At least the ABS and traction control are still working, albeit inconsistently. Nevertheless, the team considers this to be great value for just under $500.
Somewhere in the American midwest, early night. A small barn-looking building only communicated with the world by a small dirt trail is lit softly by the otherwise harsh, but subdued moonlight. Inside, two people, barely recognizable due to the harsh contrast the lack of illumination other than some small lamps pointed towards the bonnet of a Radster 1.6 provided, worked on it.
The car…shall we say, was a bit special.
Not really, there’s no way in hell you’d be getting the car that ran in touring cars in the late 80s and early 90s for $50000, let alone $500. But hey, you can always slap a Group A-like bodykit on your $500 shitspec Radster 1.6, stroke and bore the engine a lil’ bit for that low end power and remove the rear seats and call it a day. Almost the same thing! Sure, it needed some repairs and it was dusty and had rat poop inside, but you can only be so picky when it comes to buying a second hand car for $500. And having been banged by some hormone loaded teenager who just got their license didn’t help the clutch for sure.
The two people closed the bonnet once they were done working on it. As they got on the car, and exited the barn, the moonlight revealed their…helmet designs, covering their faces to prevent anyone from knowing who they are.
Coyote Jim: a controversial driver, known worldwide for starting their career as an ASCAR driver before disappearing for a couple of years before popping back out as, presumably, another person in rally events worldwide. People theorize that Coyote Jim is in fact faking their identity, and car forums worldwide have their share of conspiracy types claiming they know who they really are. Oh, but do they actually know?
(@Elizipeazie you know what to do)
Clutch Kick: because “Sidekick” doesn’t sound car related enough. Unlike previous instances, Coyote Jim seems to be in good company this time. Who Clutch Kick is and why they are racing alongside Coyote Jim also remains a mistery. All we know, is they have an interest in taking part in this race and, particularly, a good result in it.
So they have a cassette player, some cassettes, and a long trip ahead of them…
Team Coyote Jim wishes everyone good luck and good racing!
I am pretty sure Zack will die for this plastic monster. Well done 
Part 0 : Never Buy a Car in the Dark
three knackered old cars came into view as the thrum of the hire car died down as two people stood in the headlight beams.
Connor : ‘‘so which one of these is the car you have been talking about. It better not be that old Nohda …’’
Mandy : ‘‘it’s that one, you see it, the red one’’
Mandy pointed at the open box trailer
Connor squinted in the direction and began to walk across the dirt
''900 dollars he wants for it I’ll see if I can wrangle him down abit…"
as the words left her mouth the house door opened and a round, short and bearded man waddled out to greet the two
Egura Aviso RS1600
After such a rough life ( see below ) the Aviso was showing some strain; it had not been a running project, the term “non-starter” springs to mind, the smashed window had not been fixed, rust bubbles were sprouting from everywhere, the stickers were horrendously vulgar, as was the disgustingly dirty p*rn magazine found taped under the driver’s seat and that bit of bird poop on the drivers side was irremovable.The side exit exhaust was also incredibly loud and got incredibly hot. Thankfully it was reasonably easy to get running considering it cost $495, the spares as it turned out to be almost entirely not for the car they were needed for.
Originally Radish Red, this MK2 Aviso 1600RS was previously owned and rallied by Ray Sharpley in the 1980’s and 1990’s to minor success with a highly tuned 1.6 litre 16 valve boxer engine, damage to body work and blown engine in 1996 left it sitting in the drivers garage for 7 years after he fell ill. it was then bought by Dave Caldwell and his son Paul in Aug 2003 as a project with only a roll cage, rally prepped suspension and brakes, it had no interior and no engine and was bought for $1500.
October 2003: Minor rust repairs were undertaken, the damaged Minilite wheels were removed and the car was left on axle stands over winter until March 2004.
Jan 2004: Dents repaired with bodyfiller, right hand door and boot lid removed, front seats fitted from a 1995 Aviso.
March 2004: Temporary steel wheels fitted.
August 2004: Moved out of container and placed under tarpaulin on wet dirt driveway to make space for part storage, the door pillars and window frames began showing signs of rust appearing and chassis holes started to become more severe.
December 2004: Existing and appearing holes in the metalwork repaired with plate metal and fibreglass.
February 2005: Rattle canned flat red on right side where paint had started to perish, bumpers spray painted matte black, bonnet was left in its original matte black, the righthand fender was sticker bombed. The boot lid, righthand door, dashboard and fuel tank replaced using scrap parts from a white 1975 1200GR model. Reappearing rust holes patched over.
July 2005: Brake shoes and pads refurbished. BBS wheels fitted from a 1985 Schrafen and sprayed matte black. 5 speed gearbox and turbocharged 2.0 litre boxer four swapped straight from a scrap 1990 Egura Salvo Turbo. 3-inch straight pipe dual side exit exhaust with ‘off-road Y pipe’ fitted inside a gaping rust hole underneath the driver’s door. Bonnet scoop attached after rust was cut out.
August 2005: Car now road legal and used regularly for high school commutes, serviced frequently.
September 2005: Car lowered, and new old stock dampers fitted, brand new aftermarket stereo installed, louvres fitted, and old seats replaced with those from a 2004 Aviso.
February 2007: Was road tuned by Pauls friend to supposedly develop ‘220 hp’ at 12psi of boost.
July 2007: Car vandalised at night (window smashed and drivers’ side keyed).
August 2007: Car put back in container after Paul moved away to college. Started and driven very infrequently, container used by Paul’s younger brother Jason and his friends as a hotbox: floor mats partially burnt and seats collapsing.
August 2019: Advertised as ‘runing project, needing a tune up, 2.0 TURBO C20 Aviso RS1600!’ on craigslist for $900 plus spares.
Mandy Carter - 24 years old : now home after what felt like a never ending Meatball Run she and Connor are now embarking on another high paced road trip. She now helps with the business side of Jackdaw tuning Info 1, Info 2, Info 3 . She has advanced in the rallycross world now driving a Works Super 1600 Ceder Friala RX
Connor Johnson - 23 years old : long time childhood friends with Mandy with no romantic feelings no matter how much both parties parents insist there existing. He leads a less octane filled life than Mandy now working as a substitute English teacher with a penchant for driving playlists filled with Mandys least favourite picks from current music.
…now they’ve got a car, a few playlists, a desire to win and a boot full of spares, let’s go !..
ooc: I’m open to rp before and during the race just contact me on Discord if you’re interested
Team Letto is Returning!
Main Driver:Lord Letto, 30, Some Mechanical Knowledge (4 Automotive Service Tech Classes in High School, Passed all of them), Gamer & Otaku
Navigator/Co-Driver: Coconut Letto, 29, Lords Best Friend, Also a Gamer & Otaku
The Car: TBD/WIP (I have a few IRL cars from my local classifieds in mind, but I suck at making replicas, so if anyone good at replicating IRL cars in automation is willing to help then please let me know & I’ll let you know what I’m thinking, at the moment I’m thinking 2005 Chrysler Sebring Touring Sedan though other possibilities are a 2004 Pontiac Grand Prix GT, 2004 Oldsmobile Alero, 2003 Hyundai Accent or a 1998 BMW 528i, a couple other possible options also), once I have something I’ll edit this post with what I have.
Edit: Link to thread I made for possible options & sharing: Wanted: Replica car to use in a challenge
Team Escargots de course
Team members
Celestine Dechamps, the main driver and person with the idea to enter the once more car tour. She is a 19yr old university student studying automotive design at the universite de Bordeaux. She will be entering the race during a year off from studying
Camille Boyette, the sister of one of Celestine’s friends. She is 31yrs old and has recently ended a long term relationship, she has decided to take part to finally see some of the world as she has never travelled outside of France before because it was always too expensive.
The car
a 1983 Courageux Vingt, however not just any model. It is the extremely rare Italian only 4x4 variant which only sold 500 models. However because of the low production run and sale in only one country spare parts are very hard to source which has made values plummet in recent years. Combined with the fiddly hydro-pneumatic suspension and with this being the “executive” model with fancy electric components it is not a car that is sensible to buy without a good history and constant servicing.
this car of course has neither of these things, however for €450 this was pretty much their budget. The suspension seemed frighteningly low and for some reason the bonnet was matt black with electrical tape stripes on it. The body was rust treated from the factory so at least they didn’t have to worry about rot in the body
The team has managed to fix the most critical issues with the car.
The only major problem known to them remains to be the temperamental reverse gear and some of the other minor issues.
And after about 40 minutes of real-life tetris with camping gear, luggage and spare parts, the three set off to travel to the start line.
It did not take long for them to realize that said start line will be two thirds across America…
Halfway to their destination, with Redwood behind the wheel, Tonsom recieves a text message on the Nokia 3310 he still has for whatever reason.
bleep
Message from GCPD (Generic County Police Department)
*We have recieved reports that a wanted Criminal “Coyote Jim” is participating in the Once More run.
We would like you to investigate this and try to detain “Coyote Jim”.
P.S: I know you’re technically on vacation and such, but you do have Connor there and actual vacation wasn’t your thing anyway. Still. Try and have some fun along the way."*
bloop
Tonsom: “Oh god oh FUCK!!!”
Connor: “May i ask what is bothering you?”
Tonsom: [reluctant] "Grrr… remember how i’ve been sent on vacation to grind down whatever amout i’ve collected?*
Connor: “Yes. You still have two months, one week, three days,
43 minutes and 56 seconds² of vacation left.”
Tonsom: “Stop whatever time you’ve set there. Vacation apparently is over.” [hands Connor his phone]
Redwood: “At least you’ll get paid for this adventure now.”
Tonsom: “Whatever salary i’d get for this is spent funding this trip!”
Connor: “Your mo…”
Tonsom: [semi-harsh punsh to Connor’s right arm] “Stop it already.”
Connor: “Sorry, Captain.”
A rather silent phase of thinking and planning ensues, while nobody has noticed that the car was stopped at some gas station for fuel.
While redwood is refueling for what he feels like is the first time in… ever, Tonsom has hatched a plan.
Tonsom: “I Have an idea…”
Tonsom rolls down the one working window roller and proceeds:
Tonsom: “Okay… In order to catch this Coyote Jim guy, we need
to cover as much distance as possible before setting up camp.”
Redwood: “So?”
Connor: [mildly confused face]
Tonsom: “In order to do this we’ll have to change drivers regularly.”
Redwood: “The car’s still a manual…”
Tonsom: “There’s the catch… I gotta learn it… somehow…”
Connor: “I could giv…”
Tonsom: [loudly blaring] “NO WAY ARE YOU GONNA TEACH
ME! You’ll just word it in a way that i won’t understand jackshit…”
Redwood: “To be honest… he’s right… and i cannot teach anyone
anything…”
Tonsom: “Fuck…”
a moment of “silence”
Redwood: “Wait a minute… i’ll be right back!”
Redwood walks off to pay for the fuel, and then proceeds to walk over to the first semi he finds.
He lightly knocks onto the driver’s door.
Redwood: “Hello? Anybody there?”
Shuffling and groaning can be heard from inside the cab as the occupnats move about.
The curtain covering the window of the door Redwood is knocking on slides back and the window slides down.
A groggy 34 year old brunette pops her head out teh window, squinting her eyes. It was clear she had just been woken up.
Schneider (“Liz”): [annoyed] “What do you want? We’re trying to sleep here.”
The woman wipes her eyes to try and wake herself up some more.
Redwood: [be like: “oh fuck…”] “Oh sorry for waking you up…
Still… Good morning. My name’s Tim… and we have a bit of a
problem regarding a team member of ours.”
Schneider: [sighs, still annoyed at being woken up] “Make it quick.
We’re trying to get some shut-eye here.”
Redwood: “So. We are a team of three… in a manual
transmission car… and one of us wants to learn to [singing] row
row row the gears, up and down the speeds…
Sorry…”
Schneider: [rolls her eyes at the terrible joke] “Well, if he wants to
learn, I have the right person for him.”
The woman retracts her head back in through the open window, which slides back up.
The cab then starts rocking back and forth on its suspension, implying that she was violently shaking awake her partner, also implying she was a much heavier sleeper.
Tonsom: [shouting across half the gas station] “Stop bothering
people doing their jobs!”
Redwood: [shouting back] “It’s Sunday, they aren’t working!”
A few seconds later, the window slides back down, and a much younger face pops out, looking to be belonging to a 24 year old and featuring anumber of piercings, a couple of tattoos and a head of brightly coloured hair. She was also quite a lot more beautiful than her older partner.
Cooper (“Bex”): [smiling and chipper] “Sup, mate? Heard you
have a guy in need of a few manual transmission lessons.”
Redwood: [obviously startled by the appearance of the second
woman] “Err… yes?”
Cooper: [holds up and index finger] “I’ll be out in one sec.”
Her head slides back into the cab and the window rolls back up.
A minute or two of shuffling around insid ethe cab and the door opens, the young punk stepping down out of the cab.
She jumps down from the last step, her boots landing flat on the ground, then turning to face Redwood.
Cooper: “All set! Take me to your leader!”
The older woman then sticks her head out of the open door.
Schneider: “Be careful, Bex!”
Cooper: [sassy smirk] “What’s the worst that can happen?”
The older woman facepalms before sliding her head back into the cab and shutting the door behind her.
Redwood walks her over to the team in question.
Tonsom: [leaning out of the rear left window] “Who the fuck are
you if i may ask??”
Connor: [briefly focuses on Cooper, as if he’s scanning her, the
LED on his right temple is briefly flashing yellow] “Rebekah “Bex” Cooper. 24 years old. No known criminal record.”
Tonsom: “Huh…”
Cooper: [a bit taken aback by Conner’s response, but smirks]
“Maybe because I’m British and you probably don’t have access
to my criminal record. I’ll have you know I’m quite the speedster.”
She winks at Connor before turning to Redwood.
Cooper: [folding her arms] “So, who’s the disphit I’m teaching who’s too dumb enough to never have learned
to drive a manual?”
Tonsom steps out of the rear-left seat.
Tonsom: “Err… hi? Frank Tonsom. Nice to meet you, i guess…” [offers her a handshake]
Cooper: [reluctantly takes his hand and shakes it] “Nice to meet you, Frank.” [gestures to Connor] “Your
buddy already introduced myself for you, so no need to go over that again.”
She chuckled, quite curious as to how Connor was bale to instantly know her name.
Cooper: “So you never driven a manual, huh?”
Redwood: [to Cooper] “Have you ever seen a 'Murican driving a manual?”
Tonsom: [annoyed; in response to Cooper’s question] “Nope…”
Cooper: [shrugs, to Redwood] “Never stepped foot in this country before this, so can’t comment about that.”
[to Tonsom] “You’re missing out, buddy! Let’s head to an abandoned parking lot so I can teach you.”
Redwood: [chuckles] “Well manuals have like THREE percent marketshare here…”
Tonsom: “Okay. But first off… since you are a brit, you count as a tourist. And if you get in trouble with law
enforcment… [rummages in his pockes for 20 seconds, then shows Police Captain’s badge] you’re in for a
bad time…”
Connor: [from inside the car] “Do you always have to intimidate civilians with your rank in the police
department?”
Tonsom: [angry; to Connor]“FUCK YOU! I know what i’m doing!”
[vaguely calm; to Cooper] “Let’s get this over with…”
Cooper rolled her eyes. Policeman flashing his rank to try and persuade her not to do things wasn’t going to phase her. Her attitude wasn’t going to change.
Cooper: [gestures to Connor] “I’m with him on that. Stop flashing your rank about to try and get your way
with civs.”
[to Redwood] “I’ll help him, but I’m driving us there.”
Redwood: “Err… if you want…”
Redwood takes place in the passenger seat and hack get back in onto the rear bench next to Connor.
He hands the bundle of FOUR keys over to Cooper.
Cooper walks around the car first to inspect it, checking tyres were in good condition and no visisble damage to brakes, springs or dampers.
Once her inspection is done, she takes hold of the bundle of keys.
Cooper: [dumbfounded] “Erm… why does this car need four keys?”
Cooper: [shocked] “And you sure these tyres are legal? Looks like they’re almost down to their cords!”
Redwood: “As for the keys… the locks are kinda fucked and taken fron like three seperate cars as far as i
know.
There’s the driver door, passenger door, ignition key, and trunk. [showing the individual keys in the process]
The tyres were like that when we bought it… Hope they last.”
Connor: “Ms. Cooper is right. We should replace them. Preferably with new one having run-flat capabilities.”
Tonsom: [smug] “Guess you two have got some work to do.”
Cooper: [gesture’s to Connor] “He’s right. You don’t wanna be pulled for tyres down to their cords, or have
one burst uexpectedly. Get them replaced ASAP!”
She slides into the dirver’s seat amd takes the ignition key and places it in the ignition.
Turning the key, the Dione roars to life.
Cooper: [turns in her seat to face Connor] “And I never quite caught your name, mate. You have some very
sound automotive advice, though, which I very much dig.”
Connor: [calm as ever] “My name is Connor.”
Cooper: [confused] “No last name?”
Connor: [confused; his LED changing to yellow] “No last name…”
Cooper: [still confused] “Why not?”
Tonsom: [not wanting to spill the drink to Redwood] “Reasons…”
Cooper shrugged, hoping Tonsom could tell her when it was just the two of them together.
Cooper: “Alrigth, then. Let’s head for the Blockbuster.”
Sliding the gearstick into first, Cooper finds the clutch biting point of the Dione and slowly pulls away, not hearing a faint turbo whistle that should be prevelant on this car.
Cooper: “Hey. Ins’t this Dione supposed to be a turbo?”
Redwood: “It is. But low pressure and double muffler does not make for that satisfying BRAAAAAAP
STUTUTUTU.”
Cooper: “Well, at least you can hear and feel the whopping great big turbo strapped to my Hiway-Trekker.”
She chuckles as she pulls out of the fuel station, turning onto an American highway.
Cooper plants her right foot to the carpet, and pulls out onto the open road, sliding through the gears to catch up to the flow of the traffic.
Redwood: [trying to get some friendly chit-chat going] “Soo… since you and your… companion(?) are from
across the sea. What exactly are you doing here with a semi?”
Cooper: [enlightens Redwood] “Well we’re here for a little rally across the country. $500 was the stipulated
buying price for the car. I was able to buy that 2005 Voltan-Heavy-Industries Hiway-Trekker 445L from my
employer for a little under that price in my country’s currency. They just wanted it gone, so would take pretty
much anything for it, since it had been sitting there for 10 years.”
Redwood: [in a good mood] “What a coincidence! Same here! I bought this Dione after the Mimas i had
previously had to be left in Bolivia. And why not put the purchase to the test, right?”
Cooper: [grinning] “Of course! Heard about some guy doing a cross-America trip called the 3406 or
something. Think his name was Dan Trojan who did it in 28 hours. Figured I’d see what a fuck off lorry
would do in something similar.”
Redwood: “Erm… at least either group has a motivation for racing, right?” [smiles]
Cooper: “That’s very much true.”
The Anhultz Dione rolled off down the highway towards the sight of the manual driving instruction.
to be continued in the next RP post of @SyberRacer
writer’s note:
Errmmm… might be too late to ask this but how should I dictate the price of the car? Do I just say that I bought this car for $500 or I need to send it to you first?
Just post the price of the car you bought on your entry on your post. No need to tell him directly.
Oh OK. Thanks.
