Note to self: do not buy butter in that part of the world.
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Just Another Racing Team
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Just Another Car Blog
Feb. 11 2018 by Scott Harris
By now most of you have who have seen my Twitter have noticed the rather unusual car that I have bought, especially considering my tastes. Well, as some of you have guessed correctly…
I’m entering the One Last Hurrah Tour.
And of course I need a car!
Presenting the 1997 Takemi Endura Sedan!
…
…
Yeah…
Not exactly glamorous is it. As you all know, the One Last Hurrah Tour, like many, requires your team to get, try and fix up and hopefully drive a ~$500 car for a more than 2000 mile road trip in the least time possible. I managed to get this Endura for $450, sitting in the back of a local used car dealership.
The Takemi Endura was (and still is) the Japanese Takemi Motors main family car model. Today the current 7th generation model is something of a cross between a luxury and family sedan, but the Endura originally started out in the US of A as one of the hot new cheap, economical sub-compacts taking advantage of the 1973 Oil Crisis. Over time however, it devolved into one of the lower-end, budget cars in the USDM, as Takemi started to focus more and more into designing high performance cars for it’s home JDM market.
The ‘peak’ of this trend was the 5th generation, released in 1997. Today, it is just another throwaway 90’s budget sedan, among the Kia Spectra and 1st gen Ford Focus. The base model made 103 HP, had 5 seats, weighed 2500 pounds and made 20-something miles per gallon. It was designed to be cheap and affordable, nothing else.
The specific trim I get here was the ‘Sport-Base Manual’, according the the owner’s manual found stuffed in the glove box. From what I can tell online, all this was was just the regular model but with VVT, slightly higher compression, and a slightly different front bumper and a little lip on the trunk. Trades in 3 less MPG for 10 more horsepower. Nothing really more than just a gimmick to get people to spend just a little more on their shiny new shitbox. And of course thankfully the model I got here is a good 'ol 5-speed Manual, not a hellish slushbox.
The Endura I now have sitting in my garage (unfortunately) doesn’t seem to be in too bad of a shape, despite the 200k+ miles on it. When I got it it was long overdue for some fluid changes, but after that and tightening a few nuts and bolts I’m feeling pretty confident about it.
Anyway, for the actual Tour I’ll also be taking along my friend Matt. You may have seen him a few times on my Twitter a while back.
But anyways, see y’all next time on Just Another Car Blog.
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A little over 36 hours left for submissions!
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Team X/2000 : Departure to Canada
Somewhere in New YorkIman sleeping soundly
Karmenn opens door abruptly
Iman wakes up
Karmenn: TIME TO GO!
Iman: geez. . . . cant you atleast knock the door first?
Karmenn: NO TIME! PACK YOUR THINGS UP AND LETS GO
Iman: Ok. . . . . .
After an hour of packing things
Iman: So we going to Canada now?
Karmenn: Yes we are, and we will find accomodation for the night.
Edit:
After 5 hours of journey time
passes by Welcome to Canada SignIman: Finally! we are in Canada! Time to sleep atlast. . . . . .
Karmenn: Ok lets us just park near a motel and sleep in the night
And so they slept in for the night, looking for bright day ahead tomorrow, searching for answers and questions. Will they be able to finish the great odyssey in front of them? Stay Tuned
(Note: I made this in the tightest of schedules, story maybe better in the weekend or in my free time. Sorry for the sloppy writing)
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Canadian Touchdown
Gran: David, it’s awfully cold here and I only have 1 good coat!
Spanners: I know Mrs E. There’s an outdoor survival shop that I’m going to use to stock up on good clothes and blankets!
Gran: And WHAT, may I ask, are THESE?
Spanners: Those are freeze-fried food packages. Just add water and you have a nutritionally healthy meal. It doesn’t taste very good but it’s not awful!
Gran: I don’t know about eating THAT!! I’m sure there will be places to eat along the way.
Spanners: I packed them for emergencies. Add water and voila a meal.
Gran: I suppose we shoud go shopping then.
Mopey: I’ll stay in the car.
Gran: I don’t think so young man. If there’s carrying to be done then I’m NOT doing it!!!
Mopey sighs heavily
.
.
.
.
.
2 hours later………
Mopey: Did you really have to argue with the manager about the cost of things? It was sooooo embarrassing!
Gran: I got a discount didn’t I?
Mopey: Yeah, but it was embarrassing. And it’s heavy.
Spanners: Didn’t occur to me about snowchains.
Gran: Well the manager recommended them and seeing as George and I are driving too I thought it was prudent! You mentioned that we had a dashcam to the manager when he offered one, what’s that?
Spanners: It’s a camera attached to the rear view mirror and another in the back window. It records as we drive along. I thought it was “prudent” after our last journey. It’s on a constant 6 hour loop.
Gran: That’s reassuring. Is that everything done?
Spanners: Not quite……I didn’t realise that it would be THIS cold here. I need to add a LOT more anti-freeze to the coolant, get more screen wash and buy a portable car heater.
Mopey: If only someone had mentioned the temperature from their weather app.
Spanners: I’ll show you where you can stick that weather app….along with the phone!
Gran: Now now boys, no arguing! This coat doesn’t look very nice David.
Spanners: Is it warm?
Gran: Yes, but…
Spanners: No buts, you can wear your smart coat for photos but this coat will keep you a lot warmer which is more important.
Gran: OK then. George and I will go to the hotel while you do whatever you need to the car.
Spanners heads off looking for a garage willing to lend him a ramp for an hour or 2.
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Team Kent Croissants - Before the Race 1
4:47 PM, England, Kent, Jordan’s Mum’s Garage
A few days before the beginning of the race all three friends are packing, examining and making tea. Aaron is leaning over in the engine bay tightening and pushing things in securely.
Aaron’s Samsung pings and buzzes on the roof of the Ciervo the email tells that the race is starting near Quebec in Canada and that it ends in the Deep South.
“It’s from the competition organizers we start in Quebec and end deep into the south ‘in between, great waterways of the two nations’ I expect we’ll know when we get there” announced Aaron.
“Canada! That’s about 3000 miles away from the end” said Jordan who had finished wiping away the years of dust and spider crap from the paintwork.
Damien walks through that door baring 3 cups of tea on a tray. “Better pack the blankets and thermos flasks then” he said after taking a sip from his tea. “Better pack some extra warm clothing and a blanket aswell just in case”
“I might be hot aswell when we get to the end, if we get to the end again it’s going to be even more challenging this time” added Aaron worryingly also taking a sip from his tea.“I’ll write a reminder to get some extra snacks we’re gonna need more than last time”
Aaron closed the bonnet of the car and stuck a post-it note on the windscreen titled ‘SNACKS’
_
The three were sat in garden chairs enjoying a Chinese takeaway: beef chow mein, chicken in orange sauce, singapore noodles with two sides of egg fried rice.
“Do you reckon any of the other teams will be there again?” asked Damien.
“I reckon so some teams have done every rally since the first one, I think that big red American sedan has completed all the rounds it’s been on” replied Jordan swallowing half a mouthful of chicken. “There’ll probably be some just as terrible and crazy cars this time”
“Yeah remember that green car with the truck engine, I wonder what happened to them. Regardless this big girl has got it cut out for her this ones far longer than last time, with harder weather and she’s older than the Friala, she’s an 86 rather than 93.” responded Damien.
“We made it last time, barely but we still did” Aaron chirped in closing the boot lid after putting one of the cases of Corona in.
Throughout the evening the team ate their way through the entire takeaway, drank most of a case of a 12 pack of Corona and had discussed at length the distance needed to travel in the upcoming race.
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Team Thunder Taxi - Prologue
Quebec City, Quebec
In a nondescript garage somewhere in Quebec City, Jack and Bob sat patiently near the door, waiting for their car to arrive.
Jack: I’ve been waiting for our fellow crew members for a while. They should be here any minute now…
Bob: I think they’re here. I can hear something approaching us…
The garage door swung open, and a few seconds later a bright yellow sedan drove into the loading bay. Jack and Bob could now see their teammates, both of whom promptly introduced themselves as they exited the vehicle.
Chris: Nice to meet you. I’m Chris Townsend, navigator to an amateur rally driver. Who he is, or what he drives, doesn’t matter. What matters is that things will be heading south from here… literally.
Vince: All right, we’ll soon be taking this ex-taxi Rigel Motors RG4 on a road trip spanning a few thousand miles. It’s been running perfectly as far as we know, but anything can happen on the long drive ahead.
Bob: You’re ready to uphold the honor of Big Blue and BAGS?
Jack: Sure. I’ll be driving, and Chris, you’ll ride shotgun as our navigator. Bob, meanwhile, will be our mechanic, and Vince… He’s just along for the ride, at least for now.
Chris: Now what should we call this thing we’re taking all the way across the border and beyond?
Jack: Thunder Taxi. Fitting, eh? It’s got a V8 under its hood, after all.
Bob: All in favor say “Aye”.
(All four team members say “Aye” almost immediately.)
Jack: Thunder Taxi it is, then. Now go and get some rest - we need to be in prime condition when the race starts. Bob will take care of whatever supplies we will need. Godspeed, boys, make us proud.
And so Team Thunder Taxi commenced their final preparations before the long journey south. For now, everyone was sure that they could at least cross the border in one piece.
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Team Scandalnavians
R: “So where starting out in Canada then? Doesn’t seem to bad?”
B: “Not at all, I’m reading up on Quebec now, and it actually reminds me of here. Thanks for the drink by the way” as he takes a sip.
click
B: “Råger, what the hell,I’m trying to relax here”
R with the widest grin: “Just documenting the beginning of the trip”
B: “Don’t you dare…”
R: “And it’s posted to our facebookpage for the trip”
B: “I’m gonna get you back for that, you know that, right?”
R: “I’m not to worried. Anyways, i got the hydraulic handbrake in place since it’s likely to be some snow on the first legs
of our journey, thinking it’ll help us having fun and do proper cornering since the car is FWD, and got the boost set up properly for the engine. Spare wheel on the back, and the essentials packed in the car”
B: “Well, that’s good at least. How is that tiny thing looking by the way?”
R: " It only weighs in at about 660 kilos, and with the turbo finally tuned at about 24,5 psi of boost we get around 130hp. There are some issues with the cooling system and it’s sweating some oil around the heads, but I hope it’s just the engine settling in. If not, we got duct tape and Akevitt for whatever happens. Since it’s so small I actually managed to arrange air freight to Quebec"
B: “24,5 multiplied by 0,069 equals… 1,7bar of boost??? Jeez, will that thing hold up?”
R: “I guess we’ll find out, won’t we?”
B: “I guess we will”
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Team Letto is Returning from the Go West Deathtrap Tour:
Main Driver:Lord Letto, 28, Some Mechanical Knowledge (4 Automotive Service Tech Classes in High School, Passed all of them), Gamer & Otaku
Navigator/Co-Driver: Coconut Letto, 27, Lords Best Friend, Also a Gamer & Otaku
The Car:
1991 Letto Citta, a Small City Truck Powered by the Letto LE15DE, a 1.5L i3 that makes 77.1 hp@5800RPM & 88.8 ft-lbs of Torque@2800RPM Paired to a 3 Speed Auto & AWD
We Bought it Online, Sight Unseen for around $450 CAD (Around say $360 USD) located at the starting point in Quebec City, with around $140 US left in the Car Budget hopefully we can make whatever repairs it needs before we start so it won’t fail us like the Merde in our Last Tour.
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I decided to try to enter with, of course, a MKII Communitasia 
so time for a team post
Team Marx
Ah, so here we are again Vladimir Lenin and Karl Marx. This time, God has dropped them in the year 2018 with yet another flyer.
Lenin: Oh really, this S**t again?
Marx: throws middle finger to the sky
God: You know the drill. I left you money. follow the Flyer.
Those were the two main characters and a Deity hellbent on torturing them. Lenin still retains his driving skills given to him from the GAR in 1995, and Karl Marx got additional practice in automotive repair by helping out in the fledgling automotive market.
Lenin: Well Well, Shall we go for communist car again?
Marx: You know it brother.
Lenin: however, it’s 2018, and we have a very limited budget, we probably won’t be finding another Communitasia in anywhere near decent shape.
Marx: That should be fine though, after all, this is an on-road race of other junkers.
The Car
That same day, they found a Communitasia OR wagon with a for sale sign on it. After the seller fainted being faced with the Leaders of Communism, Lenin just threw the $500 at his unconsious body while Marx figured out how to get it to start without a key. A few minutes later, the car managed to start after bypassing the key cylinder. they were on their way.
Marx: hey uh, should we also get some food and parts? this thing is a pile of junk.
Lenin: Good idea.
Ah yes, the condition of it, horrible. the body was incredibly rusted, with a small rust hole forming in the passenger foot well, and the frame had been patched a few times already, but the old engine happily chugged along being capable of burning even random bottles of Alcohol that are stolen Borrowed from other teams. and it’s mechanical simplicity gave it a fair shot of crossing the finish line. stocked up on food and supplies, they head out.
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Entries are now closed. I have a couple sitting in my inbox which I will process when I’m home tonight… then the mayhem shall begin!
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The Team Formerly Known As Science Guys.
Nicholas Justinian, age 23.
After their most recent experience getting stranded in the American Midwest after their car was stolen, both Agustus and Steve decided they would have nothing to do with their friend Nicholas’ adventures, leaving him on his own.
Joseph Nowakowski, Age 21.
An eccentric, hyper personality who believes he knows more than he actually does. Joseph was a friend of Nicholas during college, and the two have not maintained a very close relationship, finding one another slightly irritating, however, Joseph was the first person whom agreed to travel.
The Car.
A 1992 Erin Merna, “Liverpool Edition” as Nicholas has so lovingly nicknamed it. Given not only its British origins, but also as the car was clearly owned by a complete Chav, as is evidenced by the black paint, the large aftermarket wheels, the cheap body kit, and the lack of a stereo. Was it removed to save weight? or was it stolen? Both options are equally as likely. Was a rover Erin the best choice for a journey that pushes cars to the very edge of their capabilities to simply hold together? Given the amount of slop already occurring upon shifting, Absolutely not.
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TEAM OUTRIDERS
Prologue Part II
Blake: Unfortunately my driving advice wasn’t well received. Sally flunked the test.
Marc: You surprised? What the hell were you thinking giving that advice?
Blake: Hey, I aced my driving exam with flying colors. I remember it like it was yesterday. The instructor told me to relax, then put her hand on my lap… oh. I forgot, that test was a little biased. Shit! No wonder she didn’t pass.
Luigi: You banged your driving instructor?
Blake: More like the other way around.
Marc: You dog!
Luigi: All finished here, give it a try.
(Both passenger side doors on the Enforcer are closed flawlessly)
Marc: Hot damn! I take back what I said about you constantly measuring.
Blake: How’d you get so good with body work?
Luigi: There was a bump shop at the Cresge dealership I used to work at. I picked up a few extra shifts here and there.
Marc: They certainly paid off.
Blake: So, I got a letter in the mail. We’re going to Canada.
Marc: What?
Blake: Yeah, start out there, and head somewhere in the South.
Luigi: Long trip.
Blake: 3000 miles.
Luigi: Well, I looked the old girl over, I can’t find anything wrong.
Marc: You can’t even tell it was in an accident. You tell Zach about the trip?
Blake: Yeah, he’s got the time off.
Petoskey Motors ZLC Headquarters
Hell, MI.
Dunbar: You wanted to see me?
Zach: Yeah, I noticed a few discrepancies with the fiscal records.
Dunbar: Oh?
Zach: Every transaction for the past twenty two years has this small surcharge added.
Dunbar: Twenty two years, that was around the time the transactions went digital.
Zach: Right, and it looks like this has been going on since day one. Thing is, I looked over the records and I can track where all the money goes, except the Administrative Surcharge.
Dunbar: Perhaps it’s simply the cost of running computerized transactions.
Zach: I don’t think so, that’s what the in house IT department is for.
Dunbar: Have you told anyone about this yet?
Zach: Just Tom, and Frank from IT. I was thinking we should let Ms. Ventnor know about this.
Dunbar: No need to be too hasty. I mean, I wouldn’t want to start a fuss over what could be nothing. I understand you’re going on vacation soon. You enjoy it. I’ll look this over, and if it’s still an issue, it’ll be waiting for you when you get back.
Zach: Okay.
Dunbar: You can go. And have a fun trip.
Zach: Thank you sir.
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Team Moss Boss, Day 0
Hotel Cofortel, Quebec City, QC, 6pm
(Outdoor temperature at this time: 3 degrees Fahrenheit)
“Balls!” Kyle cursed, slamming the door to their room closed with his elbow as he rubbed his hands together.
“Don’t bitch at me. This was your goddamned idea,” Hank shot back. He ripped his gloves off and punched at the room’s thermostat, fumbling at it with numb fingers until the numbers started going up. “The hell. This thing’s in metric. What am I supposed to set it to?”
“As high up as it will go, dumbass. Jesus Christ it’s cold.”
Kyle’s phone chirped cheerfully as an email notification came through. It took a minute for his fingers to thaw to the point that they’d function again.
“It’s from the organizers. They finally gave us the start point.”
“Well, go on, read it!”
Welcome, competitors!
Here we have One Last Hurrah. We’ve attracted some… attention over the past few events, and after this will need to go dark. Hopefully only for a while. If not, feel honored that you will be the last group of elite shit-box drivers.
We will meet tomorrow morning at 10 AM Eastern time at Cap Tormente National Wildlife Reserve, just northeast of Quebec City. You will be lined up and released at the same time. Dress warm if you want to hang outside of your car beforehand. Otherwise, crank up the heat and watch your gas burn away before you even begin.
Bon Chance, nous amis!
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Team X/2000 : Reaching the starting point
Alarm sets off
Karmenn: * yawns *
a couple of car noise
Karmenn: son, wake up its time to go!.
checks phone
We will meet tomorrow at 10 AM at Cap Tormente National Wildlife Reseve just northeast of Quebec City.
Karmenn realizes that they have to go buy some winter clothes because it is especially
Karmenn: Lets do some shopping.
Iman: For what?
Karmenn: Winter clothes. Its gonna be real chilly when we get to Quebec City, in fact i am feeling a bit cold
Iman: What the hell? Why didnt we discuss this in our meeting?
Karmenn: Ok, i am at fault that i didn’t know that it was gonna be snowy. But anyways lets go to the nearest mall and check in the nearest inn near Quebec City.
Iman : Ok.
While driving to the nearest mall.
Clutch chatters while changing gear
Karmenn: That’s odd, I havent heard that noise while we are still at home.
Iman: Is it something bad?
Karmenn: lets hope not, i do have a spare clutch lining but not clutch plates.
Iman: I will just remind you if we reach a parts store on the way when we start the run.
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OLH Day 0, Quebec, Canada
OLH Day -2
Team Mountain Pass Bio
RCAF Aerodrome, Evidence storage, Quebec
“Sign here, here aaand here”. The bored quartermaster handed the forms and a set of keys to Andrew while Pierre leant against the doorjamb of the tiny, cramped office. With a flourish Andrew signed where indicated and followed Pierre out to the front of the warehouse where their car was waiting…
P: “Another Bogliq eh? Trying to save the Yanks one car at a time?”
A: ‘chuckles’ “Nah mate, my father worked as a mechanic at one of their dealerships; I grew up on these beauties!”
P: “That explains the Gazelle then…”
Looking faux-offended, Andrew unlocks the drivers door, slips inside then starts up the car. A cloud of condensation pours from the exhaust and the idle’s a little rough but the car seems to be in good health.
A: “Good work Kyle, I just hope that CEL is going to go away soon…”
P: “What did you say?”
A: Oh, nothing really, this is going to be great!"
The Bogliq pulls away smoothly and the team leaves the aerodrome when Pierre’s mobile phone chirps at him.
P: “Looks like we’ve got a start site, says here… Cap Tourmente National Wildlife Reserve”
A: “Noice! Google up somewhere for us to stay and make reservations; we’ve got a race to start!”
Andrew then puts the hammer down, the Bogliq eagerly responds and they nearly crash into a lamp-post! Andrew catches the slide just in time and sheepishly grins at Pierre…
P: “It’s really, really cold here. The tyres have no grip and I don’t want to die!!!”
A: “Sorry 'bout that, I’ll be more circumspect with the throttle from now on”
Pierre makes some calls and finds a place to sleep for the night, the Auberge à l’Abri de la Tourmente, while Andrew deftly navigates their way through the city. They arrive at the lodge, spend the rest of the day resting and set their alarm so they have plenty of time to get to the start line… They sleep, hoping that this run will see Team Mountain Pass finally take home the trophy!
TO BE CONTINUED
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Jake and Otis are trying to chase down the wiring harness to the AC and heater. They are wearing multiple layers with the outer layer being woodland camouflage coveralls thick matching camouflage gloves, and bright orange floppy hats.
Jake, “It kinda cold, the sign on the bank yonder says its -16”
Otis, “It doesn’t feel that cold”, looks over at the sign, “That’s because its in Celsius, not Fahrenheit”
A small brown subcompact pickup pulls up and parks next to the large black truck.
Jake, “What the F*** is that, I’ve taken shits bigger than that”
Cody, “Already broken I see”
Otis, “I see you attempted to move up in the world, and got an almost truck”
Jake paces out the size of the Truckling, “Hey it will fit, we could pack it as a spare… go-cart?”
Jake Storm, “It would make sense, seeing as you already don’t trust the engine under the hood enough to pack a spare”
Otis, “Touche, so you gonna drive that uh thing into the ground too”
Cody, “You bet, though it looks like that beat up old piece has already”
Otis, “You know, its cold, we have a long day ahead of us tomorrow, I have some more of that crap beer you guys enjoy so much shall we wander over to the building and drink some?”
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Team Shitbox Brothers - Day 0
(For flavor, read any dialogue said by Ana or Alejandro in a thick Spanish accent).
As the temperatures dropped, the two brothers put on their winter coats just before getting out of the car to see who had arrived overnight.
And the first thing they overheard was the conversation between the Outriders and the
Truckling team. Gesturing at Alejandro, Ana approached the group slowly, stopping before entering their line of sight. She whispered at Alejandro.
Ana: “Hey, let’s think this up for a second here. What if we play nice with them and try to find out as much about their cars as possible?”
Alejandro: “Was about to suggest that. Let me do the talking.”
The two brothers approached the group, with Alejandro grinning, partly ironically, partly trying to look nice. He clapped once to get their attention as he overheard that they were going to have beer. Otis and Cody raised their eyebrows.
Alejandro: “Now, now! You weren’t going to have a few beers without us, right?”
@Zabhawkin @Madrias it’s on you now.
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Team V6 Vandals
Before the Run - Part 2 - Arrival
Wednesday, Day 0
“Right, get in the truck, we’ve got our starting location.” Luke said, waking everyone up. “Cap Tormente National Wildlife Reserve. It’s a little bit north-east of Quebec City.”
“Got it. Hey, Luke, got a weather check? Temperature… In Fahrenheit, please, it’s too early for Celsius conversions.” Amy asked.
“3 degrees Fahrenheit, give-or-take a few degrees as time progresses.”
“I hope the heat works.” Cody said, stumbling out of the bathroom.
Jake chuckled, then said, “If the heat doesn’t work, that’s the least of our concerns. Think of Luke as a mobile server farm. All he has to do while we’re in the car is spare a small amount of processing power and calculate a few million prime numbers the hard way, we’ll have enough heat.”
A few minutes later, the four were getting into the Truckling, with Cody and Jake taking the back seat, leaving the front seats open for Luke and Amy. Luke stepped on the clutch, then cranked over the Truckling, which started with a rough V6 growl.
After letting it warm up, Luke backed out of the parking lot in a wailing fury of screeching tires and blue smoke.
On the drive to the Wildlife Preserve, Jake looked out of the rear window at the thin blue cloud following them. “Burns a bit of oil, I see.”
“Yeah, but it was either this or that Ishu Myriad, and those things are rear engined. Didn’t figure Luke would want to fight an ass-heavy car.” Cody replied.
“Never driven anything rear-engined.” Luke said. “Could have been interesting, but not with snow on the road.”
“There, there, on the right!” Amy said, and Luke suddenly swerved toward the parking lot in a flurry of wheel-spin and screeching tires.
“Next to the truck, Luke.” Jake said, and Luke hurtled into the parking space with a screech of tires.
“What the fuck is that? I’ve taken shits bigger than that.”
“Already broken, I see.” Cody retorted, chuckling.
“I see you attempted to move up in the world, and got an almost-truck.” Otis responded.
As Jake of Team Redneck paced out the size of the Truckling, then mentioned they could pack it as a spare, Jake Storm spat back, “It would make sense, seeing as you already don’t trust the engine under the hood enough, you’ve packed a spare.”
After a few more words back and forth between the teams, Otis invited them over to the building for some beer. Jake, Cody, and Amy agreed, getting out of the Truckling. Luke got out as well, standing there in his combat boots, winter camouflage pants, and his twilight-blue and silver paint showing from the waist up, as well as the brass chains on his head.
“Holy fuck, it’s freezing out here.” Amy said. Just then, Alejandro yelled out, “Now, now! You weren’t going to have a few beers without us, right?”
Cody looked over to Luke, then whispered, “Be careful, they’re the ones that Trevor painted a pink racing stripe on their car.”
Jake Storm looked over at Alejandro, then responded with, “Well, I suppose we could pitch in a case or two and make it a party.”
“Go on, it’s too cold for them to do much to the cars. And not like they would with me keeping watch.” Luke said, letting Amy, Jake, and Cody go with Otis and Jake, and apparently now Ana and Alejandro.
Inside, the conversation quickly turned to cars, specifically the stuff each team brought.
“Not much to say about the Truckling. 2.7 liter V6, 8,000 RPM redline, Front wheel drive. We added a couple turbochargers for good measure, but Luke’s gonna be the one doing most of the driving.” Amy said. “Not that I can’t, I’ve driven supercars around race-tracks for fun, and there was that one year I drove the Storm team’s NASCAR in the Daytona 500. Now that was fun. Lot of subtle nuances to a left-turn race people don’t realize until they do it.”
Jake Storm nodded, already breaking into his second beer. Cody was more interested in the Shitbox Brothers car and sent a text message to Luke to find out more, if he could. Luke responded back with a picture taken from a camera slid under the car, and a reply that said, “Looks like a custom job. That engine’s from something else, way more modern than the car it’s in.”
Cody smiled, then said, “Alejandro, you didn’t tell us that you put a modern engine in that thing. It’s a bold move, an engine that new in a car that old.”
“Oh, don’t taunt them.” Amy said. “We have 325 horsepower. Twin-Snail lives on, even if only half the team is here, and the other half is the Highway Hooligans without the Thief or the Maniac.”
(Back in your hands, @Zabhawkin and @Mr.Computah)
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Team Kent Croissants
Wednesday, -16°C
In the very cold temperatures the team arrived bundled up with as many layers that they could manage and the heater turned up full whack. They got out of the car with plumes of steaming breath and frantic arm rubbing with additions of “shit it’s cold” and “lets go inside”.
Walking over the they saw some of the entrants vehicles parked up a few cars and a couple of pick-up trucks one of which they recognized from the time before. As they were looking Jordan hit a patch of black ice and slipped forwards (luckily) into the arms of Damien and Aaron who caught him in time … just.
–
The three boys went inside still laughing at Jordan’s near face first meeting with the icy pavement, a few heads turned as they walked in and they found a table and sat opposite the Rednecks, Vandals and Shitbox Brothers occasionally hearing worrying phrases like “8000rpm” and “a couple turbos” that didn’t exactly fill the boys with confidence.
“They seem serious about this then that lot” said Damien quietly gesturing over to the other table with a tilt of the head.
“Seems weird though they all seem to be friendly, I think they’re eyeing each others cars up” replied Aaron looking over Damiens shoulder.
“325 horsepower aswell that’s probably double what we have” added Jordan taking a sip from his hot chocolate.
“I’m just glad we have some more comfort than last time 3000 miles is no joke even though we don’t have as much power as those three” said Aaron
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