27 May, 2008

Race 9 – There goes the Neighbourhood

Fourteen racers lined up for race nine, our biggest turnout yet on the coldest day of the year so far. OK, so there was no snow or ice like our New Jersey cousins have to deal with, but it felt like it wasn't far off.
'There goes the Neighbourhood' is, as the name suggests, a suburban track in a fairly well-to-do area. Rich people tend to like to live on hills, and some of them don't like other people having more fun than them. Two in particular thought we having too much fun and threatened to advise the authorities. We'd already had our fun though, so we left. But who knows when we'll be back...
The start was tight, but the pack got away cleanly and into the first left-hander. The Blue Bandit had pole, but despite it's recent wheel alignment couldn't keep position for long and just held on for a top-ten finish.
It was great to have Superkart 3000 back racing after a complete rebuild. Some brake issues saw it excluded from last month's race, but those were addressed and it once again showed some impressive speed.
Red Rocket is a cart new to our ranks that ran extremely well in it's first pack race. Originally built for a Red Bull Race, it's an imposing sight.Also back was the accident-prone Trouble Maker, with new front body work after an altercation with a big hole at Stiffy's Beach.Ton O' Fun had a wayward axle in the first race resulting in a DNF, but came back in the second race with its usual good turn of speed.
Kymbo finished further back in the field than usual, due mostly to drawing a poor starting position. Dogmatic managed to weave its way through. Those goggles probably had something to do with it.
Bootylicious also used its feminine charm to shimmy off the back row of the grid up to a respectable 6th place. Other drivers reported being dazzled by a pink and yellow streak shooting past.
Unfortunately, Quicksilver is not living up to its name and may have to be rechristened Slowsilver. Due to time constraints, promised modifications have yet to materialise.Trollywood finished strongly despite being a loner cart with no regular driver. Tightening the nuts sure helped.
Fruit Loop had its usual race-within-a-race with Quicksilver. They both just want to beat the Blue Bandit. Paddles once again proved its worth and defied all laws of physics to be blindingly quick.
But the day belonged to Team Death, with a one-two form finish, Death Ray taking the honours in spectacular fashion.In race two, however, Death Machine did not fare so well, with the rear suspension breaking causing a dramatic spin and crash into the gutter, resulting in a bent axle and shattered wheel...
...before then trying to escape from the driver.
Official Results:
  1. Death Ray
  2. Death Machine
  3. Red Rocket
  4. Paddles
  5. Dogmatic
  6. Bootylicious
  7. Superkart3000
  8. Trollywood
  9. Trouble Maker
  10. Blue Bandit
  11. Kymbo
  12. Fruit Loop
  13. Quicksilver
  14. Ton O' Fun (did not finish)
Thank you very much to our awesome crew who ensure we're safe and everything runs smoothly. It's a big ask to get out of bed on the coldest day of the year before the sun to help some idiots roll down a hill, but they keep doing it. We love them.
Watch the movie!

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