Chapter 22 - So It Begins…
“Yuka, do you want to take turns with these races?”
”Huh? Take turns?”
”Yeah. You take one race, I take the other. Rinse and repeat.”
”Eh, sure. Are you still going to ride with me?”
”Of course Yuka!”
Hitomi joined Yuka in the car as Yuka joined the rolling start.
“Did you know this is where the big Le Mans race is held, Hitomi?”
”Yeah. Shame we only get one lap of it today. It’s apparently too long to race for cars like these.”
”Maybe for the Peugeot’s but this C4 feels pretty good.”
”Yeah well, can’t really rely on a French car like you can with an American car.”
”Don’t forget Japanese cars too. They have the US beat on reliability.”
”Not always. My Corvette is almost as reliable as your Civic and I’ve seen so many Toyota Camry’s at the roadside with their bonnets up, it’s not even funny.”
”Well there’s always exceptions…”
Starting Grid
1. Black Citroen Xantia
2. Silver Citroen C3
3. Yellow Peugeot 106
4. White Renault Megane
5. Blue Renault 5
6. Silver Citroen Xsara
7. Yuka & Hitomi’s Red Citroen C4
8. Silver Peugeot 207
9. Black Peugeot 206
10. Blue Alpine A110
11. Blue Peugeot 307
12. Red Peugeot 106
“This UK imported right hand drive Xantia will have an advantage on the track with it’s improved weight distribution!”
“Citroen is the best!”
“This Pug is sick mate!”
“Renault for the win!”
“These modern hatchbacks will lose to my Turbo.”
“This Xsara isn’t as bad as they say.”
“Lets do this Yuka!”
”We’ll win this easily!”
“Opting for the GTi was a solid choice!”
“I love coupe cabriolets! They’re so multipurpose!”
“I hope I don’t wreck dad’s old car…”
“Shame I cant put the roof down, it’ll mess with the aerodynamics too much.”
“Damn it, this underpowered trolley wont win here.”
“Go Yuka go!”
“This Xsara is fast! I cant gain on it!”
“Under braking!”
“Crap!”
“We’ll get it on the next bend Yuka!”
“No need! We’ve got the upper hand here!”
“Turbo eh? Lets see your Turbo stand up to this C4!”
“This car is actually quite good at close racing.”
“Woah! What’s this? Have we accidentally drive onto a motorway?”
”No Yuka, it’s just how the track is. It shares some public roads.”
”Oh. How funny.”
“Move, idiot!”
“Oh come on! These guys are playing dirty and then some!”
“Well you know, when in Rome…”
“We’re not in Rome though.”
“That’s not the point Yuka…”
“Damn it, these brakes aren’t helping! Now that old Renault is passing!”
“Power! Give me power!”
“Three more to pass!”
“A little more…”
“Just a little more…”
Yuka and Hitomi jolted forward as something hit them from behind.
“Ow!”
”What the hell?! What hit us?”
“That old blue car!”
”The Turbo?”
”No, the other one!”
“Dad is going to kill me! Better win so I can pay for repairs before he sees!”
“Oh hell no! Ramming me then trying to pass me? Not happening!”
”Kick his ass Yuka!”
“Damn, I can’t compete with a sports car, new or old!”
“You can take him Yuka!”
“Damn it!”
“We’ll take him down on the corners!”
“This is one of my worst races ever!”
“More public roads? I feel as if they’re giving that Alpine an advantage.”
”The circuit roads resume further up the road I think. Just keep on him.”
“Yuka! This again?”
”It worked at Fuji!”
“Not good enough! Damn it!”
“It’s okay Yuka!”
”It’s frustrating as hell!”
“Every corner we pass, he leaves me behind further!”
“I don’t know Yuka. This is starting to annoy me too.”
“We’re back on the smooth circuit again, we’re close to the finish…”
”Damn it Hitomi, we’re going to lose!”
Yuka entered her silent concentration mode, using everything she knew to regain the ground lost to the Alpine.
“Damn Yuka, you’re like Loeb, except female!”
“Yuka! You make all that fuss about the roads and now you start taking to the grass?”
“Crap, the finish line is close!”
“Ahhhhhh! Yuka! The wall Yuka! The wall!”
“He’s slowing right down for these chicanes, take him Yuka!”
“Cone!”
“Now to ease dad’s car to victor… What the hell?! Where did you come from?!”
“Noooooooo!!!”
“Not sure that was legal but whatever! Keep ahead of him!”
“We did it Yuka! You cheated but we won!”
“Cheated?”
”You cut the chicanes quite badly…”
”Meh!”
Later on…
Hitomi and Yuka were back at the hotel, counting the prize money.
“9,750… 10,000… 10,250! You won 10,250 Euros Yuka!”
”Yay! So how much do we have now?”
”About 26,350.”
”Oh that’s good. When’s our next race?”
”In a few days, we’re going to Madrid.”
”Oh, well then, I think we should go shopping tomorrow!”
“For clothes?”
”No silly. For the C4! It needs some more power if it’s going to take on Madrid and the hot hatches afterwards.”
”True, but could we go shopping for clothes after?”
”Oh go on then.”