Go-Cart Racing

    My name is max. I want to be a go-cart race champion! My mom and dad think I can do it, but I always lose focus when my go-cart’s engine gets to loud. The track is a figure 8, and isn’t even that hard to maneuver around. When I do practice laps around the track I'm fine. I'm also the only one on the track. When I am on the track with other racers, I tend to hit other go-carts. It’s as is if all I can hear is the charge of the engine and everything else around me fades. The go-cart and I become the only thing on the track. My friends think I’m just a bad driver. Right now I’m sitting in my go-cart at the starting line. The smell of dust in the air fills me with excitement. The sound of the engines drowns out the cheering from the crowd.  Bales of hay are packed alongside the track. I rev my engine,” vweeeeeeennnn”

    I hear a faint noise close to me,” ….. Lower….. Disqualified….” I let off the throttle to see if I could make out what the voice was saying. “Are you paying attention to me!” an angry sounding voice questioned. I looked up. A track official was looking at me with irritation.

    I had to let him know I was paying attention,” Yeah, it’s just the engine was so loud”

    He smiled and then repeated himself,” I said to lower your throttle while waiting for the race to start or you will be disqualified.”

    I smiled back, “OK!” I just couldn’t wait for the starting flag. There are ten of us along the starting line. I was the third from the left.

    “Hay max, you’re going to kill someone!” another voiced announced from my right. I turned to see Nelson’s head poking from the row of helmets warn by the other racers.

    My chest tightened as I threw my arms behind me to shout,” I’m not a bad racer! “I revved my go-cart again. I was going to prove them all wrong. I couldn’t just sit by and be a loser. My engine stopped suddenly. I turned around to see what had happened. The same track official was behind my engine. He had pulled the spark-plug wire.

    He shook his head at me, “Sorry, buddy. The rules say not to rev your engine before the race starts. I gave you fair warning. Push your go-cart off the track” This couldn’t be! I never got disqualified before. This was worse then being called a track hazard.

    I heard Nelson yelling at me again,” You’re such a looser!” I heard at least two others laughing at me. I couldn't face the other racers. I felt like an outcast. I hated Nelson! There was nothing left to do, but push my go-cart off the track. –TO BE CONTINUED--