Monday 4th June
Las Vegas was a bustling city, so it was only natural that the drivers took some time out in the city before the party bus was due to leave.
Peppermint Patty, Lucy, Five, Shermy, and a few others went shopping, whilst Harold Angel, Schroeder, Franklin, Rerun and Sally were taking pictures on the Vegas strip.
Charlie Brown, Morag, Linus, Pig Pen, Roy and Marcie however, were sitting in an office, helpfully requisitioned for a few hours by Roy's father. Morag was at the front of the room, waiting for everyone to focus on her so she could begin her presentation. Morag cleared her throat as she gained everyone's attention.
"Now then. As you may have heard, I have been building a basic profile of the key figures involved with running the All American Motorsport Federation. She clicked through to the next slide, showing a profile of the person that Roy had told her of 2 weeks beforehand, a woman in her early 40's with reddish brown hair, a bob cut and glasses.
"This is Mandy Wilcox. She runs the financial aspects of the group, and that includes the shell company through which the teams and their employees receive their money. She's also likely the one to be receiving money from donors, sponsors and other interested parties. You have a question?"
"What do you mean by other interested parties?" Pig Pen asked.
"I don't know yet. Finding out who these interests are could maybe help us piece together how the governing body is able to keep the press under its thumb."
"She doesn't run the company though, does she?" Charlie Brown sought clarification.
"No. that would be this man." Morag clicked through to the next slide showing a picture of a rich-looking man in his late 40's, sporting well-kept grey hair and a clean-shaven face. "This is Martin Haymaker. He is the CEO of the AAMF. All the major decisions and actions are run or approved by him. He is the man in control. All of the shady stuff is likely to have come from him."
"Why is that?" Marcie asked.
"With the money that Mandy Wilcox handles for him, he probably has a lot of people to please. We don't know who they are yet, or what they want, but I imagine they'd be quite powerful people, like bankers or politicians."
"Anyone else we should know about?" Linus asked.
"There is another person." Morag showed another slide, of a younger and fatter man than the CEO, with short, dark hair. "This is John Wellock. He's the Vice President of the company. He takes orders from Haymaker and runs the show when he's not around, which is rarely. I'm going to make an educated guess he's not as clever or as competent as Mr Haymaker is. I'll have to try to gather more info on him. Any questions?"
"Where do we look now?" Roy asked. Charlie Brown put his hand down, which indicated he was about to ask the same question.
"For now, we observe. These people attend every race, and they're bound to end up talking to some of their 'links.'" Morag began. "Roy and I will be taking notes as and when we see anyone they talk to or leave/enter a meeting with. The rest of you should carry on as normal, but please let me know if you see anything suspicious." Morag ended her presentation.
"Now that that's over, why don't we get something to eat?" Pig Pen suggested.
"Sure. We might as well enjoy Las Vegas while we're still here." Morag agreed. The six of them walked happily out of the office as they began to sightsee, taking pictures in front of various Vegas landmarks, as well as enjoying some of the local cuisine. By the end of the day, they had taken an entire album of photos, before returning to their hotel. That night, Thibault revealed to a number of drivers that he had been fired from his team, which stirred conversations among the drivers in the days to come.
Thursday 7th June
With a 9 hour journey on the cards, the organisers decided a Thursday journey to New Mexico would be best. The party bus left at 10am, with the points finishers on board. Not long after, Joe Agate took the Team Sky Volkswagen Touareg, whilst Eudora, Sally, Violette, and Violette travelled on-board the Polestar team's Volvo XC90, and Marcie, Five, Shermy, Pierre and Harold Angel travelled in the Team Cherokee Jeep.
Thibault was fortunate enough to hitch a ride with Cormac and José in their team's Daihatsu Terios. Franklin's Parents took Franklin and Pig Pen in their car along with Roy, who had heard about Thibault and wanted to get the story whilst it was still a hot topic.
The party bus arrived at Santa Fe airport around 7pm, whilst the others arrived not long after the drivers all went immediately to a nearby hotel; they could study the track tomorrow, and there was plenty of time to do it then.
Friday morning came, and the drivers had already made their way to the track, in order to study the corners. The track itself was made up from parts of the runway, much like in South Dakota. This track was a different shape, however. The track starts with a straight followed by a short right kink followed by a similarly fast left turn, another straight and left kink, followed by a long acute hairpin, which led onto a 1km long straight, leading into two 90 degree left turns at the end. Schroeder and Charlie Brown were among the first to study the track, with the others not so far behind.
Roy was there too, trying to see if Thibault was around. From what he could see, Team Sky's replacement driver definitely hadn't arrived yet. Roy expected Mimi was being chosen, given her desire for a race seat, but he hadn't seen her since South Dakota. Eventually he found Thibault hanging back on a barrier at the side of the track.
"Oh, hey Roy." Thibault saw him as he approached.
"How are you?" Roy asked, sitting on top of the barrier as well.
"Everyone in the paddock is talking about me." Thibault sighed.
"I know. I don't think it was fair, them (Team Sky) firing you like that." Roy opined. "You were doing what was asked of you, until your engine blew up. Plus you've been outperforming Joe as of late.
"He's not scored since I was given that ultimatum, and he was last twice in two races, yet I'm the one being fired."
"I bet that's because Joe's better at keeping secrets." Roy alluded.
"That 5th place of his really bought him some respect." Thibault complained.
"You got any plan on coming back?" Roy asked.
"Don't be stupid. You saw how hard I tried. When your dad gets here I'm gonna lay everything I know about the manager to him, privately of course. He seems like the kinda guy who can get a story out."
"I can agree with you on that one." Roy smiled proudly. "That said, if your replacement does better than you, then you might never get it back."
"Who is my replacement anyway?" Thibault asked.
"Probably Mimi. She's the series' primary reserve." Roy answered.
"I wouldn't be too worried then." Thibault laughed it off.
"If she doesn't turn up, then they'll turn to me, but last I heard, she wants to be back in a racing car." Roy told him.
"I see." Thibault. "I guess I'll have to be patient in that regard."
"You're still going to watch though, aren't you?" Roy asked.
"Yeah. Thanks to you, the drivers don't actually hate me anymore. It's nice to be given a second chance."
"You only got a second chance because you proved you'd changed. They can turn their back on you just as quickly if you return to your old ways." Roy reminded him.
"I'm aware." Thibault responded. "You don't have to remind me."
"Ok." Roy replied.
"I bet you'll be busy this week." Thibault asked.
"I sure will. Which reminds me, I should probably get back to speaking with the other drivers, get their opinions on the whole thing."
"You do that." Thibault encouraged. "See you soon."
"Will do." Roy replied, as he hopped off the barrier and went back into the crowd to collect some vox pops to use later.
On Sunday 10th, Mimi was confirmed by Team Sky as their replacement driver under a three-race contract, with a possible extension if she could score 7 points within the timeframe. Thibault was said to remark that seemed an "interesting prospect."
On Tuesday 12th, the teams, along with the cars, and the press, arrived at the circuit. Thibault met up with Frank in private and told him all he knows, whilst he took detailed notes.
Thursday 14th June
As usual, 5 drivers were picked to be asked questions from interviewers at the pre-race press conference. These 5 were: Morag, Peppermint Patty, Schroeder, Cormac, and Pierre.
I: Morag, would it be fair to say you're feeling quite confident in the lead up to this weekend, given your lead?
Morag: I wouldn't be too confident. A lot of other drivers can still catch up, not least Charlie Brown, who's two points behind me. I'm not going to take anything for granted.
I: Peppermint Patty, you've scored points consistently over the past few races, but further podiums, to add to your win in the opening round in Delaware, have eluded you. Do you think you'll be able to put that right here?
Peppermint Patty: That's what we should be aiming for, especially now that my team mate has more podiums than me.
I: Schroeder, some say your ability to focus has helped you perform well on the track. What do you do to help you focus?
Schroeder: My passion is playing the piano, which as you expect, requires a lot of concentration. Racing is more of a job to me. Does that answer your question?
I: Yes. Cormac, your driving has been an object of criticism among the fans, how do you plan to answer your critics?
Cormac: we'll see on Saturday whether I qualify in the top 10 this time. That's what we expect every race, but as you know, that hasn't always happened, so I hope we do well this time.
I: Pierre, every race, you provide increasing evidence that your win in Connecticut was a fluke. Do you believe your lax driving style has anything to do with this?
Pierre: my driving style suits some of the more complicated tracks, but I need to refine my style for the ovals, which need precision driving.
I: Thank you.
Saturday 9th June
Practice was an elucidating experience for all the drivers, who were able to put their studying to good use, and the drivers were raring to go as qualifying began. José was the first to go out, setting a tentative benchmark time of 0:45.474. this was quickly beaten by his teammate Cormac, who set a time of 0:43.937. Peppermint Patty beat that with a time of 0:43.432, before Eudora set a much faster time of 0:42.641.
Pierre, having faced criticism for his inconsistency in the past, demonstrated his skill by setting a time of 0:41.991, way faster than anyone else so far. Patty Swanson set a time of 0:44.905, putting her behind Cormac, before her teammate Violette set a time of 0:45.566, which put her squarely at the back. Sally beat her teammate by setting a time of 0:42.482, whilst Violet set a 0:43.849, ahead of Cormac.
Five set a predictably slow time of 0:44.629, only marginally ahead of Patty, while Pig Pen failed to challenge Pierre with a 0:42.642, a hair's width behind Eudora. Frieda fared little better, setting a 0:42.627.
Rerun was the first to get close to Pierre, setting a 0:41.999, while Mimi set an impressive 0:42.390, much to the chagrin of Thibault. Franklin set a time of 0:43.377, which put him behind his teammate, and Morag set a time of 0:42.595.
Lucy was quick in her Honda, setting a time of 0:42.252 to go 3rd for the moment, whilst Joe Agate improved very slightly on his recent form with a 0:43.821.
Schroeder and Linus were the only two drivers to beat Pierre, setting times of 0:41.957 and 0:41.893 respectively, whilst Harold Angel set a middling 0:43.156, and Marcie set a 0:42.537. Shermy set a time of 0:43.851 just behind his teammate, and Charlie Brown ended the session with a 0:42.042.
At the end of qualifying, the grid order looked like this…
1st Linus Van Pelt [Vittoria] 0:41.893 2nd Schroeder E. Schroeder [Bonn] 0:41.957
3rd Pierre Fermier [Vittoria] 0:41.991 4th Rerun Van Pelt [Renault] 0:41.999
5th Charlie Brown [Renault] 0:42.042 6th Lucy Van Pelt [Honda] 0:42.252
7th Mimi Sonatelli [Sky] 0:42.390 8th Sally Brown [Polestar] 0:42.482
9th Marcie Johnson [Cherokee] 0:42.537 10th Morag McMurdo [Isdera] 0:42.595
11th Frieda Rich [Bonn] 0:42.627 12th Eudora Elm [Polestar] 0:42.641
13th Pig Pen [Armstrong] 0:42.642 14th Harold Angel [Isdera] 0:43.156
15th Franklin Armstrong [Armstrong] 0:43.377 16th Patricia Reichardt [Honda] 0:43.432
17th Joe Agate [Sky] 0:43.821 18th Violet Gray [Zontec] 0:43.849
19th Shermy Plepler [Zontec] 0:43.851 20th Cormac O'Connor [Daihatsu] 0:43.937
21st 555 95472 [Cherokee] 0:44.629 22nd Patricia Swanson [ACE] 0:44.905
23rd José Peterson [Daihatsu] 0:45.474 24th Violette Honfleur [ACE] 0:45.566
After the session was over, the top three were interviewed in the pressroom.
I: Linus, this is your second pole in three races, do you think you can hold on to the race lead this time?
Linus: That's what I aim to do. Luckily I have my teammate close behind me, so hopefully he'll be able to keep my competitors behind.
I: Schroeder, you've again made an impression, quietly occupying the front. Do you think you can improve your championship chances with a good outing here?
Schroeder: Yes. I think so.
I: Pierre, Linus says he hopes you can keep the others behind him. Do you plan to support Linus in his efforts to win tomorrow?
Pierre: I will try to win, but failing that, I will do my best to score as much points as I can.
I: Thank you.
In the paddock, Championship Leader Morag was also interviewed.
I: Morag, how well do you think you can defend your lead, starting from 10th?
Morag: I think defending it from Charlie Brown will be a hard ask, but I should still be competitively placed after tomorrow, I think.
I: Thank you.
Late that evening, the drivers returned to their hotels, and slept, feverishly anticipating the race on the following day
Sunday 17th June – Race Day in New Mexico
Linus's car was sat in pole position as he entered it, getting ready for the race which was due to start anytime soon, and Linus waited, building his confidence until the Announcer spoke.
"Ladies and Gentlemen, Start your Engines!"
Linus did so, as did everyone else. The pace car then led everyone around the course for the formation lap.
"As the pace car leads the drivers around this New Mexico airport circuit, the drivers will have 64 laps to battle it out for victory. Can Linus hold on for Victory!? We'll soon find out, and as the pace car pulls into the pits, the New Mexico Spindycar Supertour Open is Go!"
Linus got a good start making a steady getaway while Schroeder held position. Mimi was leapfrogged by Sally into the first corner, having made a poor start. Peppermint Patty had managed to get past Franklin going into the hairpin, whilst at the same time, Violet seared past Joe Agate.
On lap 2 however, there was trouble. Peppermint Patty made a move up the inside of Harold Angel going into the hairpin, but Harold was late to react and turned in on her, colliding at the apex. Harold Angel was spun round as Peppermint Patty's front wing fell off and became trapped under her front wheels, cutting into the tyres and ruining her afternoon. Harold Angel's car spun into the path of Franklin, who tried to avoid him, but ended up colliding with his left rear wheel, and he was spun around, off the track and out of the race also.
Unable to turn with the wing trapped under her front wheels, Peppermint Patty parked her car in the run-off area at the end of the straight. All three drivers involved in the accident got out unhurt. The pace car was brought out so the marshals could clear the wreckage.
When the pace car pulled in on lap 7, Linus made a good restart, distancing himself from Schroeder. Pierre got caught out by their speed, and was quickly passed by both Rerun and Charlie Brown, who spent the rest of the race locked in a battle for third.
The pack began to settle down and spread out as the laps went on, but there was still plenty of battles going on. Pig Pen, for example, made his way past Eudora on lap 11, whilst José Peterson had also made his way past Patty and Five. Morag passed Marcie on lap 17, in a skilful move under braking before the last corner, and quickly caught up to Mimi who was struggling to keep up with Sally. Morag passed her on lap 20, putting her down to 9th whilst Thibault watched on from the paddock.
On lap 23, Cormac got past Shermy, who was struggling with understeer. Up front, Charlie Brown and Rerun continued to battle, trading places every few laps, whilst Pierre fell further behind them. Lucy eventually overtook Pierre on lap 29.
On lap 33, Shermy retired with a steering arm failure, pulling off the track and stopping next to the barrier, and a few laps later, Patty Swanson retired with a throttle linkage failure, causing her to pull into the pit garage and stopping the car.
By lap 42, Mimi had been passed by Marcie, and was starting to fall within distance of Frieda, but Frieda was too busy keeping Pig Pen behind her to benefit from Mimi dropping down to 10th. Joe Agate then fell behind Cormac on lap 46, and then behind José on lap 47, before it became apparent he had a problem with his car, and Joe Agate retired in the pits with a hydraulics failure a lap later.
At the front, Rerun and Charlie Brown continued to trade places, with no risk of being overtaken by Pierre. Remarkably, they hadn't hit each other once, but the Renault team were getting anxious, and on lap 55, the team asked the drivers to hold station, whilst Rerun was in front. Frieda managed to shake off Pig Pen, and began to close in on Mimi, passing her on lap 63. Linus was comfortably at the front on the final lap, Schroeder hanging back around two seconds behind, as Linus sped down the back straight for the final time, and rounded the final two corners.
"And Linus Van Pelt wins in New Mexico! Schroeder is 2nd, and Rerun is 3rd! Charlie Brown is 4th, with Lucy 5th, Pierre 6th, Sally 7th, Morag 8th, Marcie 9th, and Frieda rounding out the top 10! Mimi was 11th, Pig Pen 12th, Eudora 13th, Violet 14th, Cormac 15th, José 16th, Five 17th, and Violette was the last finisher in 18th.
In the Championship, the standings are as follows…
1st Charlie Brown [Renault] 101pts 2nd Linus Van Pelt [Vittoria] 98pts
3rd Morag McMurdo [Isdera] 95pts 4th Schroeder E. Schroeder [Bonn] 88pts
5th Pig Pen [Armstrong] 78pts 6th Rerun Van Pelt [Renault] 77pts
7th Patricia Reichardt [Honda] 77pts 8th Frieda Rich [Bonn] 72pts
9th Marcie Johnson [Cherokee] 71pts 10th Lucy Van Pelt [Honda] 54pts
11th Sally Brown [Polestar] 43pts 12th Pierre Fermier [Vittoria] 41pts
13th Eudora Elm [Polestar] 40pts 14th José Peterson [Daihatsu] 34pts
15th Franklin Armstrong [Armstrong] 32pts 16th Patty Swanson [ACE] 31pts
17th Harold Angel [Isdera] 24pts 18th Violette Honfleur [ACE] 15pts
19th Joe Agate [Sky] 14pts 20th Violet Gray [Zontec] 10pts
21st Shermy Plepler [Zontec] 8pts 22nd Cormac O'Connor [Daihatsu] 5pts
23rd 555 95472 [Cherokee] 2pts 24th Thibault Rhodes [Sky] 1pt
25th Mimi Sonatelli [Armstrong/Sky] 0pts
Linus parked his car on Victory Road, receiving gracious applause from the plethora of spectators as he got out of the car and embraced his team, who celebrated with him, before three of them went up to the podium. In the waiting room, Linus congratulated his brother on achieving 3rd place, and Rerun did likewise, while Schroeder smiled with them, before they went out onto the podium.
The three of them stood still as the American anthem played and the three American flags unfurled. The Italian anthem played after the American anthem finished. The three competitors were given their trophies, before they drank their milk, waved to the crowd, and went off to the pressroom.
Inside, the press had several questions for them.
I: Linus, finally after 11 races, you've now added a win to your points tally. How do you feel right now?
Linus: I feel pretty good. I'm very high up in the championship now, I didn't think I'd make it this far up, to be honest, but good racing and good fortune has got me here.
I: Schroeder, once again, you've delivered big points when your team need it most. How proud are they of you today?
Schroeder: I heard over the radio that we're still second in the constructor's championship, just a few points behind Renault. I think they're proud of me. But I need to keep doing well to challenge Linus.
I: Rerun, you've proved a lot of doubters wrong with your driving today, do you think the same?
Rerun: I think I've proved I can both fight fairly and finish ahead of my teammate, and also put away any rumours of team orders too.
I: Thank you.
New Championship Leader Charlie Brown was also interviewed, down in the paddock.
I: So, 4th place, and now a 3 point lead in the championship. Do you think you had a good weekend?
Charlie Brown: I think so. I could have gotten third, I think, but at the end of the day, I'm not worried about my position in the Championship, and all I can do is work even harder next race.
I: Thank you.
The Vittoria team celebrated long into the evening, and Linus returned to the hotel long after the other drivers were asleep. He was exhausted, and quickly hopped into bed and fell asleep, as the drivers rested themselves for the days and weeks ahead.
