Chapter Two
The race village was heaving with spectators, despite the below freezing temperatures. The takeout trucks already running a roaring trade with hot drinks and cooked breakfasts. The smell of pancakes and the cloying sweet scent of maple syrup was tempting enough without the simmering bacon aroma that was strong enough Alan could swear he could taste the saltiness. His stomach rumbled as he and Maddie were escorted back through to the garages. Security kept the crowds at bay as they wound their way back down from the press pit.
The atmosphere was electric as the commentator ramped up the tension over the tannoy. "It's finally here, the racing event of the year! Time to get to those seats folks and get ready to immerse yourself in the action of our twenty fifth Santa Dash Rally, raising funds for a wealth of charities including Medi Kids, Action for Veterans, Pets trust and more! Todays racing line up includes twenty of the finest rally pros and racers from across the world." Alan lost the commentary as they entered through the barrier into the workstations. Just as he was slipping through, he felt a small tug on the back of his suit leg, turning round and not seeing anyone he looked down to see security asking a young boy to step away. Glancing back towards the secondary crowd barrier Alan spied a very apologetic looking father. He raised a hand. "It's alright." Alan crouched down to the boy's level, he couldn't have been anymore than six, his deep brown eyes filled with a hopeful expression as he clutched a notepad in his mittens and a pen in the other. Raven hair sprung out from under his hat, unwilling to be tamed and his parka made him look four times the size he probably was causing Alan to smile.
"Hey Buddy"
"Are you Alan Tracy!"
"I am indeed."
"Oh wow! I told dad it was you! You're my favourite racer, I want to be just like you when I'm older!"
Alan gently took the pad from his hand along with the pen. "Well, I'm sure glad to hear that! What do want to race when you're older?"
"The fastest car on land!" The kid gushed in excitement.
Alan chuckled. "You're going to want to talk to Maclaren then because they're the fastest out there right now." Alan handed back the book before patting the lad on the back and getting to his feet. "Now off you go and enjoy the race! I want lots of cheering ok because it makes me go really fast. Like this fast!" Alan gestured with his hands making the kid giggle as his dad sheepishly took him away.
Maddie watched on from where she was leaning against the garage entrance with wary interest. Tracy was certainly vivacious, and he was sweet to the kid so maybe she had been a bit harsh in her earlier judgement. Most drivers just ignored their young idols if they busted in. She'd spent most of her childhood being ignored or passed over, she knew how it felt to have adults push you away when you just wanted to be included, to be noticed. She frowned as she caught Alan watching her past the crew dashing by. She quickly turned away to gather her gear.
They met up again a few minutes later as they secured their helmets and adjusted the volume. A few final checks to demonstrate they could hear each other, they pulled on their gloves. The car was rolled out of the garage. "You ready?" Alan asked over the roof as he opened the door.
"Yep, let's go."
Strapping himself in sent a thrill of anticipation through Alan. Grinning, he turned to Maddie who couldn't help but offer a small smile in return. He really was like a boy on Christmas morning. The team manager radioed in they were fit to go. Alan cruised them up to the first rally stage a couple of miles up the track, soon they would be out in the artic wilderness pitting car against mother nature.
They rolled up to the check point where they waited for the countdown. Maddie sat with her notes on her lap ready while Alan gripped the steering wheel willing for it all to begin, his foot tapping impatiently to the side of the accelerator. His hand fanned out over the of the steering wheel rudder for the gears, ready to start off in a higher gear to compensate for the snow. The beeper began as Alan knuckled down. 3, 2, 1 the light went green.
Alan punched it with minimal wheel spin, flying down the first hillside and gaining some impressive air that had them lurching against their harnesses and snow spraying up the sides of the car. They were the eighth out this morning, so the track was still relatively untouched. The cabin was filled with the echo of the acceleration and the occasional thud of their bodies against the seat as Alan began to pick up pace listening hard to Maddie's commentary. She was effectively his eyes, her directions allowing him to effectively see up ahead and respond a fraction before he was required to react.
"Sixty, Right minus Over crest. Opens over fifty, tightens three plus into a double caution." Sixty yards till a right turn then a potential hazard, Alan gunned it right up till the last minute before dipping the left paddle a couple of times sharply to drift around the turn, he saw the dip moments after and quickly eased off the accelerator to glide over the rough ground before kicking it up a notch once more.
"One hundred, Left plus four, opens into a six plus, big jump into a right minus four." Maddie rocked in tandem to the momentum of the car, glancing up just long enough to catch the nod of affirmation from Alan. Her eyes flicked up just enough to see the bonnet soar upwards once more before she rattled off her next directives.
Stage one was over in the space of ten minutes with the car warmed up nicely, they had an opportunity to run it again before moving off to the next leg which they did. Alan was expecting it to be difficult to adapt to his new co-driver, but she was actually very technically gifted and could rattle off directions faster than Robbie ever could so Alan had to really be on his game to keep up. He found rally driving suited him well and gave his reflexes that had so often saved him in deep space, a good workout. As they lined up for the stage once more, he smiled at the idea of trying to convince his father that rallying needed to a be a new training programme for them.
By mid-afternoon they had completed ten stages and five legs. Alan whipped through the small town of Springs, itching to get another stage completed. Small crowds of spectators had gathered along the road cheering and jumping wildly as they flew through behind Jones and Terry up ahead in the ford fiesta representing England. Behind them was Sarsgaard and Zetterburg from Sweden. Just outside Springs the cars split at the fork to head off to their respective stages, Alan took the left just as an update radioed through. "Tracy and Johnson, you're currently forty-six seconds behind the UK which means you're in fourth place at present."
Alan lined up to the next checkpoint grumbling under his breath. Still early days. The klaxon sounded and he flew out of the stocks once more on the start of the eleventh stage. "One fifty. Right plus six, over crest, caution. Slippy."
By now he was used to Maddie's steady cadence as he flew down the straight grateful for a bit of length to play with, they whizzed past the snowbanks as he slowed to prepare for the turn. As Alan banked into the turn, he felt the car give, the back-end drifting far beyond what he wanted. He managed to correct it in the nick of time, just nipping the advertising board. "Whew! That was close!" The wheels spun before they finally found enough traction to kick him off once more.
"Forty and Left, Right, Left, Right, Left minus one over crest. Careful!" Alan sailed through the narrow chicanes between the trees and out the other side, but the front tyre clipped a fallen branch sending them into a spin. Maddie braced herself just as Alan shouted "Brace yourself" before they launched up into the air and into the snowbank with a poof, the car making an awful scraping sound on the passenger side as it was dragged against something unseen. They came to an undignified halt.
Maddie threw her tablet on her lap frustrated. "I told you to be careful!"
"I was! There was some debris, it wasn't my fault!" Scowling, he turned over the engine and flipped it in reverse, acutely aware his every movement was being filmed by the drone overhead. The tyre pressure sensor was flashing red and there was a definite scraping of bodywork where it shouldn't be. He grunted in annoyance turning the engine off and pressing the handbrake on.
"Not a word." He uttered before flipping out of his seat and slamming the driver's door. With a sigh at the drama Maddie forced open her door to join him.
"Damn" she whistled. The tyre was completely deflated on the nearside front and the bumper was semi torn off. "Nice job."
"It couldn't be avoided now are you going to help me fix this or not?"
"I'll get the jack."
"The jacking point is just" –
"I know where it is." She scraped the snow away with her foot before slamming the jack down. "How about you grab the tyre, and we can get this show back on the road again?"
Stomping to the rear of the car, Alan hauled the tyre out the back of the hatch carrying it around to the front one handed with it resting on his hip. "Why won't you let anyone help you?"
She had already got the wheel off and was gesturing for the new one. "I am letting you help me." With a grunt she lifted it up on the disc, lining up the bolts before replacing the nuts.
"No, you're directing me. it's not the same thing."
She rolled her eyes. "Why don't you tackle the bumper? Then we can get going."
"Fine. You might want to tighten that lock nut though."
She dropped the jack whilst glaring up at him.
"Gee, I'm just trying to be helpful!"
"Aim for a less condescending tone and I might believe you."
Alan refused to rise to the bait, shredding the gorilla tape in his mouth with his teeth forcibly whilst eyeing her furiously. Turning his back, he stomped to the front of the car to patch up what he could as quickly as possible. That locking nut had been loose, he'd try and double check it before they got back in the car. They needed to get back on the road and take another shot at this leg quickly as valuable time had been lost.
He was mid crouch when his shoulder's tensed as he heard the crunching of snow underfoot behind him. "You missed a bit."
He looked up to see her with her arms folded, the corner of her mouth lilted upwards. He shook his head and turned back to the task in hand. He lived with Gordon for over twenty years, she was going to have to do better than that if she wanted a rise out of him.
A few minutes later, tools stowed, and damage repaired they were off with Alan trying to will his fingers back to life after removing his gloves for the repairs. "Tracy, you're in tenth place now." The team commentator Jerry advised.
"Shoot! We're never going to be able to make that up."
"Yes, we will. One hundred, right plus five over camber." Alan dropped into the routine once more, pushing all other thoughts from his mind as he continued to decipher Maddie's commentary. By nightfall they'd reached the twelfth stage coming into a round of cheers at the mobile garage where the pit crew were ready to launch into overnight repairs to get the car ship shape again for tomorrow.
Alan stepped out stretching out the crick in his back with a satisfying pop. He headed straight over to the crew supervisor. "Simon where are we at?"
Alan glanced up at the portable monitor his eyes flicking anxiously over the times. Maddie stood next to him half a head shorter, also looking at the screens. "Seventh." They both called out at the same time with consternation.
"Cheer up guys that's not bad considering you spun out." Simon pushed his black spectacles higher up his nose.
"I guess." Alan added glumly. He'd been aiming for the top five, but he could still pull it back tomorrow.
"We'll make that back tomorrow as long as there's no debris on the track." Maddie added.
"Say, do you have the crash footage? What was it anyway?"
Simon pulled up the video on his tablet over the noise of a pop rivet gun. "Here" He thrust the tablet at Alan before heading off at the shout of his name. Maddie approached, her shoulder accidently rubbing his. She immediately stepped back angling her body in a way she could view the screen but not touch him directly.
The car flew through the air, powder snow bursting around the bodywork as it the track once more, then there was a large well executed drift which scuffed up a large fallen branch. It splintered with one side jack knifing upwards straight into the wheel arch and suspension on the front nearside.
"Well, that would explain it." Alan watched on as he then lost control before the front wheel locked and the rear span out, sending them up and over the opposite bank.
"Hmm that's annoying."
"Agreed."
Alan glanced up in surprise. Could it be they agreed on something at last? He had little time to dwell as the commentators had finally found them. It was Suzie Costello the famous WRC champion turned pundit. "Alan Tracy, such a good start out there today then it seemed to take a bit of a dive." Her hazel eyes crinkled in sympathy.
"It did, we had a run in with a branch but were soon back on track luckily with only minor damage sustained. We did well in the first couple of legs, well ahead of my expectations in terms of time."
"Do you think you can pull it back? You finish the day in seventh place." She extended the microphone back to him, breath clouding in the air. The temperature had plummeted as the sun set.
"It will be tough, but I think so. You know me Suzie I'm always in it to win it!"
"Fighting talk. Good luck tomorrow Alan and Maddie, team USA!"
Alan waved while Maddie gave a cool nod before the crew moved on to the next garage. Rubbing his hands together to ward of the chill he decided it was time to go and get warmed up. He was starving too, his stomach rumbling audibly. He noticed Maddie was alone one more, gathering her things quietly before trudging off to the lodge. She was certainly a lone wolf, and he couldn't help but wonder why. With a wave to the crew, he trudged after her towards the warm amber glow of the lodge. He could hear the chatter of a full house as he pushed open the door, warmth flooding him and easing his numb face.
The lodge was a reasonable size with high beamed ceilings and turn of the century décor, but it still retained a cosiness that was welcome compared to the winter wonderland outside. A huge fifteen-foot live Christmas tree stood by the fireplace in all its glory. Festive pine garlands were wrapped around the beams above along with fairy lights. Alan strolled up to the bar ordering himself a much-needed soda and steak 'n' chips. Spinning round on the bar stool, he noticed some of the crews, drivers and their families were clustered in the booths by the windows. He scooped up his drink, there was a space left over there so he began to mill his way over only to notice Maddie was sat two tables down staring out the window alone. It didn't seem right to leave her that way and it would seem odd if he abandoned his co-driver.
He clinked his drink on the table before sliding into the booth. The candle on the table flickered merrily whilst he nursed his glass. Maddie's gaze flicked towards him under her sideswept caramel waves. "You don't have to sit with me you know."
"I know." He shot back with a merry smile.
She picked up the coaster, twizzling it in her hands. Alan noticed her restlessness like she wasn't comfortable in her own skin. Thick lashes obscured her down casted eyes, her thin lips with the perfectly shaped upper arrow were pursed together. The cold had flushed her cheeks to a light cherry blossom that made her seem much younger than he suspected she really was.
"We didn't do too bad today in the end, did we?" He reflected.
"I guess. When did you start venturing into rallies?"
"Erm, twelve months ago."
"Pretty good for a rookie then." She offered him a small smile which for some reason made him glow a little inside.
He grinned back, his boyish charm radiating from his features. "What about you, how did you get into rallying and when?"
"I actually started in motor cross in my teens, but I had a bad accident." She twisted the coaster more fervently between her fingers. "So, I had a few years of inactivity not really sure where I wanted to go when I was introduced to the world of rallycross. I've always been good with numbers, quick on my feet, I took to the commentary like a duck to water. My motor cross experience transitioned easily, and I had a knack for identifying hazards at speed as well as navigation. I did it as a hobby for a couple of years, but I've raced for the last five years as a co-driver in the WRC and the national championships."
They were interrupted by the arrival of food. The medium rare steak steamed in front of him, the aroma enticing enough for him to sit up. Maddie had a fried chicken burger and fries placed before her. Thanking the waiter, they picked up their utensils and got stuck in.
"That's quite a career. When was your last competition?"
"Last summer in Sweden we came second place, third place overall in the championship. I see your last race was maybe eighteen months ago?"
Alan took a sip of his drink. "Yep, unfortunately I don't get to race as much as I would like these days. Had a bit of a disaster with the car, a continuous fault with the carburettor among other issues. Thankfully that contracts ended. I'm with Mercedes this season."
A round of raucous laughter broke out at the table across from them along with the crash of drinks on the floor followed by shouting and hollering at the chaos. Alan's eyes travelled back to his dinner.
"I thought you'd be right over there with them this evening." Maddie indicated over her shoulder, fork in hand.
"Maybe once upon a time." Alan played with the last bit of his stake whilst Maddie waited for him to elaborate.
"Something change?"
Alan grunted. "Let's just say, I've learned the hard way that there are more important things in life than drinking and partying into the night." His face clouded over with a heavy frown that had Maddie pondering exactly what he might mean but not having the gumption to ask.
"Fair enough."
The rest of the dinner passed companionably enough but Alan had learnt enough to know Maddie was not one to divulge her life story in one sitting. He found he'd upheld most of the conversation and she'd been happy to listen but every time he'd tried to enquire more about her, she found a subtle way to deflect him. He wondered how bad her accident must have been, certainly bad enough for her to retire from that motor sport. It was also odd how she hadn't mentioned her friends or family at all.
"Alan, Maddie. I wondered if I'd find you here. Nice couple of saves out there today, shame about that darn branch but I'm sure you'll pull it back." Jim stood at the end of the booth.
"You can say that again. Why don't you sit and join us? I want to hear all about this grandson of yours. Do you have a picture?"
Jim beamed lowering himself down to sit next to Alan and drawing out his phone. Maddie coughed before loading the credit for her meal by tapping the reader on the table. "I'm going to turn in for the night, it was nice to see you earlier Jim. Goodnight Alan."
"Night." They both waved her off just as Jim handed Alan his phone. They sat there for a good hour together before Alan steadily made his excuses for the evening. It was getting late, and he had ground to make up in the morning if he wanted to be in with a chance of winning this rally.