Page 61 of Jump Start

Christ, his voice was deep.

“Hey, my girlfriend here is a big fan,” I told him, looking at Harper, who was hiding behind me, giggling. I pulled her out in front of me and wrapped my arms around her so she couldn’t escape.

“Hey!” she was able to get out.

“Hey there, I’m Vaughn, and this is my wife, Casey Reed.” He extended his hand to Harper and his wife smiled and waved.

Harper took an immediate liking to Casey, the two drawing closer and chatting about Reeds, racing, and the Sydney weather.

“Great to see you, mate. I hope all goes well for the race,” Vaughn commented. He was polite and very good-looking, even I had to admit.

“Thanks, man. Enjoy your press pass! Some good access from those things. Nice to meet you, Casey,” I directed at his wife.

Casey and Harper were still chatting like they were old friends, laughing and looking around the track together. They seemed to have an instant connection.

“Yeah, we’re just here for the end of the year to see our families, and then we head back to Canada for Christmas. V got these press passes because he wanted to come and see his favourite driver!” I heard Vaughn’s wife say to Harps.

I turned back to Vaughn.

“Like a house on fire,” I said, nodding at our girls.

“Absolutely. Case is always happy to meet more Aussiefriends, I think!”

As much as I would have loved to hang around longer and chat with the Reeds, I had a job to do.

I politely excused myself, leaving Harper with her new friends, and walked back to my car.

Tony was standing next to the door, ready to get me strapped in.

Harper eventually trailed behind me with a huge smile on her face.

“See! You little coward, I thought you were tough,” I teased, kissing her on the lips quickly before placing my helmet on.

“I know, I get weird around famous people I like.” Her reply made me laugh inside my helmet.

“I’m famous, were you nervous around me?” I asked as I climbed into my Ferrari.

“Nah, you don’t count. I didn’t even know you existed.” I placed my hand on my heart to feign injury.

“I love you, good luck! I’ll be on the radio,” she yelled out over the engines that were firing up.

“Love you!” I said, not even sure she could hear.

All the extra people on the grid were ushered off, leaving the remaining cars. Now this was one of my absolute favourite times. The possibility of what was to come, the adrenaline kicking in, and the sound of the other twenty cars on the grid revving their engines.

This was it, the last race of the season. I had qualified well and was starting from fourth position. Not quite where we wanted to be, but it was a bloody good start.

Ominous rain clouds were starting to build, and the race strategy was being altered in my ear as I readied myself to start.I took one last look back towards the pits and closed my eyes briefly. “Radio check,” I said back to my team.

“Copy, mate. Good luck,” Tony said in my ear.

I was focused and well-prepared. This was my last chance to obtain as many points as possible. I would secure second place in the championship, which in itself was an achievement, but I still wanted to try to reach the best possible outcome for my team.

With the practice lap out of the way, it was time. I gripped the steering wheel, eyes focused ahead, ready to react at the exact moment I needed to.

The sound of all the GTs together created a harmony of loud, boisterous, V8 engine sounds, almost like the tuning of a symphony orchestra.

“Go, go, go!” Tony spoke through my headset, and I was off as I threw the car into the first corner aptly called ‘Hell Corner.’ The car responded beautifully to me, my Ferrari 458 purring along the first corner. As I edged towards the slight incline of ‘Mountain Straight’, Tony spoke over the radio. “Mate, the weather seems to be turning rather quickly. Your second lap might see rain.”

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