#Truck Race Trophy

[radracer]

Roger Mears Nissan D21 Hardbody

[dak91]

[optimabatteries]

#OPTIMAbatteries sponsored #TrophyTruck racer, Christopher Polvoorde won the 2024 Toyo Desert Challenge at the King of the Hammers! http://www.powerpacknation.com

[masoncarr2244]

[johnnykillmore]

A Winter Earned, A Summer's Call

It’s a strange thing when nothing material in your life has changed, but your perspective has. I like someone’s example of being pulled over by the police on your way to work, but the officer decides not to give you a ticket. You feel like you had Continue reading A Winter Earned, A Summer’s Call

[dragonnarrative-writes]

Kinktober 7 - Slasher Chase

Slasher Ghoap x Reader

CW: Anxiety/panic, minor character death, Brandon mention, confusion, Final Girl Actions, no smut, a tiny smooch

Note: This is unrelated to the existing slasher universe, because Slasher Ghost is rude and has been fighting me all month.

Mind the tags

You can see road. The parking lot of the little general store, it’s right there, you just have to keep running. Your lungs are screaming at you, but if you can just get to the lights -

You almost don’t believe it when you spill through the tree line. There’s only one truck near you, but a man is there, putting paper bags into the bed. Brandon. For once, you’re glad to see him. You’re too breathless to shout, so you just stumble toward him while waving one arm wildly.

When he sees you, his usual smarmy smirk falls, just a touch. He doesn’t approach you, though, just puts his hands in the pockets of his stupid, puffy jacket and watches you stumble closer.

“Damn, Kitten,” he calls, that damn pet name, but you’re so close to safety. “What happened to y-”

You’re halfway to him when a crack echoes off the mountains and the brick of the building. Brandon’s head snaps backwards. The rest of his body follows, crumpling at the same time as you do. You barely feel the concrete scrape up your hands as you collapse. You watch as the front right tire pops from another shot, and then a hole pierces the body of the truck. It doesn’t take long for you to smell gas.

You’re not sure how long you’re there, panting and shaking on your knees. Your mind is racing so fast it feels quiet. Your heart pounds like it’s arrested. You don’t have any tears left.

“Ghost did tell him naetae talk to ye again.”

You can’t even flinch as Soap strides past you, whistling a jaunty little tune that will haunt your nightmares, if you survive this. You watch him crouch over Brandon’s body, the red skull of his mask cocked to examine the damage you can’t see. You don’t feel anything when he lifts Brandon’s slack arm, until he strips his wrist of that stupid, fancy camping watch.

That watch was two and a half thousand dollars, and Brandon had ruined your life over it.

That’s the only thing you can focus on, as you clamber to your feet. Your hands hurt, but not as much as that watch. You’re exhausted, but nothing is as exhausting as that watch. You need to run, but not as much as you need that fucking watch.

Soap watches you approach with that infuriating smirk. “Aw, hello, hen.”

Your knuckles crack against his jaw. You know that the only reason your fist connects is because he isn’t expecting it. You expect the way he laughs, but that doesn’t matter. You snatch the watch from his hand.

What you don’t expect is the huge hand that closes around your throat from behind. You flail, catching Soap in the thigh with a desperate kick, but Ghost has you well in hand before you can do anything else.

He pries your fingers open, but lets you keep your thumb gripped around the band of the watch. “Well, well. Kitty’s first trophy.”

Soap makes a disgruntled noise, even as he catches the rifle Ghost tosses his way.. “Finders keepers!”

“Don’t get greedy,” Ghost growls. The arm he’s wrapped around your upper chest gives you a squeeze. “She ‘elped line up the shot, she gets to pick ‘er prize.”

“Wasnae hardly a help,” Soap grumbles, kicking Brandon’s sprawled body. “Fucker lined himself up.”

You feel like throwing up as Ghost turns you around and pets a huge hand over the top of your head. The edge of his skull mask is hard against your eyebrow when he dips down to kiss your cheekbone through his mask.

“Don’t worry,” he chuckles. “Everyone starts somewhere. We’ll make an 'unter of you, yet.”

[nyoomfruits]

‘shush’ maxoscar or lestappen!

[ shush ] for a kiss to silence the other party

“The lease on my apartment is ending,” Oscar says, drops it in the middle of Max’s weirdly fond rant about the cats having developed the ability to open doors and using it mostly for evil. They’re sitting on the couch in Max’s apartment, Max’s toes tucked under Oscar’s thigh, Oscar’s feet resting on the little pouf in front of the couch. They’re both holding a half-eaten plate of stir fry, one of the few dishes Max can make without making Oscar wince repeatedly, half-watching an old episode of Friends on the TV.

“Oh,” Max says, frowns. “The Monaco one, you mean?”

Oscar nods. He got it last year, when he was in his second year of F1 still, and even though he’d just signed a multi-year contract with McLaren, it had felt presumptions, to assume this was going to be his home for a long time. And so he’d rented an apartment, just for the year, and see how he felt after.

And then Max had happened, right after the Hungary Grand Prix. Oscar had bumped into him at the party, mixed feelings about his own win, Max angry about his race, and they’d collided in something that was really only meant to blow off steam, on both sides really.

But then it had happened again. And again. And again. And then Oscar had started sleeping over at Max’s place more and more. They started spending time between races together, they started spending all of their time between races together. Oscar has a key now, to Max’s place, right next to the keys to his own apartment. One he hasn’t really been to in the past three months or so.

One of which the lease is ending soon.

“Yeah,” Oscar says. And he’s not asking any questions, because he’s bad at asking these questions, but Max has always been exceptional at reading him, so.

“Well, we will have sell most of the furniture, I think,” Max says, placing his fork down, because he still refuses to try and eat noodles with chopsticks. “Unless you want to keep some of it. But I hope not. That couch is quite ugly.”

“Thanks, Max,” Oscar says, but he can’t help but smile behind his own bite of noodle. It is a bit of an ugly couch, truth to be told. He hadn’t put that much thought into styling his apartment, just let the stylist at the store decide what he needed.

“You’re welcome,” Max says, smiling. “Anyway, do you think we would need a truck? Your clothes are mostly here already, we’ll have to take some of the decorations and stuff, the trophy’s obviously. Do you still have those plates from the one time I actually came over to your place for lunch? I quite liked those, maybe bring those. Maybe a truck is a bit much, I can ask Lando, he has this ridiculously large Range Rover for some reason, he might let me borrow it, we can shove all the stuff in the back. It’s not that far from your apartment to here, so it’s shouldn’t take us that long-“

And that’s, belatedly, when it hits Oscar. What Max is talking about. Why he’s so concerned about Oscar’s furniture and how he’s going to move it all and what he’s going to keep. Because to Max, the only really logical explanation is that he moves here. All Oscar had wanted was to open the conversation, talk about their future maybe. But to Max, their future has always been crystal clear.

It’s them. It’s here. It’s forever.

Oscar purposely puts his plate aside, leans forward, slow deliberate, takes Max’s plate away from him as well, and then, right in the middle of Max’s rant about Oscar’s decorative bed pillows, kisses him full on the mouth.

“Hey,” Max says, when he pulls away, looking slightly confused. “What was that for?”

“I love you,” Oscar says, because he doesn’t really know how else to say ‘I want that too’ and ‘thank you for everything you are’ and ‘you are my favorite person in the whole world’.

Max smiles, slow and soft and fond, and presses another kiss to Oscar’s lips. “I love you too,” he says, and then, just because he’s Max, adds, “Roomie.”

Oscar laughs, one that releases all the tension he’d been feeling about bringing this up, let’s his head fall forward against Max’s chest, takes in the familiar scent of laundry detergent and Max. “Don’t,” he warns.

Max laughs too, rubs his hand over Oscar’s back as Oscar picks his head off of Max’s chest and leans in for another slow, long kiss.

Roomies. Oscar will take it, if that means he gets to have this.

[zippidi-dooda]

So, years ago I was rewatching Cars and since the Bakugou brainrot was strong, I suddenly got the idea that "Hey, Lighting's a bit of a prick at first ... what if I made a story based off this movie with Bakugou as McQueen?" I was specifically looking at the scene where McQueen gets the white-wall tires, y'know his "suit change to impress Sally, and that one drawing someone made of Bakugou in a white suit occupied my brain and it solidified my "this is a good idea" thoughts (ps can't find that specific image no matter how I search it, but if I do I'll add it here sometime)

I had planned to take notes, rewatching the movie over and over to see what I could replace some scenes with since the characters for this story would be human racers and stuff.

Now, I never got around to it

But I took mental notes only writing the important things (what characters would best fit as who) and imagining scenes between Y/N and Bakugou (but not writing those down for some reason??? Still remember bits of some of them though) And wrote half of the first chapter

Here they are to finally see the light of day, (I'll explain why I wrote the characters as who if I remember why):

Summary

Life going was perfectly for the speed racer, Bakugou Katsuki. He had it all, the speed, the fame, the money, and was just one race away from becoming Japan's number one racer. But life seemed to have other plans in mind for him.

***

Speed.

That's what was always needed of Bakugou on the track. And Bakugoy always delivered. Today would be different though. 

He was speed.

He'd push it to the limit - no. Past the limit.

He would win this race and Deku would no longer be number one.

Deku . . . .

Man how he hated the curly haired, green eyed freak. Deku would never amount to nothing, all of those days Bakugou spent playing in the backyard with the kid, racing their remote control cars and playing video games taught him that.  

He never once lost to that loser and made sure to let Deku know that would never change. Ever. Bakugou would always be on top. Number one.

Boy did karma hit him hard.

"Dynamite! You gotta get out there already!"

"I fucking got it!"

Bakugou opened his red eyes, looking around his trailer. 

He was sitting on top of a cabinet with his eyes closed, waiting for show time.

Being alone in his trailer doing nothing was a ritual he always did before a race.

No reason why. He just did it.

The trailer had space for tools and such in case he needed to tune up his car on the go. But there were also shelves lined with his trophies from past races and merchandise featuring him or his car. A single picture waited for him on top of a small cabinet, which held snacks and an extra pair of clothes for him. A mini fridge was next to it holding drinks and such in case he got thirsty on a long drive.

Bakugou practically lived in the trailer. Always having to travel here and there to get to races. He sat in his car the whole time. It was a little cramped sure, but he preferred it to taking a plane, flying to his hotel, having to deal with paparazzi, possibly bumping into Deku or other competitors and having to talk to them.

Bakugou had a short fuse and often ran his mouth to the point rivals would try to fight him. And when that happened Hakamada would force him to have grade school lessons for manners and etiquette and all that to teach him how to "play nice."

That was useless. (And for some reason he was always forced to wear jeans and over-brush his hair?)

Katsuki Bakugou didn't need to be treated like a kid. So the trailer became his favorite place.

Through the tinted windows he could spot the extra from his pit crew who yelled walking away, past the other trucks. He rolled his eyes at them, he knew he could finish every race without a crew but it was required in order to race. So he (had to) let them stick around. They never got along, but it was fine by him since it meant no unnecessary interactions outside of the racecourse.

His manager, Hakamada, did chew him out for it saying he needed a good relationship with the team in order to get a better performance. But they did just fine now so there was no need to try with them.

Bakugou tightened his gloves, closed his eyes, took a deep breath, then got ready to walk out the trailer door. He took a second to pick up the photo sitting on the cabinet. He looked at it for a second, memorizing again every detail on the piece of paper, his grip tightening before pressing a chaste kiss to it and tucking it into his chest pocket.

It was a good luck charm you could say. Never raced without it on him.

It was go time.

He was instantly blinded by flashing cameras clicking away, mics up in his face, people waving at him, and shouting - from both the reporters and the crowd.

"Mr. Dynamite!"

"YESSSSS!"

"DYNAMITE!"

"Over here!"

"Tulsa from Konto News, can I get a statement?"

"SIGN MY FOREHEAD!"

"Do you think you'll win this race?"

Bakugou held back a groan.

He always had to walk with a crowd of reporters towards his station. Still, he hadn't entirely warmed up to all the randos always in his face but he indulged them with some words.

"Sit down and watch the damn race for your answers."

"Mr. Dynamite, over here!"

"Dynamite, I'm with Dai Press-"

"I LOVE YOU DYNAMITE!"

"MARRY ME!"

He paused in his walk and addressed the people around him.

"All I have to say to you is, I'm gonna win. That is one sure thing you can get from this race so stick around."

They grew louder. Bakugou ignored them and continued walking until he heard one thing.

"You and Deku have been neck in neck since the start of your career, Dynamite, and you've only been first in the beginnings of every race. You've never actually ended any race in first. Never went home with a first place prize. How do you expect to come out on top today?"

Bakugou turned on his heels and scanned the people, "Who the hell said that?"

He wasn't sure and everyone continued speaking over one another. So, he yanked a random mic out of someone's hand.

"Deku's had his undeserved moment in the sun long enough. I can promise you this: his lucky streak ends with me. Got that? Put that in the papers."

Shoving the mic into whose ever hand, Bakugou continued to his spot, picking up the pace and blocking out everything else anyone had to say.

***

"Alright Dynamite, if you want to win this race for once you need to get your ass over here for a pit stop. Every time we call you over. Can you do that or are you enjoying eating greenies dust all the time."

Bakugou scowled at the extra handing him his helmet.

If they really wanted him to listen maybe they shouldn't be such assholes to him all the time. He wasn't the problem here.

"Fuck off extra, I don't need to stop for you losers every lap. You're just here freeloading off my success so sit down and shut the fuck up."

Bakugou snatched his helmet and shoved the guy out of his way. Right into another extra dressed in aquamarine. 

The two fell down, knocking over a dresser full of tools on the way. Tools were scattered all across the ground.

Bakugou couldn't be bothered to help.

He took a waterbottle from another extra's hand and took a big sip.

"What the fuck man!'

"My bad ... man ... I'll help clean this up."

"Get the hell out of here, I got it."

"What's going on here?"

Bakugou scowled at the last voice. 

It was Deku. And he had no business coming over to him like this. Every goddamn race. The two were always stationed next to each other meaning every pit stop and start and end of the race Bakugou had to see his rival's annoying face. 

And every chance they were near each other, Deku felt the need to say hello.

Idiot.

"Nothing just fell down."

"Is everyone okay?"

"Yeah, don't worry about it. I got this."

"Are you sure cause we can totally help out."

"Don't worry about it, it's our station we'll handle it."

"Get the fuck out of here Deku, you got stuff to do and so do we." Bakugou said.

"You're right, but I only came over for a second. Just to check up on you."

"I'm fine. Now leave. And keep pink cheeks out of here. I don't need her or anyone else distracting my crew, got it?"

"Got it."

"Sorry, I didn't mean to make a mess," The short, brown haired, brown eyed girl walked over to him with a pen and paper in hand. "I just wanted to see if I could get an autograph. It's for my nephew, you're his favorite racer and it's his birthday next week so I thought it'd be a nice surprise for him."

Bakugou rolled his eyes before taking the page and getting ready to sign it. It had a crudely drawn image of himself besides a little boy, the girl's nephew he assumed, the both of them holding up a trophy as confetti rained down on them. 

Bakugou froze for a moment.

The picture, though ugly, warmed his heart. He knew he had fans but this drawing just showed that they believed he would win a race. And the fact that he had a fan that probably knew Deku, met with him face to face (there was no way the dumbass didn't like pink cheeks since she was always around him, so he probably went to her house once or twice) and they still picked him over the momentary number one . . . It made him feel good inside. 

Maybe one day he'd have a kid of his own and they could cheer for him too . . . .

He smirked and began to sign.

"What's the extras name?"

"Hiro."

"Tell him he's on the right team." Bakugou gave back the paper. "There you got what you came for now leave."

"Thank you so much. C'mon Deku."

The girl began to drag him away.

"Hold on, Uraraka. Kacchan . . . ?"

Bakugou frowned again. "What now?"

The boy's mouth opened and closed for a bit as he searched for the right words to say.

He held out his hand to him. "Good luck out there today."

Bakugou scoffed and slapped his hand away.

"You'll need the luck more than I do cause I'm gonna beat your ass this time."

Deku smiled a bit as he watched Bakugou walk away. He may not have said it the normal way but at least he'd told him good luck back for once.

Deku turned and walked back to his own car.

***

Notes

McQueen: Bakugou - main character, acts like him and their traits align, need that Life Could be a Dream scene to happen with him

Mater: Kiri - the best friend that will make him realize things, who else could fill thus roll, their energy would match well

Chick Hicks: Todoroki - he's not a hick and personalities don't match but he fits as a well known figure that Bakugou would hate yet want to race, Todo will remain calm and aloof and claim BK is his best friend

Dinoco: Midoriya - BK hates him and would also want to beat him as a racer so of course he's here, could be switched with Chick but since the Dinoco brand was a dominant figure/sponsor in Cars I imagine the brands they race for as the old Pro Hero's and the biggest retiring Pro is All Might and he trains MD so obviously it'd be the same in this universe and so Dinoco's Dad: All Might - for those reason's

Doc Hudson: Aizawa - the mentor figure, he does watch and help BK so I think it's fitting, their personalities and morals seem to align and they both stay away from the cameras so despite Jeanist also being a good choice here, I thought that AZ fits better (Jeanist ended up as BK's current/first sponser)

Sherrif: President Mic - (I was today years old when I realized it's Present Mic not President) since he also helps watch and guide these kids I think he could work this role, using police sirens would make sense considering his quirk, can't separate him and AZ

Army Dude: Shinsou - also one who can't be separated from AZ, not particularly a connection to the character but the Radiator Springs residents kinda seem like they don't like McQueen at first so they'd need to hate BK as well and Shinsou would be good at that, he can also cause some drama by being close with Y/N if so desired

Red: Eri - another who can't be separated from AZ, Red is shy and timid which can be applied to Eri especially since she may be scared upon seeing BK wreck the town as a first introduction, Red listens to Sally's requests which can apply as well

Filmore: Mineta - uhm, why? I honestly don't remember but he may be subject to change, Filmore is kinda another form of comic relief I think and Mineta can be useful to create certain situations, a reason to stir up protectivness in BK, and since Denki will be in here I'd like to put them in shared scenes since I think they're funny together

Guido & Luigi: Sero & Kaminari - need the BakuSquad here and I think it'd be interesting to have these two co-run a store, Guido and Luigi are interested in McQueen at first but then aren't (cause he's not a Ferrari) and Sero and Kaminari seem to have no trouble poking fun at BK so I think it could work

Flo: Ashido - again the BakuSquad, their personalities really seem to match, sassy confident Mina is a must and I think she'd run an amazing dinner, so fun, she would also be one of the only gal-pals for Y/N and vice-versa

Sally: Y/N - MC and love interest, I can make personalities match a bit and BK would need people that question and prod him, lots of liberties here

Granny: Y/N's grandma - honestly who else is this gonna be, loved this lady in Cars and would derive most dialogue and scenes using what was in the movie, could write scenes where Granny is no longer out of pocket and senile and gives serious advice and warnings to BK when they're alone (delivered through one line of dialogue and she's immediately back to appearing crazy as if nothing happened)

I never wrote anything about the flame sticker car Ramone and honestly don't know who could fit as him now, maybe I'll search for suitable characters or write up a specific one if I decide to continue this.

If you'd be interested in reading a story like this, feel free to tell me and I might pick this up again

And if you do want this, also share suggestions for who in mha can fill in for the role of Ramone

[umgeorge]

"Spa Counts As A Victory For Me"

In an interview with auto motor und sport, George Russell reveals why Spa counts as a victory for him, why the Mercedes has become a winning car again, and how he sees his new teammate Andrea Kimi Antonelli.

Was the denied victory at Spa your greatest race? Russell: Absolutely, for a number of reasons. I trusted my gut feeling that I could get through the second set of tires. I protected the tires where I had to and attacked where the tires didn't mind. Four corners still had the old aggressive asphalt. I had to be careful, more so in left-hand bends than in right-hand bends. It felt like I was sitting in the simulator. I didn't see any cars in the rearview mirror or in front of me. That happens very rarely. There weren't even lapped cars there.

When were you sure that you would no longer be caught up? Russell: On the two large video walls on the track I could see my lead over Lewis, Leclerc and Piastri lap after lap. I counted every round. With ten laps to go I had 13 seconds to spare and they were gaining seven tenths per lap. I knew then: If they caught up with me, it would only be at the very end. And overtaking was harder this time than usual. That gave me confidence. When I saw the checkered flag it was an indescribable feeling. Let's be honest: For me, this race counts as a victory, even if it was taken away from me. I was first across the finish line. I stood on the podium and celebrated with my team. Everything you do when you really win.

How big was the disappointment after the disqualification? Russell: She was limited. I'm not fighting for the title this year. The 25 points I lost might end up costing me third or fourth place in the World Championship, but I'm not racing to be third or fourth. If it had still been about the World Cup, this disqualification would have haunted me longer. Together with the defect at Silverstone, I've already lost 40 points.

When was the frustration digested? Russell: Pretty quickly. It helped that the very next day I went on vacation with my girlfriend, my sister, my brother-in-law and their newly born child. I'm an uncle now. It was easy for me to leave the Formula 1 world.

When did you hand the trophy to Lewis? Russell: I didn't. I don't even know where it is now. I found out just 25 minutes after the end of the race that there was a problem with the car. That's why I didn't take the trophy with me.

Would a full victory lap to pick up tire shreds have saved you? Russell: I think so. This is a procedure that you already do in the kart. My set of tires weighed over a kilogram less than Lewis's. We've never had such a big difference. I was 500 grams lighter than my usual fighting weight. And the plank under my car had worn more, which also added up to a few hundred grams. These three factors led to the underweight. A tire with a pickup truck easily weighs 400 grams more. With four tires that would have been enough.

We have already seen a few times that one-stop strategies led to success even though they were not actually thought to be feasible. Is this a lesson for the future? Russell: I think that during the race you have to examine the circumstances even more and react to them if necessary. In Spa on race day there was suddenly a strong tailwind on the long straight. That made overtaking very difficult. You have to adapt your strategy. The route itself also plays a role. With the little grand pianos in Spa, the DRS gave you two and a half tenths. In Barcelona it would have been six tenths. My tactics from Spa would never have worked in Barcelona.

Four cars can win a Grand Prix. A mistake on Friday can cost you victory on Sunday. Is that in the back of your mind? Russell: The smallest detail can make a huge difference. Saturday and Sunday. In the last two years it wouldn't have mattered whether we qualified two tenths faster or slower. The starting position would have been the same. Today there is a difference of five starting places. In Zandvoort we made a mistake with the setup. We only realized that afterwards. That's why we ended up in the middle of nowhere. But that's how racing should be. That's how it was in karting, in Formula 3 and Formula 2.

Can the Mercedes win on every track? Russell: We surprised ourselves in Spa, but we showed less than we can do in Zandvoort. In Monza we were strong on one lap, but we lacked the speed in the race. We still struggle to understand why we are fast or not. But the big swings are no longer there. But the others aren't doing any better either. But I think McLaren is still slightly ahead.

What still needs to be improved on the car? Russell: We struggle more when the rear tires are under a lot of pressure. This increases the hotter it is. Then the traction suffers. The problem is not easy to understand. Our predictions are true in reality. We know what we gain or lose depending on the temperature. But it doesn't do us any good to compare ourselves with ourselves. We lose more relative to the competition when it's hot. The question is: Are our opponents particularly good in the heat or are we not good enough? The same applies to cooler conditions. Either we are particularly strong or the others are bad compared to us. And these are exactly the little things that can have huge effects.

Hamilton and you praised the current car from the start, even though Red Bull dominated at the start of the season like last year. What gave you the confidence that the W15 could be made into a winning car? Russell: For the last two years we've had a car that's been extremely moody. When we pushed to the limit in the corners, the rear started to slip at the entrance to the corner. No matter what vehicle setup, we simply couldn't get rid of this problem. When we tested the current car for the first time in Bahrain, we were confronted with the opposite handling. But we knew we could solve this problem much easier and faster. That was the turning point for us. That's why the upgrades worked. Each change put the car in a better window. The old problem was essentially in the DNA of the chassis and therefore could not be eliminated.

From your perspective, the last two years have probably been disappointing. In the end, did you learn more from the difficulties? Russell: The last two years have flown by, and I feel like I still have 15 to 20 years ahead of me. That's why I don't see it as wasted time. As a racing driver, you always want a perfect car. You learn that this is not possible. When you have success over a long period of time, people think it lasts forever. This is a fallacy. When Vettel became world champion four times in a row, you couldn't imagine that someone else would win. The same with Lewis and now maybe with Max too. If the season had started after the summer break, nobody could say who would be world champion. These wave movements are the nature of this sport.

This is the third year now that you have been racing on an equal footing with Lewis Hamilton. Did it surprise you that you can consistently keep up with one of the best drivers of all time? Russell: I never had any doubt that I could compete with the best. And I have been working towards this opportunity. I became champion in all junior categories. The results spoke for themselves. When I entered Formula 1 with Williams, over three years I always beat my teammates in qualifying, with two exceptions. That was confirmation, but not headline news. That's why I wanted the opportunity to assert myself against Lewis because that was the only way I could show what I can do. Toto Wolff and Mercedes knew it beforehand. They didn't need that confirmation. Lewis is a complete racer and I learned a lot alongside him. But I knew that I could keep up with him in terms of sheer speed.

The qualification duel, which ends 12:4 clearly in their favor, also speaks for this. Russell: I'm really happy with my performance in qualifying this year. Mentally I have never been as strong as I am now. Qualification is purely a matter of your head. Every driver on the grid knows how to drive fast. But it is important to show this at the crucial moment. You sit in your car for 45 minutes on Saturday afternoon and everything revolves around a lap in Q3. You have exactly one round in which it's all or nothing. In which your weekend is decided. Then no one cares anymore how fast you were in FP1, FP2, FP3, Q1 or Q2. I have worked for a long time to ensure that I can perform optimally at the right moment. But it's always extremely close between Lewis and me. There is only one driver pairing that is even closer together in terms of lap time.

You will be the veteran and team captain at Mercedes in 2025. Are you ready for this? Russell: This is the next step in my journey. I'll be in the team for four years and part of the Mercedes family for eight or nine years. I feel ready in every way to fight for the World Championship in 2025. I also feel ready to be a little better together with the team every race and to help develop the car further. Next year we will build on what Lewis and I have sown over the last three years.

Your new teammate Andrea Kimi Antonelli is joining a top team straight away. Is it easier or harder for him than you, who was able to study with Williams for three years? Russell: When you're thrown in at the deep end, you learn faster. From my experience I can say that I learned more in my first year alongside Lewis than in my three years at Williams. Every driver who has won championships in their career is fast. You can put him in a top team in his first year, like Lewis once did at McLaren. I'm sure that Charles at Ferrari or Max at Red Bull would have done a good job in a smaller team even without the pre-season preparation. Maybe at the expense of one or two mistakes, but that's part of it. Kimi will learn from this. You either have the speed or you don't. Kimi has it.

[roe-and-memory]

at some point, when he runs out of projects to work on and things to fix, lightning mcqueen takes on the brilliant idea of getting a late model car. what better is there to do in the middle of the week than get out racing — again.

he runs races in kingman at the local track, towing his car on a trailer behind his good ol’ 75’ chevy k10.

its familiar for him. he used to race these cars, he used to race against young drivers and old drivers alike — sometimes, he even got a chance to race against real cup drivers. those were the coolest days of his life at the time.

he recalls the victories and the championships he won in his years as a super late model racer, the only childhood pictures he has being the ones from when he was 15-17 that hang on the wall of macks truck with such intense pride. the idea brings him nostalgia, and the very real realization that he can afford to build a new one — his old one sitting comfortably in the rusteze racing museum — and, since hes done working on his truck, he has all the time in the off season to waste.

his first order of business is a chat with rusty and dusty to work out a sponsor deal.

rusty and dusty are excited at the idea, but being a primary sponsor IS expensive.. so, they tell him that they’d be willing to partner with tex to work out some sort of team and dual primary situation. they KNOW tex has always wanted to sponsor lightning, so why cant he do it now on his lower league car?

tex is delighted by this idea. he gives lightning funds to build the car, as well as works with rusteze to make a middle ground, hot paint scheme that’ll ignite the track and catch everyones eye.

once he has all the materials, his second order of business is putting everything together.

having been his own mechanic for quite a while before his radiator springs racing team came in, he knows the inside and outside of his car like the back of his hand. with minimal instructions, hes got the chassis and frame together in less than a week.

he never told doc about any of this — so imagine the mans surprise when he steps into his garage one morning, lightning is still asleep inside, and he finds the skeleton of a brand new racecar propped up on a bunch of cinder blocks.

he interrogates lightning, finally getting a confession of ‘oh, right…. uhhh wanna be my crew chief in a second series now?’, and he agrees. he helps lightning build the car too, happy father-son bonding time as they discuss what this kind of racing would look like as doc isnt too familiar. when theyre done, ramone paints her, and she’s ready to be entered in a race.

tex essentially covered the entire cost of the car itself, all lightning has to do is pay the small fee of entering it into the local track and everything is settled..

these races turn into a sort of therapy for him. he can race without all the big crowds, and he can have more personal connections with fans this way. it brings the track in kingman more publicity.

lightning is LOVED by the owners of the track. he decides it’d be in his best interest to do autograph signings and fan days there, bringing the track more publicity and more funding — cause all money from these events goes right to them.

aside from that, lightning also cant find it fair for him, a cup driver, to be racing against younger people and teams that arent as wealthy.. each win he gets there results in donation of the money.

sometimes he gives the money to second or third place finishers/their team, depending on who wants it. other times, he donates the winnings to the 50/50 raffle right before its called and he ups the pool — hell, sometimes he’ll just straight up donate the money to a local charity or school. on some random and perhaps slightly rare occasions he gives the money back to the track. its nothing against them, obviously, but he donates a ton already and he thinks other people should get chances — and they completely understand.

the only thing he would ever keep from these wins are his trophies, and even if he doesnt run ever race or he doesnt win every race, being able to get trophies reminiscent of those from his beginnings in the sport brings a smile to his face.

but… imagine one race he just gets Walled. it’s bad. his car is fucked and suddenly the world is spinning — as his car rolls down onto the apron of the track and the caution lights come on, he makes a poor attempt at crawling out of the car. its ends up with him half-sprawled across the pavement trying to remove his helmet and firesuit, racecars going by at a still high speed just meters away from his head.

it sucks, its stupid — the impact broke a bone in his knee and hip that he’d already experiences issues with from a past crash from a similar situation.. he doesnt wanna admit hes hurt, so, he avoids as much contact with medical services and doc, and just insists he’ll walk off the godawful limp hes fighting with — the one sending shudders and tremors through his whole body with each new step he takes — and he wants to fix his car.

this secrecy cant last long, obviously.. i cant imagine what a piston cup race would do to him that same weekend.

[crystal-moon-101]

Species: Silapace Homeplanet: Speluniferous Life-Span: 2000-2050 Habitat: Forests, Plains, Jungles, Wetlands Diet: Herbivores Breeding: Sexual Reproduction

Sexual Dimorphism: Males tend to be silvery metallic, while females are golden metallic. Kids are born with their colours, though genetic mutations with their colours have been known, but these are very rare.

Behaviour/Bio: The silapace is known for being one of the most successful trading plants in the galaxy, and their specie is known for being drowned in riches. However, unlike other races that show off their wealth in obvious ways, the silapaces are known to be down to earth. They are rather chill farmers who pull off a lot of hard work, mostly due to their background.

Their planet is filled with rich soil and minerals, causing a lot of vegetation to grow decently fast and large, whether that be trees, vegetables or fruits. The silapaces evolved to harvest these sources of food and material, their bendable sharp wires perfect for cutting and cleaning the flora around them, and their tusk-like appendages used to dig up the ground, especially when dealing with roots.

They even evolved to hibernate on command, allowing members to sleep through the waiting period for their plants to grow. This also means they reserve a lot of energy easily and thus don’t need to overeat their harvests. So, when they began making connections to the outside world, they were open to trading due to how many resources they had. Their easy-going nature made them easy to make deals with and willing to be reasonable.

They also make a lot of money due to their shedding, as this species will keep growing until the end of their days, becoming too big for their bones to handle. The metal they shed from their body is highly durable, and many species are eager to buy it. However, as their income grew, along with more people wanting their shells and metal skins, they started investing their money in security measures, including bodyguards and mercenaries. It’s not uncommon to see other aliens working on this planet.

To this day, they are still one of the most successful trading groups in the galaxy, and somehow haven’t had the money get to their heads, many hardly using it to buy big mansions and trophies, preferring to live that farming life style. A lot of family businesses can be found around the planet, and even with a decent tech level, they have been able to keep their environment clean and healthy.

Abilities:

Wires - Seeping out of openings in their shells, the silapaces have wire appendages they use for both protecting themselves and doing work. These wires can act as limbs, but due to how sharp and quick they are, they can easily cut through things, a clean cut at that.

Metallic Shell/Skin - While the insides of them are relativliy normal organs, their outside shell and skin are made of a naturally growing metal. This material is high durable and sturdy, being hard to break through and allows them to tank alot, like an oncoming truck. They can also tuck into the shell for added protection, including their wires.

Tusks - They have tusk like pieces on their faces, often used for digging or cutting up stuff, along with being useful when ramming into something. They are mostly used for working, but can be handy in a fight.

Deep Sleep - In just a few seconds, any member they fall asleep within a blink of the eye with ease. A part of their brain is aware of how much time is passing to allow them to wake up by choice, even if some members have been known to sleep for a couple of months.

Heavy Set - The older a member is, the bigger and heavier they are, though even children are known to be a decent weight. It makes it hard to move them by force, and they can use their weight to benefit them in certain situations.

Weaknesses: Due to how heavy they are, they are unable to swim, and it is not recommend for them to step on unstable grounds, making it easy enough for them to be stuck. While the wires can grow back, it will take time if someone is to break them off, or they shed. Big enough wounds or cracks on their shell and skin can not regenerate. They are very slow, and require time to get to places.

[moonshynecybin]

Ok elaborate on the white water kayaking if you would like bc that’s incredible

this is. maybe the thing i think about most lol. NO idea how much people know about kayaking but uh. ask me!

so whitewater kayaking is interesting as a sport bc while there ARE major racing events (the green race!! the north fork championship!! go look them up they’re SICK) it is generally not a formalized racing series that culminates in a trophy like in motorsports. like there’s no seating for spectators even. you get to these races by hiking two hours through the woods and parking your ass on a rock by the river and hoping you don’t fall in bc you are BLASTED drunk. they’re big parties most of the time!

so while the best kayakers in the world DO compete in these things and win them, the sport is frankly more about doing sick stunts with your friends on beautiful rivers all over the world than like. cutthroat fanatical competition. which bezz (who HATED racing against people as a kid never wanted to fight on the track to go fast) would LOVEEEE imo. also literally it is bad practice to go boating alone you NEED a homie with you at all times that’s how you run shuttle that’s how you set safety that helps you scout rapids it is a homie-based activity!!! and bez loves his friends SOOOO bad and especially loves to do dumb life-threatening stuff with them. that’s what big water boating IS.

and it’s just. some aspects of the stuff happening at the ranch and the broader culture of whitewater is very similar in terms of vibes to meeeee. like the adrenaline addiction the injuries the constant threat of death the long hair the dumb tats the earrings the SAME fucking sunglasses kayakers get just cheaper ones. the energy drink sponsorships the going skiing 24/7 in the off-season…. that’s a fucking kayaker to me lol. i look at him and genuinely question why he is not in a dry suit bombing waterfalls in chile. #beater #steazy #booflife he’d love it so bad.

and i AM saving all of my narrative thoughts on bezz kayaking for a fic one day maybe. problem is i don’t know shit about the whitewater scene in italy so i’d have to make these boys like. appalachian. but i do know cele would have the world’s most atrocious rookie crush on hot trip leader bezz and when cele dump trucks a raft and has to do a swim beer out of his nasty bootie (whitewater has like. a reverse shoey system where you only do them if you fuck up) and bezz like, puts his big hand on the back of cele’s neck as he chugs this nasty beer (for maximum crazy this is bezz’s shoe bc cele is a rookie and didn’t want to shell out for the whitewater specific shoe and is wearing chacos) and cele has a small religious experience and flushes BRIGHT RED.

anyways if you want to check out some sick kayakers and are curious regarding the vibe i recommend following aniol serrasolses (catalan legend), nouria newman (badass. has yelled at my brother), and evy liebfarth (from my hometown!). liebfarth is going to the olympics this year in kayaking slalom which IS a formalized racing series but one that generally takes place on closed courses and such and is a small niche in the broader culture of the sport. still very cool and very hard to do. there is also dane jackson who is the arguable GOAT of the sport i just think he’s kind of swagless and one time he put my brother on youtube after he dislocated his shoulder when they were paddling the royal gorge like. cmon man. also his daddy owns a major kayaking manufacturer booooo. he does win the green race like literally every year which IS annoying. to me.

[optimabatteries]

Christopher Polvoorde's OPTIMA Batteries-sponsored Trophy Truck racing in the 2024 SCORE International Baja 500!

[masoncarr2244]

[k0juki]

Jesse x female!reader headcanons but jesse is actually one of the best in F1?🏎️🏁

A/n: OMG YES?! Jesse in Ferrari?

F1driver Jesse x Fem!reader any reader

Words: 242

Warnings: none just fluff!

English in not my first language so feel free to point out any mistakes or errors!

F1driver!Jesse :

- Him flexing when you're in the paddock and almost killing himself in the process as he tries to impress you.

- Definitely "if you hurt yourself, I'll kill you" relationship.

- "Wait! I need my good luck kiss" before the race.

- "if you win, I'll give you a surprise tonight..." Always hit him like a truck when you whisper this in his ear right before the race.

- F1 Jesse would be driving so recklessly that you always have to remind him to not kill himself on the race.

"Just promise me you will be careful there...not driving with your head in the sky" you threatened as you wrapped your hands around his neck. "Of course I am gonna be careful, how could I not be?" He replied with smug on his face. "Yeah, right"

- Everyone knows that he will stand at the top of the podium with the trophy above his head. Feeling proud, knowing he's best out of everyone else, but when he looks down to cheering crowd he only looks for one person there, you.

- When he finally finds you he will blow you a kiss with that beautiful smile you love. And you smiling up at him with stars in your eyes.

- And when you finally have privacy, you will do what you promised him later that night.🫢

---

It's so short 😭 I'm sorry!

The picture is not mine! Credit goes to owner!

Please do not copy or translate my work!

[motorsportverso]

Novidades da Baja 1000 2024

Ford

O modelo  Bronco DR

Tambem terá a participação da Ford Raptor de produção com o piloto Tim Casey

O retorno da nova, Ford Ranger Raptor

Can-am

Can-am

A equipe Polonesa Kamena Rally Team com a dupla Tomasz Białkowskie Dariusz Baśkiewicz com modelo Maverick X3, provavelmente devera ter modelos do Maverick R.

O varias vezes campeão do Dakar Rally nas motos Toby Price vai participar da edição de 2024

Hummer

A marca do Americana  que fabricou por muitos anos veículos blindados  para o exercito dos Estados Unidos acabou fechando até 2020 , quando a GM, decidiu reviver a marca com uma picape elétrica de médio porte , que até a bolha na Extreme E entre 2021-2023 na equipe Chip Ganassi Racing, terá o modelo H3 com Rob Lenda do rally Norte Americano que ganhou em 21 vezes.

Toyota

A Cangura Racing e Mar Van Tassell vão correr com uma Toyota Land Cruiser , suv que seria equivalente a SRX e SW4 na Europa e na America do Norte.

Honda

A marca Japonesa estará com o Ridgeline Trophy Truck e o UTV Talon R 

Uma presença notável que não tem o Rob Gordom na Edição de 2024 , o piloto Americano que já participou várias vezes inclusive em 2013 com o Hummer H3 que competiu no Dakar Rally , que não pode estar presente por causa da etapa de Adelaide da Stadium super trucks.