No Regrets, Only Memories

Drifting

"So Max," I started in the car as Daniel drove," First time driving a car since you started this crazy journey right?" He raised an eyebrow as I looked back at him.

"You know it is?" It seemed like more of a question than a statement as I just shrugged.

"So, how crazy do you really want to get?" She chuckled and Max just shrugged.

"I'd get back in my car tomorrow if I could. I miss it." That was why I grabbed Jake.

"And could he?" I turned to the trainer that's been at his side for the last few months, diligently watching over the progress he was making.

"I don't think he'd be 100%, but maybe a solid 60%. Like driving a Williams." The joke made everyone in the car laugh.

"Doesn't mean I wouldn't try to at least be a Renault," Max smirked at Daniel through the rearview, taking a small hit at Daniel's new team,"I think you should give me a bit more credit than that." Max chuckled.

"Does he have the clear to go all out?" I referenced Jake here again since he was the one with the more accurate, and honest, information about what was going on. HIs answer really told me what I needed to know about how our first day of planned activities was going to go.

"He's cleared to be in the car, but given that it's been a few months, we don't know how long he can last in the car." I looked at Max. He was pouting, upset at the premise that he couldn't go out and win immediately. Yet something in his eyes just told me how sad he was about the situation.

"Well we have a few fun things planned for today. At any point you can slow down and you're not allowed to feel bad about doing so. Your health comes first and you need to back off when the time is right, ok?" Max nodded as Daniel pulled off the highway towards the Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

I didn't get much into racing as a kid, teenager, or young adult. It was always something in my purview, attainable if I ever really wanted to start and just far enough out of my grasp that a degree from MIT seemed easier. That could be blamed on the money I knew it would cost if I ever wanted to start, until Daniel came along but still. Growing up in LA though, it really was like movies some years with the amount of things I saw that just screamed street racing.

As I was more into cars though, I really started watching races. Formula 1, IMSA, DTM, Nascar, Indycar, I watched anything I could. There were a few times I was able to go to races and the Nascar race here in Vegas was one of them. The track was a far cry from the strip and home to many events through the year that I'd had the pleasure of going to. When we decided that we wanted to do this trip, I knew I could reach out to some friends in the desert and call in some favors in exchange for some tickets later.

First, we'd start across the street though with a little bit of fun. The excitement and the smile came to my face as Daniel pulled into the parking area.

"A racing school? I didn't forget how to drive!" Max laughed as I turned around in the passenger seat.

"Of course not, but before we get serious, we have to have fun." I didn't wait for a response, hopping out of the car to search for our contact.

His name was Andrew and he was the manager of the school. Through him we had a few special cars brought in, including my dream car out of selfishness, to drive. Everyone would get a few tries and we were allowed to have up to 15 cars on the track at a time. First, I'd get to show the guys what my fun times in the summer looked like.

"You brought us to a driving school? What are you trying to say?" Brendon joked as the group congregated at the front.

"Y'all know how to drive a Formula 1 car, but I wanted to show you all what I learned how to do before I started driving seriously."