Driven to Win

Chapter 6- The Storm's Impact

Chapter 6- The Storm's Impact

"Welcome back to Chick's Picks with Chick Hicks!" an annoying voice rang out on the TV in the trailer. "I'm your host, former and forever Piston Cup champion, Chick Hicks!"

"Why are you watching Chick's Picks?" a half-asleep Fudge groaned from the bed in the trailer. Like a lot of people, she couldn't stand Chick. He was arrogant, he was selfish and he was never afraid to do whatever it took to win. She was relieved when he'd retired a couple of years later (he'd only ever won one Piston Cup, but he was never going to let anybody forget it, even though he'd been booed off stage when he received it!), but she wondered exactly which knucklehead at the Racing Sports Network thought it was a good idea to let the debatably least popular Piston Cup racer of all time have his own show and why.

"Shh!" Lightning hissed at her. "They're talking about Jackson Storm. I wanna hear what they're saying."

"Why?" Mater wondered.

"Because I do! Now, shh!"

"And you wanna hear what Chick has to say?" Fudge questioned.

"Shh!" the race car repeated. Then he thrust a notepad and pen at Fudge. "Why don't you take some notes? I wanna remember what they say."

Fudge couldn't help but get annoyed. She was exhausted. Lightning, of all people, knew that she was exhausted at the end of every race. Why couldn't he just do it himself?

"This just in!" Chick reported. "Rookie Jackson Storm slams the proverbial door on Lightning McQueen! Oh, I couldn't have enjoyed it more if I'd beaten McQueen myself. Oh, wait. I have!"

Of course, he had to show the photo of himself clutching his Piston Cup. Did I also forget to mention that he always had his Piston Cup beside him on the show?

Lightning merely rolled his eyes. He'd beaten Chick way more times than Chick had beaten him. He was just always trying to get under his paint. Sure, it annoyed Lightning, but he was far too confident to ever let it really get to him.

"But enough about me", Chick went on, which relieved the RS gang, who were all thinking the same thing. "Here to tell you how it happened is professional number cruncher, Miss Natalie Certain!"

"It's a pleasure to be here, Chick", the smart-looking ruby car on the TV began. "And actually, I prefer the term statistical analyst."

"Right!" Chick agreed. "So, who is this mysterious newcomer Jackson Storm and why is he so darn fast?"

"It's no mystery if you study the data, Mr. Hicks", Natalie Certain explained. "Jackson Storm is part of the next generation of hi-tech racers, unlike the veterans of yesterday."

"What, what, what?!" Chick laughed, gesturing to a photo of Lightning McQueen. "What? Old-timers like this guy?"

"You're one to talk!" Lightning mumbled. It was no secret that Chick was bitter that his biggest rival was still racing while he wasn't.

"Um... right." Natalie continued. "Storm achieves his top speed by exploiting the numbers. I refer, of course, to racing data. Tyre pressure, downforce, weight distribution, aerodynamics. And Next Gens like Storm are taking advantage. The racing world is changing."

Fudge had been scribbling furiously, trying to get as much down as possible. The cars and human all exchanged a concerned glance at the idea that the racing world was changing.

"And for the better if it means my old pal, Lightning, is down for the count!" Chick joked. "Am I right, Certain?"

"Well, if I'm certain of anything, Chick, it's that this season is about to get even more interesting."