NSSCRA 9- Everything Thread (IC)

[TJUN-ia]

This blog was written by Derrick Carlisle, Jaguar Racing's Social Media Manager

On the ursine-infested Hampton Island, two CEOs and two cities reign supreme: Stafford and Marquette. The duopoly is contentious in nature and the motivation to get one over the other is infinite. We have already been Stafford, so now NSSRCA is at Marquette Raceway for the Shellshock Batteries 400 - race 2 of Round 2 of the Chase.

Stafford City may own Hampton Island Racing and it's three drivers, but it was Marquette that provided the biggest splash. They managed to pry Lexi Patterson back to her homeland after going to Jebslund to get away from the control of Stafford City. The bad blood still remains, and she will start in her #34 car (instead of her usual #30) in 33rd. As for HIR, Alex Knight finds himself in 8th with Kevin Cosgrove in 17th. James McCurty was the fastest of the non-charter drivers in 12th.

The list of non-charter drivers didn't include Alfonso Mercado (@AM64), as he was given one by the NSSCRA. Gil Archer responded to his twii (in Spanish, surprisingly) and he now had his sights set on the 3 guys from Hapilopper who defended him. Drake Stevenson hit back with fighting words and it made Mercado sad. Team Blue shouldn't be fighting his battles for him, especially when one of them is in the Chase. He just hoped that this doesn't end badly for anyone. Archer will start in 6th, Mercado 16th and Stevenson 10th.

As for Michael Stefan (@00Stefan), he came into the weekend in a strange mood. He told me he was in a meeting with Mercado and Harpa Gylfisdóttir (@IsfruinJR) while the rest of the team was out in Xannaria. He wouldn't disclose what was said for obvious reasons, but many could see that he was distracted during qualifying. 28th is not something I have seen from him in a long time, so whatever is on his mind must be serious. Let's see if things can improve come race day...

Rinzi Aogar Zakhilwal will be on pole, alongside Meghan Sharpe. The other open-charter driver is Ashley Matthews of Newmanistan, who starts in 34th. All in all, it should be a cracker!

---

STATEMENT FROM JAGUAR RACING

Jaguar Racing would like to thank everyone who stood up for Alfonso Mercado, driver of the #64, over these last few weeks.

Mercado, 20, has had a difficult time as of late as the nature of his sexuality was brought out, without his consent, by another driver. The amount of support given to Mercado by the NSSCRA community, on twii.tur and otherwise, has certainly made him more comfortable about his unique position.

However, as a team, we feel that this shouldn't have happened in the first place. No driver in the NSSCRA, or anyone for that matter, should have a secret as life-changing as Alfonso's be thrown out to the masses and to the hounds of the media without that driver's express consent. That is inherently wrong.

Jaguar Racing fully supports Alfonso during this time. All JR members will wear rainbow armbands for the remainder of the season, starting with the Shellshock Batteries 400 tomorrow. It is important to show racers and viewers alike, across the multiverse, that being LGBT is fine and it wrong for that fact to be manipulated by others.

As for the driver in question, we believe that your actions have caused serious emotional distress to our driver and we cannot simply let that stand. We at JR implore the team of the driver in question to seriously consider the future of said driver in their organisation. We, like many in the NSSCRA, don't like bullies spoiling the fun of this series and we urge them to take action before the driver in question does something very stupid that causes the integrity of said organisation to come into questioning

That is the opinion of JR. No further comments will be made at this time.
#YQué

[Abanhfleft]

Anderscroggin Fairgrounds, Xanneria
Some days before the Pencurve Electronics 500

"This place looks quiet," Wilma von Cärinthen said as she took in the ambience and atmosphere of the Anderscroggin Fairgrounds, or more accurately the lack of it. "Where the hell is everybody?"

"Where else do you think they are? Back in their homes resting and prepping for Jalton," Guillermo Archer replied. "Cause apparently we're the only team stupid enough to fall for this trap of a 'test'. Come on, you seriously believe this is a midseason test? You see any NSSCRA officials in this place to monitor this whole shindig?"

"I think I may just know the answer to that question," Leonidas Baxter, UrGa's third driver, said after he had finished unpacking his stuff in the garage.

"Which question was that again?" Gil asked back.

"I think I know why we're here in the first place despite everyone knowing that this isn't a legit midseason test," Leo clarified. "Look, nobody is that stupid, all right? I think that's a given for everyone here. But the higher-ups at UrGa actually see this as an opportunity of our own."

"An opportunity? How's that even possible?" Wilma asked.

"Well, think about it this way," Leo explained. "There are some thing that you know that you should do, and some things that you know you shouldn't. But there are some things that you're not really sure if you should do them at all, and sometimes the only way to know that is to look at what other people are doing."

"What are you saying?" Gil asked with more than a hint of annoyance.

"I'm saying that we're here to see what the guys from KRD Iona and Jim Howe Racing are doing," Leo said. "We want to look at what they're doing, and then we're going to do the complete opposite. Someone said it best, although I can't remember who: 'do whatever he doesn't do.' It's a bit messed up, I know, but we've all seen how crap these teams have been this season, so they're definitely doing something wrong. And the bottom line is that we don't want to do any of it at all."

"I mean, when you say it like that..." Wilma shrugged.

"Well, looks like we're not the only ones here now, at least ones not from Xanneria or Appalachia," Gil said. "Here comes the Duisdorf guys." Duisdorf was actually not a team that participated in the Abanhfleft Racing Truck Series but rather a chassis supplier. There were rumors that Duisdorf, as well as a few other Fleftic car brands, intended to apply for a spot in NSSCRA for Season 10, but the way things worked in NSSCRA, only one of the ARTS manufacturers could actually make it in for the next season.

"I hope they know not the copy either KRD or Jim Lowe," Wilma muttered.

"Come on, Willie," Gil snorted. "This is Duisdorf we're talking about. Not a chance that they aren't going to do something stupid like copy the single most unreliable part in Knox's engine."

"Yeah, probably," Wilma laughed.

The UrGa team did a few laps around the Fairgrounds, testing out a few setups that they haven't run before. Then they retired to their respective garages until nightfall, when they were given permission to go out and have fun as a reward for playing along with the wishes of the UrGa higher-ups.

"Yo Leo, wanna come?" Gil asked. "Willie and I are going to get a sample of the local cuisine; the liquid variety at least"

"Nah, man, I think I'm gonna turn in early for the night," Leo shook his head. "Besides, I'm not really in a mood for a night out on the town, you know what I mean?"

"Waiting for a call for a certain someone?" Gil asked him. When Leo nodded, Gil smiled. "Ah, I wish my old lady called me as regularly as yours does. She's still mad at me for bringing her up during my feud with Qiang, ignoring the fact that it was Qiang who brought her name up in the first place..."

"Yeah, yeah, man, I know what you're talking about," Leo nodded hastily. "Just get out there and tear up the place!"

"As you wish, your Majesty," Gil said sarcastically complete with a very deep bow.

---

When Guillermo Archer and Wilma von Cärinthen returned to the Anderscroggin Fairgrounds after their little pub crawl, they were most definitely a lot more inebriated than when they had gone out. At this point Wilma was literally leaning on Gil for support just to walk, a sight that would have been strange under any circumstance and still doesn't make sense that moment. Anyone looking at them would know that neither of them would have been in any condition to drive a car tomorrow, but soon there would be other reasons why they wouldn't be able to participate in this midseason test.

"This place is the worst. The absolute worst," Wilma von Cärinthen shouted at the top of her inebriated lungs.

"Why'd'you say that, Willie?" Gil whispered. He was the exact opposite of Cärinthen when drunk; his voice would drop so low that even dogs would struggle to hear him.

"Because," Wilma continued.

"Because what?"

"Because this place does not give a shit at all for women!" Wilma shouted. "For people of color! For homosexuals! For the transgender community! For anybody who's not white or conservative!"

"Now how the hell were you able to deduce that from just one little trip to one seedy little town and one shitty little track?" Gil asked her.

"Look, Guillermo, it's not rocket science, okay?" Wilma claimed. "Have you seen a single woman, not counting me or any of the other foreign teams, in this place? Seen a person of color other than Leo?"

"Maybe we just haven't seen them," Gil shrugged.

"Seriously? You believe that shit? You believe the shit that comes out your own mouth?" Wilma asked. "You simply cannot be that stupid! You conservatives, you are all one and the same!"

"I could say the same about you liberals," Gil muttered. "No, actually I couldn't. I've seen every color of hair on you bleeding heart types. Red, blue, yellow, green; you name it, at least one liberal's dyed their hair that color. I've seen land whales, anorexics, cucks, soy boys, mind-slaved blacks and browns running for the left side of politics. But I guess you're right about one thing: we conservatives do look alike. Crisp suits, plaid shirts, leather belts, cowboy hats, red caps. I guess you got that one thing against us."

Wilma broke into a roaring laugh. "Ah-ha! Finally!" she shouted. "You admit it! You're part of the patriarchy! All of you! Xanneria, Appalachia, it's all a big old patriarchy!"

"Now how in the hell did the patriarchy make its way into this?" Gil asked. "In case you haven't noticed, there's a big honking matriarchy in this whole multiverse so you can't say the patriarchy runs everything, cause it obviously doesn't, if it does exist at all!"

"You know what? I don't even care anymore! Screw you, Guillermo Archer! Screw you, screw Xanneria, screw Appalachia, screw NSSCRA, screw bloody everything!"

"Hey!" another voice shouted in the darkness. "What's this I hear about someone screwing Appalachia?"

"Now who the fuck is that!?" Wilma shouted back.

"I don't think you know me, but I know you," the voice replied. "You the rich bitch always mouthing off about the patriarchy and equality and all that shit."

"Oh, shit," Gil giggled as he leaned back on a wall to watch the unfolding drama.

"Yeah, man, equality," Wilma said. "What's so bad about it? Hate it because it means you can't treat women like shit anymore?"

"Hate it? No," the man said. "I actually like it. Equality means I get to do shit like this!" The man then cocked back his fist and sent it straight into Wilma's face. The female UrGa driver stumbled and fell on her backside.

"Dude! What the fuck!?" Wilma shouted. "You really just punched a girl!?"

"Hey, that's the price of equality, bitch," the man said. "Now what? You gonna cry about it? Too bad, girl. Facts don't care about your feelings!"

Suddenly, out of nowhere, Guillermo Archer tackled the other man. "Fuck you, man!" he shouted. "You can't punch Wilhelmina in the face!" Archer continued to punch the man in the gut but his punches landed with little if any force at all.

"Christ, Archer, are you serious?" the man asked. "You really defending this rich bitch? I thought you were better than that!"

"You don't get it, Shreeves," Archer said. "You can't punch Wilma in the face. Only I can punch Wilma in the face, you hear me!?"

"You're weird, man," Jeff Shreeves, the third party, said as he shook his head. Gil stood up and made to rush Shreeves, but the Appalachian driver merely stepped out of his way and let Archer's momentum carry him forward, all the way straight into Cärinthen's face.

---

Anderscroggin Fairgrounds
Delano, Xanneria
The day of the Knox Motor Company Anderscroggin 420

"You all right, Wilma? You hurt?"

"Yeah, no, I'm fine, Deck," Wilma von Cärinthen replied, nodding her head even though nobody could see her inside her car. "What the fuck happened here, guys?"

"I don't know," Deckard "Deck" Sullivan, Wilma's crew chief, replied. "All we saw was you were in the middle of a wreck."

"Who else was in it?"

"Hawking, Gilli'i, and Ariiki."

"Ah, crap." Wilma pulled down the netting on her left side and extended her arm, but instead of cheers as was usually the case when a driver was unharmed following a wreck, Cärinthen's arm was met by boos. "The fuck?" she asked.

"Yeah, remember the last time you were here?" Deck told her. "You're not exactly the most popular person around here."

"Why? Just because I believe in something they're against?"

"Well, that, among other things. You really were blackout drunk that night, weren't you?" Deck asked.

"You know what? I don't care. Xanneria and Appalachia can go screw themselves for as long as they like." Wilma crawled out of her car, stood up on the roof, and extended both her middle fingers at the crowd.

"Yeah, that'll help endear you to the crowd," Deck muttered as he watched the spectacle on his monitor. "That'll really help, Wilma."

[Xanneria]

Another contender for the Second Xannerian round emerges
By Lee Iyokoka

LOY CITY - With the issues of the Road Marietta race popping up shortly after, there's been a couple of attempts now at people trying to get their track on to the prestigious NSSCRA Schedule. While Derek Iona has announced he want sto put a street race in his hometown of Chipelle, another contender outwest has shown up. A group calling themselves the Western Promoters Group has come up with a proposed duel Champ Car/ NSSCRA race in the streets of the port city of Loy City in Northeast Denalia. Loy City is an important port on the west coast of the Gulf of Melbourne. Given the agrarian nature of the province Loy City has become the second most important city in the Provence. The WPG people have proposed a race on a three mile downtown circut that uses part of some recently abandoned ferry ports in Loy City as the Ferry ports have moved further south.
The track includes several seaside passes which will be protected by walls but give drivers a great view of the gulf otherwise. The promoters Are proposing a two day / two race feature with both NNSCRA run in the Staurday after noon, while the Sunday race would be focused on the Xannerian based XCAR Champ Car series, a popular openwheel series that runs through out the UPX. Each race would be a 52 lap 250kilometer evfent at the three mile jaunt through the streets, in fact below a picture of the track.

Proposed trackmap

Also some rumore showing up that Xannerian businessman Johnny Betta will show up to the Sherpa round next week.

[Appalachian Nation]

Jeff Shreeves had showed up at the garage, he was still perplexed at some things that had happened recently And what do you know, they put the haulers for him for the race of him and and Orton right next to UrGa's team.

"What the fuck Gil? Why did you do" Shreeves said walking up to his neighbor

Gil just looked at him.

"Dude, you know as well as I do she's a pay driver. There's no way she didn't buy the best equipment from your team."

"Jeff, stop right there, look at the back of your car." said Gil pointing to one of Shreeves sponsors, a memorial to his now long forgotten homeland "you're gonna say something political about here aren't ya? well stop, we know how you feel"

"Fuck that nose man, Shanesvill is sorely missed, You don't even know what happened, That team was incompetent, they had all their heads up their ass and all their money went into some open wheel guy with money named David Land, dued's now in Hapilopper from what I heard. I've been bounced around a lot the last few years, I don't need that obnoxious pay driver coming in a thinking she knows more than i do when she's been paying here way tot he top. Shit, Gil I have nothing political against her. That punch was the price ya'll pay for being an obnoxious bitch, You know what, Gil You're lucky these fucking Trubadors are such bastard fuckups, I can't even get to you because the car breaks down before you lap me Gil. Also I'm sure none ya'll get the Xannerian race culture. We Don't take to kindly to drivers with attitudes like that, Shit I'm sure if the car didn't have the car break down on me a few races ago, you'd have possibly seen me wearing those armbands, but car had so much so much trouble I couldn't get on TV. (Gil needlessly to say was rolling eyes at Jeff bringing THAT race up) I don't car what her poltics are, that snob needs what coming to her. "

Meanwhile as the rant ended from Jeff, Wilma walked up to the cars.

"Oh hey look GIl, is she gonna have have a guy like you punch me for her?" joked Jeff. Even before he could use his "Equality means I bet you up like the boy" line WIlma lunged at him, but unfotiantely Wilma's timing was off. And as she lunged at Jeff, a track security officer saw her lunge at Jeff, and while the prior incident was not and never was made public, The arrest of Wilma would be, It was lucky for her UrGa got her out on bail just two days before the race, but that soured her mild reputation through out the NSSCRA paddock and Who knows what would happen?

[The Northern Chinese Republic]

Xuan Tou had recently been appointed as the team principal for Beiyang's new racing team, and pretty much the first decision he made was that all of their drivers would be human. "We don't need stupid gimmicks like trained bears or cocoabos," he told his new subordinates. "We're a car company, not a zoo. So let's focus on the cars. Tian Hengxing says he doesn't want a trained animal for a teammate. I'm going to call him this afternoon and let him know that we're not going to be using animals. Li Liangmei... turned down our offer. She says we're not paying her what she's worth. I think if she doesn't want to drive for us, we can find someone else. I'd rather put that money into technical development..."

Tou droned on a bit. And then he came to an interesting idea: He wanted to hire crew members from the top Sherpa racing teams. He thought this would bring in some useful expertise without costing as much as hiring Liangmei Li. He had already invited Pan Hei, Jia Huang's mechanic from NSSCRA 6, to a job interview. He was also planning to reach out to a few people from Liangmei Li and Kai Qiang's crews.

There was probably some ethnic bias at play -- conscious or not -- when Tou decided not to invite anyone from the #06 team. The #06 team was full of Muslims, Westerners, and Highlanders who would have stuck out in the North. The #89 and #44 teams were much more Chinese. That was also why Tou didn't scoop up any of the Hampton Island pit staff that had been hastily fired earlier in the season, and why he didn't try recruit Yeezies, Dagans, etc.

[Saint Kanye]

It's the end of qualifying for both the Rumble in the Rice Fields in the Sherpa Empire and the Shellshock Batteries 400. The Glorious Free Republic Motorsports drivers for both events are in their respective garage areas, holding a video chat session with each other.

"Yo, Jeremiah", said Rumble participant Sage Caldwell. "How'd things go for you guys?"

Jeremiah Brooke replied to his teammate. "Not bad, dude. I'm starting ninth, Thea's at eleventh, and Skip is nineteenth. But you know how it is in racing, the start does not define the finish. How about you?"

"Thirteenth. Yeah, not bad indeed."

"How about the others?" asked Thea Alvarez.

This time it was young prospect Daryl Calhoun who answered. "I'm just behind Sage at fifteenth, Ricky here is twenty-eighth, and Goita, he's in the restroom right now, is seventh." Yes, WGP2 champ Abdoulaye Goita of Recuecn has returned to the GFR stable for one more shot at an NSSCRA appearance.

Alvarez spoke again. "Seventh? That's nice. Tell him I said hi. Who's on the pole though?"

"Oh, that would be that iBen guy, ya know, he's in a Dart", Ricky Lee responded. "Lots of those cars here. Ten, I believe. Can you imagine? But hey, that makes sense. More entries mean more chances of winning, ya know, like in a raffle."

"That's VTM for you", Caldwell said to Lee, referring to Vilita & Turori Motorsports, Dart's flagship NSSCRA team. "Richest team in the series by far. Think we're number two, but those people still make us feel small."

"Dart Group? More like Dart Army, am I right?" joked Calhoun. This got a laugh from both the people sitting beside him and those on the other side of the computer screen.

"Good luck to you guys tomorrow", Skip Stiller said finally, to which Caldwell replied, "Same goes for you three. See you soon. And by soon, I mean at the Sherpa race next week."

"Oh, you'll be coming along to cheer me as I run that race?" Lee asked.

"Shut up, we all know that spot is mine", replied Calhoun.

"Less talk, more action", Stiller told them. "I appreciate your confidence, but you guys gotta back it up by driving well."

Lee was the next to speak. "We'll try our best, sir."

The video chat went on for a few more minutes as the two groups of GFR drivers had a lot of catching up with each other to do. After it finally ended, Stiller turned to Brooke, wanting to resume the conversation that they were having before the video chat started. "So where were we? Right, right. Why'd you think Lexi would just come back to her old team, the very same team that kicked her to the curb, even just this once?" After Jebslunder Motorenwerken announced that they will suspend operations for the rest of the season, their Hampton Island-born driver Lexi Patterson had agreed to an offer from Hampton Island Racing to drive for them in tomorrow's race. This came as a surprise to many, given the history between Patterson and HIR.

Brooke replied. "Maybe this is their way of apologizing to her for kicking her to the curb, and Lexi's just giving them a chance to redeem themselves."

"Maybe. Or maybe she's just taking every chance she could to finish the season, since her team in Jebslund had just closed up shop."

Alvarez joined in the conversation. "Whatever it is, I'm sure her fans in her birth country will be glad to see her there."

Over in St. Kanye, Pyotr Lavrentiev is sitting at home. He had just competed in his first race in the Kanyean developmental series a day ago, finishing a solid seventh after leading eight of 167 laps. Former teammate and fellow Ceroatian Rustam Ilyich Yudin is in Sherpaland for the Rumble, driving for Abanhfleft's UrGa team, so he decided to send him an email. Translated from their native tongue, it read:

Brother Rustam, it's me, Pyotr. How are things for you? I wish you well in the Rumble. Show them that we Ceroatians are better at racers than other people think. Me, I'm racing in the Kanyean lower division now and adjusting well to this country. Hope we can race against each other in NSSCRA soon.

Kardashia Autoring track management thought that it was good that they already have seven confirmed entries for the Kardashia Chadwick Dealers 400 open charter battle, but they believed that good could always be better. They've re-sent the invitations meant for Newmanistani Ashley Matthews and Cassadagan Tyler Abbott, and asked the Hampton Islander camp if they wanted Lexi Patterson to represent them instead. Giving drivers the command to start their engines will be punk rock duo The Hunters, while Max Gannon, of the famous (and infamous) radio show, To The Max, has been chosen to drive the pace car.

[The Sherpa Empire]

The Sherpa teams were puttering about the Marquette Raceway driving practice laps or adjusting their set-ups to make sure they were ready for the Shellshock Batteries 400. For them, "puttering" sometimes meant roaring around the track at upwards of 300 km/h, but other times it really meant puttering.

They definitely found this track more pleasant than the Stafford City Speedway. It was more relaxed -- but they couldn't be too relaxed in the middle of the Chase. Rinzi Zakhilwal's weekend had got off to a good start, winning the pole. Qiang and Li had been less impressive in qualifying, and they were working out how they planned to make up for it at the race. They were all going about their business when they were startled by a loud crash. Li was driving around the track, complaining over the radio about her car's handling: "It feels sloppy, like I'm a driving a -- Yikes! What was that?"

"Probably a booby trap or a bear in someone's car," her crew chief answered. "Hapiloppian guy just drove into the wall."

Li laughed.

"Oh, red flag just came out," her crew chief told her.

While the safety crew was retrieving Frank Bronson from his wrecked car, Li speculated about what could have caused the crash. "Probably snow mints and diet Wanwan." (OOC: mentos and diet Coke)

Qiang and Rinzi were more respectful. In fact, Rinzi was one of the drivers that stopped near Bronson's wreck to see if he was okay. He peered at the wreckage asking timidly in a very thick accent, "Is he okay?"

Qiang was already stopped for some minor repairs when the crash happened because he had mangled a wheel earlier in the practice session. The #44 team looked up from their work when they heard the crash, and they all watched the safety crew spraying down the car and loading Frank in the ambulance. "Whoa..." Qiang said. "That looks bad."

"I hope he's okay," Houzhi Chang replied.

[Tropicorp]

Ariiki Feeling the Pressure in Hampton Island, Dart Group has Mixed Results in Rumble Quals

Shellshock Batteries 400, Marquette Raceway, Hampton Island :: Still without a contract for NSSCRA Season 10, Team Tropicorp driver Anavella Ariiki nearly clicked off her second career Pole Position during the Vilaye Energy Drink Pole Award session at the Marquette Raceway in Hampton Island, ultimately securing the third starting position just four-one-hundreths of a second behind the Pole Sitter Rinzi Aogar Zakhilwal of The Sherpa Empire.

While starting inside the second row will be a boost of confidence for the young Tropicoaster, Ariiki has always been known as a solid qualifier and as of yet she has never missed a race in her NSSCRA career. Her lone career pole position came at the Tropicoast Beach Course during NSSCRA Season 8. It has been her inability to finish strongly that has resulted in her potential job insecurity having just two career Top 5 finishes and just 6 total Top 10's in over 50 starts at the NSSCRA level. It has been rumored that Ariiki will be relegated to the teams Research & Development chassis when the circuit heads to the Kardashia Auto Ring in just three race weekends and no announcement has yet been made as to whether that will be Ariiki's only race where she will have to qualify in or if she is out of the third car entirely for the remainder of the season from that point.

Of course, a strong showing in either of the next two events in Hampton Island or at the Li River Speedway in The Sherpa Empire could change those plans. Without a Top 5 or breakthrough victory to change the plan however there will be plenty of drivers available for Team Tropicorp to choose from as Ariiki's successor. Team Tropicorp have entered into a Partnership with the Dart Group to field an extended roster at this seasons Rumble in the Rice Fields with a total of nine dart chassis in the event, eight driven by drivers representing The Dart Group, Vilita and Turori Motorsports and Team Tropicorp; and one local driver, Shao Mengxia, who will be purchasing a Dart Chassis for use on the IRACT circuit from the consortium before they leave The Sherpa Empire.

The Dart Group's Star drivers for the Rumble in the Rice Fields, #07 Juracai Klianiota, #37 Jama'obo Pegasii, #42 Euroli Islander and Pole Winner #77 iBen Toralmintii

The Dart Group @ The Rumble

22nd - #07 Juracai Klianiota
29th - #23 Cocoabo #23
 9th - #37 Jama'obo Pegasii
31st - #42 Euroli Islander
21st - #49 Lotara Novorali
 1st - #77 iBen Toralmintii
25th - #87 Kizara Mo'aaki
24th - #96 Shao Mengxia
32nd - #97 Rulita Kikaba

Rumble in the Rice Fields, Li River Speedway, Guilin, Guanxhi Province, The Sherpa Empire :: The contingent for The Dart Group includes two drivers who have experience at the Rumble in the Rice Fields, iBen Toralmintii of Turori and Tropicorp's own Cocoabo #23. Both drivers participated in both the Stock Car and open wheel Rumble's last season and are doing so again this season. While both excelled in the open wheel event they were a little caught out by some of the nuances of the IRACT circuit resulting in midpack finishes of 15th and 14th respectively. The duo return with a much larger group of teammates and a better understanding of what to expect on race day with the varied skill levels of some of the local IRACT drivers and teams that they can hopefully apply towards a better finish. Of course, on a matter of raw skill, the veteran World Grand Prix driver Toralmintii has been a fan favorite in Guilin immediately taking quickly to the Li River Speedway and having earned pole position for the Rumble in the Rice Fields for two consecutive seasons.

While the front row at the Rumble will appear to contain a wealth of experience, the #27 Five Star Mobile machine that will start along side Toralmintii is not going to be piloted by former NSSCRA Champion Stacie Houston but by newcomer Maddie Alexander who has impressed since arriving in The Sherpa Empire. Despite having a number of drivers in the field, the Dart Group only placed one other driver inside the Top 10 starting positions, the well funded journeyman driver Jama'obo Pegasii who has competed for two seasons at the World Grand Prix 2 level after leaving the NSSCRA after Season 5 and moving to the Formula Hodori ranks. Pegasii secured their first Grand Prix victory this past season then partnered with Vilita & Turori Motorsports to run a chartered entry for sponsor Vilisorma Beverage Company at the Vilaye Energy Drink 314. Pegasii will start directly behind World Grand Prix 2 foe Abdoulaye Goita who will fittingly start 7th in the #777 car.

The remainder of the Dart Group's entries struggled for speed led by late entry #49 Lotara Novorali who signed a contract with the Dart Group just prior to the entry deadline as a research & development driver, allowing her to compete under the Dart banner for Vilita & Turori Motorsports in Xanneria. Two Dart drivers were making their unofficial debut - Kizara Mo'aaki and Rulita Kikaba while experienced Team Tropicorp drivers Cocoabo #23 and Euroli Islander struggled in qualifying and will start 29th and 31st respectively.

While having all of the Dart affiliated entries qualify for the 45 car starting grid, all of the 19 drivers who failed to make the event were local IRACT drivers of varying levels of competency which will raise the bar of competitiveness for the feature event. With Team Tropicorp and The Dart Group looking to increase the sales price on the Chassis they plan to leave behind in The Sherpa Empire after the event, they will need to find a little bit more speed on race day to work their way up the chart and prove that their cars are fast even if Two-Time World Grand Prix Championship runner-up iBen Toralmintii wasn't behind the wheel.

[New Northwesteros]

The Rumble in the Rice Fields may be a qualifier for the NSSCRA race in Sherpaland, but it is sanctioned by that country's domestic series, IRACT. Tyler Linde has signed on to be part of the Nanchang Racing Club, and as such it will be his first appearance for that club. He's sure that IRACT will have the same charm as the Friday late model series that he raced in prior to going international, what with some drivers showing up in second-hand bangers and others, including him, driving shiny new cars. "I'm feeling excited, not just for the race itself but also to show what I can do, and that I can be an asset to Nanchang. I hope we both do well tomorrow", he told his translator Elyse, who relayed the message to Linde's new teammate, local driver Dinggu Wang.

He also sent his NSSCRA teammates over in Hampton Island photos of him enjoying the view in Guilin. When he sent one of him trying on some shirts at the souvenir shops, Liuyong Xu messaged back, "Nice shirts, but you know something more nice? You're standing on what is, or was, my kitchen."

"No way. Want me to bring you back a brick or something?"

"ARE YOU HIGH?!?! (Xu took this to mean "crazy") That's destruction of property! Another thing though, how did you do?"

"Sixth. Impressive, right?" Linde sent Xu a photo of the scoring tower, with the former's number 333 in the sixth position. Linde's usual 33 was taken, and IRACT allows three-digit numbers.

Xu replied "Right. Good luck", looked over the numbers, then opened the IRACT website for the Rumble entry list, also on his smartphone (which Linde taught him how to use). Aside from Linde, Xu would be rooting for Huang Cheng, Lakpa Fang and Shao Mengxia, who all race for Guilin like he does in the NSSCRA offseason.

Paul Nystrom, Linde and Xu's NSSCRA teammate, was wandering through the rows of haulers when he saw Wilma von Cärinthen of Abanhfleft. "Hi there. Sorry to hear about your crash last week." Von Cärinthen wasn't hurt much in Xanneria, if at all, but the openly gay driver received boos from the conservative home crowd, as well as audience members from neighboring Appalachia.

"Bunch of rude f-cks, right? Seems fitting that a moron like Shreeves would end up in such a hellhole as Appalachia", the Northwesterosi told the Fleftic. Luckily, Guillermo Archer isn't at the neighboring hauler, since Nystrom thought of him as a rude f-ck as well. He spit on Archer's hauler when he walked past it, and later, upon seeing Shreeves' hauler empty as well, spit on it too.

[Newmanistan]

Race: Shellshock Batteries 400, Marquette Raceway, Hampton Island
Lap Record: 41.091 sec.
Minimum Time To Avoid DNF: 44.200 sec.

Segment 1:

1 #41- Yraaga Gilli'i (Vilita and Turori)                        41.440
 2 #18- Jeremiah Brooke (Saint Kanye)                             41.461
 3 #06- Rinzi Aogar Zakhilwal (The Sherpa Empire)                 41.467
 4 #44- Kai Qiang (The Sherpa Empire)                             41.477
 5 #4- Meghan Sharpe (Cassadaigua)                                41.478
 6 #96- Guillermo Archer (Abanhfleft)                             41.484
 7 #11- Jenna Logan (Cassadaigua)                                 41.492
 8 #8- Frank Bronson (Hapilopper)                                 41.510
 9 #27- Stacie Houston (Cassadaigua)                              41.613
10 #78- Cocoabo #78 (Tropicorp)                                   41.649
11 #28- Cocoabo #28 (Tropicorp)                                   41.652
12 #22- Kevin Cosgrove (Hampton Island)                           41.657
13 #31- Gwen Tracer Allison (Valentine Z)                         41.693
14 #23- James McCurty (Hampton Island) *Q*                        41.702
15 #2- Centur Tiones (Vilita and Turori)                          41.743
16 #10- Eddie Walters Jr (Xanneria)                               41.747
17 #88- Anavella Ariiki (Tropicorp)                               41.817
18 #98- Wilma von Cärinthen (Abanhfleft)                          41.845
19 #3- Skip Stiller (Saint Kanye)                                 41.860
20 #73- Taylor Henderson (Hapilopper)                             41.864
21 #81- Drake Stevenson (Hapilopper)                              41.945
22 #80- Leonidas Baxter (Abanhfleft)                              41.945
23 #14- River "Shark" Suzgar (Vilita and Turori)                  42.075
24 #89- Liangmei Li (The Sherpa Empire)                           42.141
25 #15- Valentina Freya Yadana Aye (Valentine Z)                  42.178
26 #34- Lexi Patterson (Hampton Island)                           42.254
27 #0- Hana Bhe (Filindostan)                                     42.400
28 #48- Rockii Ezis (Newmanistan)                                 42.454
29 #7- Clarissa Alanis Star (Valentine Z)                         42.468
30 #00- Michael Stefan (TJUN-ia)                                  42.480
31 #66- Hengxing Tian (The Northern Chinese Republic)             42.523
32 #83- Shigeru Tsuchie (Filindostan) *Q*                         42.525
33 #12- Roman Gwinnett (Xanneria)                                 42.564
34 #5- Bryan Harrison (Newmanistan)                               42.719
35 #59- Ashley Matthews (Newmanistan)                             42.788
36 #24- Kevin Daniels (Newmanistan) *Q*                           42.929
37 #64- Alfonso Mercado (TJUN-ia)                                 42.941
38 #21- Paul Nystrom (New Northwesteros)                          42.955
39 #6- Alex Knight (Hampton Island)                               42.956
40 #46- Thea Alvarez (Saint Kanye)                                42.982
41 #9- Liuyong Xu (New Northwesteros) *Q*                         43.552
42 #09- Daniel Cretton (Bolgano) *Q*                              43.945
43 #99- Jelan Ozoemena (Banija)                                   44.033
44 #52- Jeff Shreeves (Appalachian Nation)                        44.112
45 #35- Melissa Nilis (Bolgano) *Q*                               44.174
46 #77- Katarzyna Owczarzak-Kostrzewska (Terre Septentrionale)    44.285 DNF

Segment 2:

1 #89- Liangmei Li (The Sherpa Empire)                  41.451
 2 #15- Valentina Freya Yadana Aye (Valentine Z)         41.458
 3 #44- Kai Qiang (The Sherpa Empire)                    41.465
 4 #11- Jenna Logan (Cassadaigua)                        41.486
 5 #46- Thea Alvarez (Saint Kanye)                       41.510
 6 #96- Guillermo Archer (Abanhfleft)                    41.521
 7 #31- Gwen Tracer Allison (Valentine Z)                41.530
 8 #00- Michael Stefan (TJUN-ia)                         41.534
 9 #27- Stacie Houston (Cassadaigua)                     41.560
10 #14- River "Shark" Suzgar (Vilita and Turori)         41.563
11 #28- Cocoabo #28 (Tropicorp)                          41.568
12 #64- Alfonso Mercado (TJUN-ia)                        41.575
13 #78- Cocoabo #78 (Tropicorp)                          41.596
14 #98- Wilma von Cärinthen (Abanhfleft)                 41.694
15 #88- Anavella Ariiki (Tropicorp)                      41.697
16 #4- Meghan Sharpe (Cassadaigua)                       41.705
17 #73- Taylor Henderson (Hapilopper)                    41.735
18 #10- Eddie Walters Jr (Xanneria)                      41.765
19 #23- James McCurty (Hampton Island) *Q*               41.771
20 #48- Rockii Ezis (Newmanistan)                        41.842
21 #22- Kevin Cosgrove (Hampton Island)                  41.871
22 #7- Clarissa Alanis Star (Valentine Z)                41.963
23 #83- Shigeru Tsuchie (Filindostan) *Q*                41.989
24 #2- Centur Tiones (Vilita and Turori)                 42.037
25 #12- Roman Gwinnett (Xanneria)                        42.039
26 #5- Bryan Harrison (Newmanistan)                      42.071
27 #34- Lexi Patterson (Hampton Island)                  42.138
28 #6- Alex Knight (Hampton Island)                      42.142
29 #8- Frank Bronson (Hapilopper)                        42.183
30 #3- Skip Stiller (Saint Kanye)                        42.228
31 #24- Kevin Daniels (Newmanistan) *Q*                  42.288
32 #66- Hengxing Tian (The Northern Chinese Republic)    42.362
33 #41- Yraaga Gilli'i (Vilita and Turori)               42.386
34 #80- Leonidas Baxter (Abanhfleft)                     42.454
35 #18- Jeremiah Brooke (Saint Kanye)                    42.479
36 #06- Rinzi Aogar Zakhilwal (The Sherpa Empire)        42.737
37 #0- Hana Bhe (Filindostan)                            42.754
38 #59- Ashley Matthews (Newmanistan)                    43.119
39 #81- Drake Stevenson (Hapilopper)                     43.188
40 #21- Paul Nystrom (New Northwesteros)                 43.337
41 #99- Jelan Ozoemena (Banija)                          43.756
42 #9- Liuyong Xu (New Northwesteros) *Q*                43.797
43 #09- Daniel Cretton (Bolgano) *Q*                     43.868
44 #35- Melissa Nilis (Bolgano) *Q*                      43.975
45 #52- Jeff Shreeves (Appalachian Nation)               44.174

Segment 3:

1 #44- Kai Qiang (The Sherpa Empire)                    41.414
 2 #46- Thea Alvarez (Saint Kanye)                       41.435
 3 #73- Taylor Henderson (Hapilopper)                    41.460
 4 #3- Skip Stiller (Saint Kanye)                        41.466
 5 #18- Jeremiah Brooke (Saint Kanye)                    41.479
 6 #7- Clarissa Alanis Star (Valentine Z)                41.494
 7 #15- Valentina Freya Yadana Aye (Valentine Z)         41.536
 8 #4- Meghan Sharpe (Cassadaigua)                       41.541
 9 #78- Cocoabo #78 (Tropicorp)                          41.588
10 #2- Centur Tiones (Vilita and Turori)                 41.604
11 #88- Anavella Ariiki (Tropicorp)                      41.609
12 #98- Wilma von Cärinthen (Abanhfleft)                 41.611
13 #8- Frank Bronson (Hapilopper)                        41.642
14 #00- Michael Stefan (TJUN-ia)                         41.656
15 #28- Cocoabo #28 (Tropicorp)                          41.659
16 #41- Yraaga Gilli'i (Vilita and Turori)               41.687
17 #89- Liangmei Li (The Sherpa Empire)                  41.694
18 #0- Hana Bhe (Filindostan)                            41.731
19 #22- Kevin Cosgrove (Hampton Island)                  41.736
20 #6- Alex Knight (Hampton Island)                      41.747
21 #06- Rinzi Aogar Zakhilwal (The Sherpa Empire)        41.795
22 #31- Gwen Tracer Allison (Valentine Z)                41.801
23 #23- James McCurty (Hampton Island) *Q*               41.811
24 #14- River "Shark" Suzgar (Vilita and Turori)         41.836
25 #11- Jenna Logan (Cassadaigua)                        41.966
26 #83- Shigeru Tsuchie (Filindostan) *Q*                42.119
27 #96- Guillermo Archer (Abanhfleft)                    42.132
28 #48- Rockii Ezis (Newmanistan)                        42.207
29 #24- Kevin Daniels (Newmanistan) *Q*                  42.234
30 #81- Drake Stevenson (Hapilopper)                     42.265
31 #59- Ashley Matthews (Newmanistan)                    42.343
32 #5- Bryan Harrison (Newmanistan)                      42.503
33 #27- Stacie Houston (Cassadaigua)                     42.512
34 #66- Hengxing Tian (The Northern Chinese Republic)    42.578
35 #80- Leonidas Baxter (Abanhfleft)                     42.808
36 #64- Alfonso Mercado (TJUN-ia)                        43.097
37 #9- Liuyong Xu (New Northwesteros) *Q*                43.164
38 #10- Eddie Walters Jr (Xanneria)                      43.276
39 #34- Lexi Patterson (Hampton Island)                  43.442
40 #21- Paul Nystrom (New Northwesteros)                 43.444
41 #52- Jeff Shreeves (Appalachian Nation)               43.742
42 #99- Jelan Ozoemena (Banija)                          43.852
43 #12- Roman Gwinnett (Xanneria)                        43.952
44 #35- Melissa Nilis (Bolgano) *Q*                      43.999
45 #09- Daniel Cretton (Bolgano) *Q*                     44.007

Segment 4:

1 #3- Skip Stiller (Saint Kanye)                        41.432
 2 #41- Yraaga Gilli'i (Vilita and Turori)               41.455
 3 #2- Centur Tiones (Vilita and Turori)                 41.461
 4 #31- Gwen Tracer Allison (Valentine Z)                41.486
 5 #28- Cocoabo #28 (Tropicorp)                          41.491
 6 #15- Valentina Freya Yadana Aye (Valentine Z)         41.499
 7 #11- Jenna Logan (Cassadaigua)                        41.522
 8 #14- River "Shark" Suzgar (Vilita and Turori)         41.534
 9 #44- Kai Qiang (The Sherpa Empire)                    41.546
10 #7- Clarissa Alanis Star (Valentine Z)                41.548
11 #18- Jeremiah Brooke (Saint Kanye)                    41.654
12 #81- Drake Stevenson (Hapilopper)                     41.656
13 #80- Leonidas Baxter (Abanhfleft)                     41.665
14 #4- Meghan Sharpe (Cassadaigua)                       41.674
15 #00- Michael Stefan (TJUN-ia)                         41.683
16 #89- Liangmei Li (The Sherpa Empire)                  41.685
17 #0- Hana Bhe (Filindostan)                            41.738
18 #48- Rockii Ezis (Newmanistan)                        41.757
19 #27- Stacie Houston (Cassadaigua)                     41.766
20 #96- Guillermo Archer (Abanhfleft)                    41.779
21 #88- Anavella Ariiki (Tropicorp)                      41.797
22 #98- Wilma von Cärinthen (Abanhfleft)                 41.807
23 #22- Kevin Cosgrove (Hampton Island)                  41.831
24 #64- Alfonso Mercado (TJUN-ia)                        41.842
25 #10- Eddie Walters Jr (Xanneria)                      41.851
26 #73- Taylor Henderson (Hapilopper)                    41.886
27 #46- Thea Alvarez (Saint Kanye)                       41.976
28 #34- Lexi Patterson (Hampton Island)                  41.979
29 #6- Alex Knight (Hampton Island)                      41.984
30 #24- Kevin Daniels (Newmanistan) *Q*                  41.986
31 #5- Bryan Harrison (Newmanistan)                      42.136
32 #83- Shigeru Tsuchie (Filindostan) *Q*                42.137
33 #78- Cocoabo #78 (Tropicorp)                          42.156
34 #06- Rinzi Aogar Zakhilwal (The Sherpa Empire)        42.182
35 #8- Frank Bronson (Hapilopper)                        42.268
36 #66- Hengxing Tian (The Northern Chinese Republic)    42.354
37 #12- Roman Gwinnett (Xanneria)                        42.434
38 #23- James McCurty (Hampton Island) *Q*               43.011
39 #21- Paul Nystrom (New Northwesteros)                 43.318
40 #59- Ashley Matthews (Newmanistan)                    43.318
41 #99- Jelan Ozoemena (Banija)                          43.840
42 #35- Melissa Nilis (Bolgano) *Q*                      43.935
43 #9- Liuyong Xu (New Northwesteros) *Q*                43.959
44 #52- Jeff Shreeves (Appalachian Nation)               44.120
45 #09- Daniel Cretton (Bolgano) *Q*                     44.256 DNF

Segment 5:

1 #44- Kai Qiang (The Sherpa Empire)                    41.409
 2 #31- Gwen Tracer Allison (Valentine Z)                41.437
 3 #41- Yraaga Gilli'i (Vilita and Turori)               41.458
 4 #96- Guillermo Archer (Abanhfleft)                    41.470
 5 #27- Stacie Houston (Cassadaigua)                     41.475
 6 #8- Frank Bronson (Hapilopper)                        41.486
 7 #00- Michael Stefan (TJUN-ia)                         41.506
 8 #78- Cocoabo #78 (Tropicorp)                          41.516
 9 #28- Cocoabo #28 (Tropicorp)                          41.522
10 #64- Alfonso Mercado (TJUN-ia)                        41.525
11 #15- Valentina Freya Yadana Aye (Valentine Z)         41.536
12 #46- Thea Alvarez (Saint Kanye)                       41.602
13 #98- Wilma von Cärinthen (Abanhfleft)                 41.617
14 #14- River "Shark" Suzgar (Vilita and Turori)         41.639
15 #81- Drake Stevenson (Hapilopper)                     41.682
16 #06- Rinzi Aogar Zakhilwal (The Sherpa Empire)        41.706
17 #11- Jenna Logan (Cassadaigua)                        41.709
18 #48- Rockii Ezis (Newmanistan)                        41.758
19 #10- Eddie Walters Jr (Xanneria)                      41.812
20 #5- Bryan Harrison (Newmanistan)                      41.825
21 #89- Liangmei Li (The Sherpa Empire)                  41.833
22 #88- Anavella Ariiki (Tropicorp)                      41.937
23 #3- Skip Stiller (Saint Kanye)                        41.978
24 #12- Roman Gwinnett (Xanneria)                        42.035
25 #73- Taylor Henderson (Hapilopper)                    42.053
26 #83- Shigeru Tsuchie (Filindostan) *Q*                42.158
27 #23- James McCurty (Hampton Island) *Q*               42.205
28 #22- Kevin Cosgrove (Hampton Island)                  42.261
29 #24- Kevin Daniels (Newmanistan) *Q*                  42.384
30 #34- Lexi Patterson (Hampton Island)                  42.568
31 #66- Hengxing Tian (The Northern Chinese Republic)    42.733
32 #2- Centur Tiones (Vilita and Turori)                 42.814
33 #18- Jeremiah Brooke (Saint Kanye)                    43.015
34 #4- Meghan Sharpe (Cassadaigua)                       43.137
35 #9- Liuyong Xu (New Northwesteros) *Q*                43.193
36 #0- Hana Bhe (Filindostan)                            43.247
37 #7- Clarissa Alanis Star (Valentine Z)                43.343
38 #80- Leonidas Baxter (Abanhfleft)                     43.348
39 #21- Paul Nystrom (New Northwesteros)                 43.428
40 #52- Jeff Shreeves (Appalachian Nation)               43.851
41 #99- Jelan Ozoemena (Banija)                          44.122
42 #35- Melissa Nilis (Bolgano) *Q*                      44.382 DNF
43 #59- Ashley Matthews (Newmanistan)                    44.392 DNF
44 #6- Alex Knight (Hampton Island)                      45.657 DNF

Final Results:

+-----+-------------------------------------------------------------+--------+
| Pos |                           Driver                            |  Avg.  |
+-----+-------------------------------------------------------------+--------+
|   1 | #44- Kai Qiang (The Sherpa Empire)                          | 41.462 | WINNER
|   2 | #28- Cocoabo #28 (Tropicorp)                                | 41.578 |
|   3 | #31- Gwen Tracer Allison (Valentine Z)                      | 41.589 |
|   4 | #11- Jenna Logan (Cassadaigua)                              | 41.635 |
|   5 | #15- Valentina Freya Yadana Aye (Valentine Z)               | 41.641 |
|   6 | #96- Guillermo Archer (Abanhfleft)                          | 41.677 |
|   7 | #41- Yraaga Gilli'i (Vilita and Turori)                     | 41.685 |
|   8 | #78- Cocoabo #78 (Tropicorp)                                | 41.701 |
|   9 | #98- Wilma von Cärinthen (Abanhfleft)                       | 41.715 |
|  10 | #14- River "Shark" Suzgar (Vilita and Turori)               | 41.729 |
|  11 | #89- Liangmei Li (The Sherpa Empire)                        | 41.761 |
|  12 | #88- Anavella Ariiki (Tropicorp)                            | 41.771 |
|  13 | #00- Michael Stefan (TJUN-ia)                               | 41.772 |
|  14 | #27- Stacie Houston (Cassadaigua)                           | 41.785 |
|  15 | #3- Skip Stiller (Saint Kanye)                              | 41.793 |
|  16 | #73- Taylor Henderson (Hapilopper)                          | 41.800 |
|  17 | #8- Frank Bronson (Hapilopper)                              | 41.818 |
|  18 | #22- Kevin Cosgrove (Hampton Island)                        | 41.871 |
|  19 | #46- Thea Alvarez (Saint Kanye)                             | 41.901 |
|  20 | #4- Meghan Sharpe (Cassadaigua)                             | 41.907 |
|  21 | #2- Centur Tiones (Vilita and Turori)                       | 41.932 |
|  22 | #06- Rinzi Aogar Zakhilwal (The Sherpa Empire)              | 41.977 |
|  23 | #48- Rockii Ezis (Newmanistan)                              | 42.004 |
|  24 | #18- Jeremiah Brooke (Saint Kanye)                          | 42.018 |
|  25 | #10- Eddie Walters Jr (Xanneria)                            | 42.090 |
|  26 | #23- James McCurty (Hampton Island)                         | 42.100 |
|  27 | #81- Drake Stevenson (Hapilopper)                           | 42.147 |
|  28 | #7- Clarissa Alanis Star (Valentine Z)                      | 42.163 |
|  29 | #83- Shigeru Tsuchie (Filindostan)                          | 42.186 |
|  30 | #64- Alfonso Mercado (TJUN-ia)                              | 42.196 |
|  31 | #5- Bryan Harrison (Newmanistan)                            | 42.251 |
|  32 | #24- Kevin Daniels (Newmanistan)                            | 42.364 |
|  33 | #0- Hana Bhe (Filindostan)                                  | 42.374 |
|  34 | #80- Leonidas Baxter (Abanhfleft)                           | 42.444 |
|  35 | #34- Lexi Patterson (Hampton Island)                        | 42.476 |
|  36 | #66- Hengxing Tian (The Northern Chinese Republic)          | 42.510 |
|  37 | #12- Roman Gwinnett (Xanneria)                              | 42.605 |
|  38 | #21- Paul Nystrom (New Northwesteros)                       | 43.296 |
|  39 | #9- Liuyong Xu (New Northwesteros)                          | 43.533 |
|  40 | #99- Jelan Ozoemena (Banija)                                | 43.921 |
|  41 | #52- Jeff Shreeves (Appalachian Nation)                     | 44.000 |
|  42 | #35- Melissa Nilis (Bolgano)                                | DNF    |
|  43 | #59- Ashley Matthews (Newmanistan)                          | DNF    |
|  44 | #6- Alex Knight (Hampton Island)                            | DNF    |
|  45 | #09- Daniel Cretton (Bolgano)                               | DNF    |
|  46 | #77- Katarzyna Owczarzak-Kostrzewska (Terre Septentrionale) | DNF    |
+-----+-------------------------------------------------------------+--------+

Point Standings (After 31 Races):

+-----+-------------------------------------------------------------+--------+
| Pos |                           Driver                            | Points |
+-----+-------------------------------------------------------------+--------+
|   1 | #44- Kai Qiang (The Sherpa Empire)****                      |   3098 |
|   2 | #31- Gwen Tracer Allison (Valentine Z)*                     |   3090 |
|   3 | #3- Skip Stiller (Saint Kanye)*                             |   3081 |
|   4 | #89- Liangmei Li (The Sherpa Empire)**                      |   3079 |
|   5 | #96- Guillermo Archer (Abanhfleft)**                        |   3078 |
|   6 | #28- Cocoabo #28 (Tropicorp)*                               |   3078 |
|   7 | #27- Stacie Houston (Cassadaigua)**                         |   3077 |
|   8 | #18- Jeremiah Brooke (Saint Kanye)***                       |   3076 |
|   9 | #14- River "Shark" Suzgar (Vilita and Turori)**             |   3071 |
|  10 | #8- Frank Bronson (Hapilopper)*                             |   3066 |
|  11 | #06- Rinzi Aogar Zakhilwal (The Sherpa Empire)**            |   3057 |
|  12 | #41- Yraaga Gilli'i (Vilita and Turori)**                   |   3050 |
|  13 | #46- Thea Alvarez (Saint Kanye)*                            |   2161 |
|  14 | #15- Valentina Freya Yadana Aye (Valentine Z)*              |   2159 |
|  15 | #2- Centur Tiones (Vilita and Turori)*                      |   2146 |
|  16 | #7- Clarissa Alanis Star (Valentine Z)*                     |   2123 |
|  17 | #73- Taylor Henderson (Hapilopper)*                         |    986 |
|  18 | #00- Michael Stefan (TJUN-ia)*                              |    920 |
|  19 | #4- Meghan Sharpe (Cassadaigua)                             |    901 |
|  20 | #11- Jenna Logan (Cassadaigua)                              |    855 |
|  21 | #0- Hana Bhe (Filindostan)                                  |    801 |
|  22 | #78- Cocoabo #78 (Tropicorp)                                |    789 |
|  23 | #48- Rockii Ezis (Newmanistan)                              |    768 |
|  24 | #98- Wilma von Cärinthen (Abanhfleft)                       |    747 |
|  25 | #12- Roman Gwinnett (Xanneria)*                             |    734 |
|  26 | #88- Anavella Ariiki (Tropicorp)                            |    711 |
|  27 | #30- Lexi Patterson (Jebslund)*                             |    693 |
|  28 | #10- Eddie Walters Jr (Xanneria)                            |    640 |
|  29 | #13- Brigadegeneral Eva Kerman (Jebslund)                   |    625 |
|  30 | #6- Alex Knight (Hampton Island)                            |    557 |
|  31 | #81- Chris Holmes (Hapilopper)                              |    497 |
|  32 | #80- Leonidas Baxter (Abanhfleft)                           |    486 |
|  33 | #21- Paul Nystrom (New Northwesteros)                       |    466 |
|  34 | #23- James McCurty (Hampton Island)                         |    436 |
|  35 | #22- Kevin Cosgrove (Hampton Island)                        |    422 |
|  36 | #5- Bryan Harrison (Newmanistan)                            |    414 |
|  37 | #64- Alfonso Mercado (TJUN-ia)                              |    385 |
|  38 | #66- Hengxing Tian (The Northern Chinese Republic)          |    277 |
|  39 | #81- Drake Stevenson (Hapilopper)                           |    272 |
|  40 | #9- Liuyong Xu (New Northwesteros)                          |    234 |
|  41 | #99- Jelan Ozoemena (Banija)                                |    218 |
|  42 | #33- Tyler Linde (New Northwesteros)                        |    213 |
|  43 | #09- Daniel Cretton (Bolgano)                               |    204 |
|  44 | #24- Kevin Daniels (Newmanistan)                            |    198 |
|  45 | #77- Katarzyna Owczarzak-Kostrzewska (Terre Septentrionale) |    176 |
|  46 | #52- Jeff Shreeves (Appalachian Nation)                     |    172 |
|  47 | #54- Scott Hawking (Wreckeria)                              |    158 |
|  48 | #53- Teija Kuusela (The Albali Republic)                    |    154 |
|  49 | #1- Vanda Rosa Cordeiro Kerman (Jebslund)                   |    126 |
|  50 | #83- Shigeru Tsuchie (Filindostan)                          |     89 |
|  51 | #38- Elio Aaron (Esmerel)                                   |     85 |
|  52 | #83- Fiona Sunarya (Filindostan)                            |     75 |
|  53 | #42- Euroli Islander (Tropicorp)                            |     73 |
|  54 | #19- Sage Caldwell (Saint Kanye)                            |     65 |
|  55 | #49- Lotara Novorali (Vilita and Turori)                    |     61 |
|  56 | #83- Noriyasu Nagai (Filindostan)                           |     56 |
|  57 | #79- Dinggu Wang (The Sherpa Empire)                        |     53 |
|  58 | #25- Kev Schorebrook (Vangaziland)                          |     47 |
|  59 | #17- Tyler Abbott (Cassadaigua)                             |     45 |
|  60 | #16- Tucker Capps (Xanneria)                                |     39 |
|  61 | #34- Matthew Conrad (Hampton Island)                        |     35 |
|  62 | #01- Cristensen Kalsters (Islas Aaland)                     |     31 |
|  63 | #07- Abdoulaye Goita (Saint Kanye)                          |     26 |
|  64 | #96- Ganglie Zhe (Abanhfleft)                               |     24 |
|  65 | #20- Pyotr Lavrentiev (Saint Kanye)                         |     24 |
|  66 | #45- Ben Carpenter (Esmerel)                                |     23 |
|  67 | #20- David Rockingham (Esmerel)                             |     22 |
|  68 | #63- Jamie Isabella Eirian (Valentine Z)                    |     19 |
|  69 | #47- Johnny Betta (Xanneria)                                |     18 |
|  70 | #32- Waltteri Lehto (The Albali Republic)                   |     17 |
|  71 | #87- Jama'obo Pegasii (Vilita and Turori)                   |     14 |
|  72 | #57- Gordon Orton (Appalachian Nation)                      |     11 |
|  73 | #59- Ashley Matthews (Newmanistan)                          |     11 |
|  74 | #40- Ongmu Yeti (The Sherpa Empire)                         |     10 |
|  75 | #26- Roger Bipacks (Bolgano)                                |     10 |
|  76 | #04- Félix-Antoine Constantineau (Terre Septentrionale)     |     10 |
|  77 | #71- Brett Pickles (Appalachian Nation)                     |      5 |
|  78 | #75- Floyd Hackerbee (Vangaziland)                          |      5 |
|  79 | #35- Melissa Nilis (Bolgano)                                |      5 |
|  80 | #07- Juracai Klianiota (Vilita and Turori)                  |      3 |
|  81 | #69- Hauptfeldwebel Sofia Kerman (Jebslund)                 |      2 |
+-----+-------------------------------------------------------------+--------+

Next Race: Race 32 (June 24)- Li River Speedway, Guilin, Guangxi Territory, The Sherpa Empire (Road Course)

[The Sherpa Empire]

Segment 1:

1 #81 Chris Holmes (Hapilopper)              46.705
 2 #77 iBen Toralmintii (Dart Group)          46.752
 3 #79 Wang Dinggu (Nanchang)                 46.845
 4 #00 Sage Caldwell (Saint Kanye)            46.993
 5 #9  Asmira Doleeb (Wednesday)              47.043
 6 #333 Tyler Linde (Direwolf/Nanchang)       47.051
 7 #37 Jama'obo Pegasii (Dart Group)          47.054
 8 #33 Chungba Thapa (AutoModi)               47.141
 9 #39 Rustam Ilyich Yudin (UrGa)             47.227
10 #23 Cocoabo #23 (Dart Group)               47.259
11 #01 Daryl Calhoun (Saint Kanye)            47.269
12 #5  Zhu Shuzhen (Suzhou)                   47.338
13 #000 Fiona Sunarya (Badai Angin Tim)       47.374
14 #690 William Archer (UrGa)                 47.378
15 #888 Zhe Ganglie (UrGa)                    47.457
16 #49 Lotara Novorali (Dart Group)           47.476
17 #32 Kalden Tso (Kowloon)                   47.509
18 #18 Huang Cheng (Guilin)                   47.528
19 #96 Shao Mengxia (Guilin)                  47.531
20 #22 Wangdi Yao (Chongqing)                 47.566
21 #30 Kyidawa Sherpa (AutoModi)              47.572
22 #777 Abdoulaye Goita (Saint Kanye)         47.578
23 #20 Ricky Lee (Saint Kanye)                47.589
24 #92 Wu Yong (Shenzhen)                     47.623
25 #07 Juracai Klianiota (Dart Group)         47.624
26 #42 Euroli Islander (Dart Group)           47.633
27 #40 Ongmu Yeti (Chengdu)                   47.647
28 #27 Maddie Alexander (Cassadaigua)         47.693
29 #44 Lakpa Fang (Guilin)                    47.724
30 #19 Chen Hui (Chengdu)                     47.782
31 #29 Hei Mi (Kunming)                       47.927
32 #75 Kiki Lambosa (Dahon)                   47.950
33 #7 Vijay Tripathi (Wednesday)              47.966
34 #97 Rulita Kikaba (Dart Group)             48.427
35 #08 Kang Jibo (Macau)                      48.475
36 #21 Chai Dong (Nanning)                    48.522
37 #28 Lu Ming (Changsha)                     48.682
38 #10 Nirav Dhimal (Aggarwal)                48.734
39 #87 Kizara Mo'aaki (Dart Group)            48.810
40 #86 Che Zechi (Kowloon)                    48.828
41 #80 Cao Qian (Guangzhou)                   48.886
42 #3  Xiu Guanying (Jiujiang)                49.390
43 #66 Xiao Shibao (Macau)                    49.438
44 #82 Chou Min (Xiamen)                      DNF
45 #0 Mercy Binayas (Badai Angin Tim)         DNF

Segment 2:

1 #81 Chris Holmes (Hapilopper)              46.642
 2 #77 iBen Toralmintii (Dart Group)          46.711
 3 #5  Zhu Shuzhen (Suzhou)                   46.952
 4 #79 Wang Dinggu (Nanchang)                 46.952
 5 #40 Ongmu Yeti (Chengdu)                   46.974
 6 #19 Chen Hui (Chengdu)                     47.025
 7 #80 Cao Qian (Guangzhou)                   47.141
 8 #888 Zhe Ganglie (UrGa)                    47.197
 9 #690 William Archer (UrGa)                 47.259
10 #08 Kang Jibo (Macau)                      47.263
11 #23 Cocoabo #23 (Dart Group)               47.346
12 #18 Huang Cheng (Guilin)                   47.411
13 #37 Jama'obo Pegasii (Dart Group)          47.430
14 #27 Maddie Alexander (Cassadaigua)         47.456
15 #333 Tyler Linde (Direwolf/Nanchang)       47.526
16 #39 Rustam Ilyich Yudin (UrGa)             47.527
17 #20 Ricky Lee (Saint Kanye)                47.650
18 #92 Wu Yong (Shenzhen)                     47.669
19 #00 Sage Caldwell (Saint Kanye)            47.703
20 #42 Euroli Islander (Dart Group)           47.753
21 #44 Lakpa Fang (Guilin)                    47.755
22 #49 Lotara Novorali (Dart Group)           47.763
23 #97 Rulita Kikaba (Dart Group)             47.844
24 #75 Kiki Lambosa (Dahon)                   47.911
25 #33 Chungba Thapa (AutoModi)               48.003
26 #000 Fiona Sunarya (Badai Angin Tim)       48.013
27 #32 Kalden Tso (Kowloon)                   48.113
28 #777 Abdoulaye Goita (Saint Kanye)         48.132
29 #30 Kyidawa Sherpa (AutoModi)              48.252
30 #96 Shao Mengxia (Guilin)                  48.313
31 #01 Daryl Calhoun (Saint Kanye)            48.373
32 #66 Xiao Shibao (Macau)                    48.499
33 #29 Hei Mi (Kunming)                       48.555
34 #22 Wangdi Yao (Chongqing)                 48.567
35 #21 Chai Dong (Nanning)                    48.584
36 #7 Vijay Tripathi (Wednesday)              48.604
37 #10 Nirav Dhimal (Aggarwal)                49.020
38 #28 Lu Ming (Changsha)                     49.110
39 #87 Kizara Mo'aaki (Dart Group)            49.112
40 #3  Xiu Guanying (Jiujiang)                49.417
41 #07 Juracai Klianiota (Dart Group)         49.455
42 #9  Asmira Doleeb (Wednesday)              49.636
43 #86 Che Zechi (Kowloon)                    49.898

Segment 3:

1 #79 Wang Dinggu (Nanchang)                 46.581
 2 #81 Chris Holmes (Hapilopper)              46.626
 3 #77 iBen Toralmintii (Dart Group)          46.675
 4 #7 Vijay Tripathi (Wednesday)              46.751
 5 #33 Chungba Thapa (AutoModi)               46.847
 6 #888 Zhe Ganglie (UrGa)                    46.893
 7 #27 Maddie Alexander (Cassadaigua)         46.980
 8 #690 William Archer (UrGa)                 47.044
 9 #9  Asmira Doleeb (Wednesday)              47.055
10 #30 Kyidawa Sherpa (AutoModi)              47.070
11 #000 Fiona Sunarya (Badai Angin Tim)       47.074
12 #37 Jama'obo Pegasii (Dart Group)          47.216
13 #01 Daryl Calhoun (Saint Kanye)            47.223
14 #777 Abdoulaye Goita (Saint Kanye)         47.234
15 #333 Tyler Linde (Direwolf/Nanchang)       47.329
16 #18 Huang Cheng (Guilin)                   47.441
17 #08 Kang Jibo (Macau)                      47.466
18 #5  Zhu Shuzhen (Suzhou)                   47.502
19 #39 Rustam Ilyich Yudin (UrGa)             47.571
20 #92 Wu Yong (Shenzhen)                     47.613
21 #40 Ongmu Yeti (Chengdu)                   47.632
22 #75 Kiki Lambosa (Dahon)                   47.646
23 #07 Juracai Klianiota (Dart Group)         47.656
24 #20 Ricky Lee (Saint Kanye)                47.715
25 #23 Cocoabo #23 (Dart Group)               47.796
26 #96 Shao Mengxia (Guilin)                  47.885
27 #22 Wangdi Yao (Chongqing)                 47.957
28 #97 Rulita Kikaba (Dart Group)             47.983
29 #19 Chen Hui (Chengdu)                     48.063
30 #00 Sage Caldwell (Saint Kanye)            48.183
31 #42 Euroli Islander (Dart Group)           48.248
32 #21 Chai Dong (Nanning)                    48.275
33 #44 Lakpa Fang (Guilin)                    48.384
34 #32 Kalden Tso (Kowloon)                   48.399
35 #29 Hei Mi (Kunming)                       48.401
36 #80 Cao Qian (Guangzhou)                   48.443
37 #10 Nirav Dhimal (Aggarwal)                48.530
38 #3  Xiu Guanying (Jiujiang)                48.746
39 #28 Lu Ming (Changsha)                     48.884
40 #66 Xiao Shibao (Macau)                    48.942
41 #49 Lotara Novorali (Dart Group)           49.184
42 #87 Kizara Mo'aaki (Dart Group)            49.412
43 #86 Che Zechi (Kowloon)                    49.567

Segment 4:

1 #81 Chris Holmes (Hapilopper)              46.607
 2 #79 Wang Dinggu (Nanchang)                 46.616
 3 #7 Vijay Tripathi (Wednesday)              46.647
 4 #33 Chungba Thapa (AutoModi)               46.882
 5 #00 Sage Caldwell (Saint Kanye)            46.899
 6 #690 William Archer (UrGa)                 46.928
 7 #80 Cao Qian (Guangzhou)                   46.981
 8 #40 Ongmu Yeti (Chengdu)                   47.004
 9 #000 Fiona Sunarya (Badai Angin Tim)       47.065
10 #23 Cocoabo #23 (Dart Group)               47.074
11 #18 Huang Cheng (Guilin)                   47.121
12 #5  Zhu Shuzhen (Suzhou)                   47.129
13 #333 Tyler Linde (Direwolf/Nanchang)       47.166
14 #888 Zhe Ganglie (UrGa)                    47.189
15 #01 Daryl Calhoun (Saint Kanye)            47.213
16 #20 Ricky Lee (Saint Kanye)                47.266
17 #27 Maddie Alexander (Cassadaigua)         47.267
18 #37 Jama'obo Pegasii (Dart Group)          47.309
19 #9  Asmira Doleeb (Wednesday)              47.327
20 #32 Kalden Tso (Kowloon)                   47.358
21 #19 Chen Hui (Chengdu)                     47.406
22 #30 Kyidawa Sherpa (AutoModi)              47.410
23 #49 Lotara Novorali (Dart Group)           47.413
24 #777 Abdoulaye Goita (Saint Kanye)         47.455
25 #77 iBen Toralmintii (Dart Group)          47.526
26 #96 Shao Mengxia (Guilin)                  47.604
27 #22 Wangdi Yao (Chongqing)                 47.712
28 #75 Kiki Lambosa (Dahon)                   47.747
29 #87 Kizara Mo'aaki (Dart Group)            47.784
30 #07 Juracai Klianiota (Dart Group)         47.790
31 #42 Euroli Islander (Dart Group)           47.806
32 #44 Lakpa Fang (Guilin)                    47.883
33 #97 Rulita Kikaba (Dart Group)             47.992
34 #92 Wu Yong (Shenzhen)                     48.063
35 #08 Kang Jibo (Macau)                      48.075
36 #21 Chai Dong (Nanning)                    48.388
37 #66 Xiao Shibao (Macau)                    48.567
38 #10 Nirav Dhimal (Aggarwal)                48.578
39 #86 Che Zechi (Kowloon)                    48.660
40 #3  Xiu Guanying (Jiujiang)                48.727
41 #39 Rustam Ilyich Yudin (UrGa)             48.758
42 #28 Lu Ming (Changsha)                     48.774
43 #29 Hei Mi (Kunming)                       DNF

Segment 5:

1 #81 Chris Holmes (Hapilopper)              46.719
 2 #33 Chungba Thapa (AutoModi)               46.853
 3 #690 William Archer (UrGa)                 46.909
 4 #888 Zhe Ganglie (UrGa)                    46.930
 5 #40 Ongmu Yeti (Chengdu)                   46.949
 6 #5  Zhu Shuzhen (Suzhou)                   47.020
 7 #96 Shao Mengxia (Guilin)                  47.060
 8 #39 Rustam Ilyich Yudin (UrGa)             47.080
 9 #23 Cocoabo #23 (Dart Group)               47.095
10 #00 Sage Caldwell (Saint Kanye)            47.113
11 #9  Asmira Doleeb (Wednesday)              47.140
12 #77 iBen Toralmintii (Dart Group)          47.211
13 #20 Ricky Lee (Saint Kanye)                47.228
14 #19 Chen Hui (Chengdu)                     47.261
15 #37 Jama'obo Pegasii (Dart Group)          47.351
16 #79 Wang Dinggu (Nanchang)                 47.363
17 #777 Abdoulaye Goita (Saint Kanye)         47.387
18 #01 Daryl Calhoun (Saint Kanye)            47.401
19 #000 Fiona Sunarya (Badai Angin Tim)       47.435
20 #333 Tyler Linde (Direwolf/Nanchang)       47.451
21 #75 Kiki Lambosa (Dahon)                   47.611
22 #07 Juracai Klianiota (Dart Group)         47.694
23 #22 Wangdi Yao (Chongqing)                 47.768
24 #87 Kizara Mo'aaki (Dart Group)            47.768
25 #32 Kalden Tso (Kowloon)                   47.812
26 #18 Huang Cheng (Guilin)                   47.841
27 #30 Kyidawa Sherpa (AutoModi)              47.843
28 #86 Che Zechi (Kowloon)                    47.857
29 #42 Euroli Islander (Dart Group)           47.890
30 #27 Maddie Alexander (Cassadaigua)         47.931
31 #49 Lotara Novorali (Dart Group)           47.981
32 #97 Rulita Kikaba (Dart Group)             48.141
33 #44 Lakpa Fang (Guilin)                    48.238
34 #7 Vijay Tripathi (Wednesday)              48.333
35 #10 Nirav Dhimal (Aggarwal)                48.472
36 #80 Cao Qian (Guangzhou)                   48.510
37 #66 Xiao Shibao (Macau)                    48.658
38 #21 Chai Dong (Nanning)                    48.680
39 #08 Kang Jibo (Macau)                      48.796
40 #28 Lu Ming (Changsha)                     49.168
41 #92 Wu Yong (Shenzhen)                     49.615
42 #3  Xiu Guanying (Jiujiang)                DNF

Rumble in the Rice Fields Final Result:

1 #81 Chris Holmes (Hapilopper)              46.660
 2 #79 Wang Dinggu (Nanchang)                 46.871
 3 #77 iBen Toralmintii (Dart Group)          46.975
 4 #690 William Archer (UrGa)                 47.104
 5 #888 Zhe Ganglie (UrGa)                    47.133
 6 #33 Chungba Thapa (AutoModi)               47.145
 7 #5  Zhu Shuzhen (Suzhou)                   47.188
 8 #40 Ongmu Yeti (Chengdu)                   47.241
 9 #37 Jama'obo Pegasii (Dart Group)          47.272
 10 #333 Tyler Linde (Direwolf/Nanchang)       47.305
 11 #23 Cocoabo #23 (Dart Group)               47.314
 12 #00 Sage Caldwell (Saint Kanye)            47.378
 13 #000 Fiona Sunarya (Badai Angin Tim)       47.392
 14 #27 Maddie Alexander (Cassadaigua)         47.465
 15 #18 Huang Cheng (Guilin)                   47.468
 16 #20 Ricky Lee (Saint Kanye)                47.490
 17 #01 Daryl Calhoun (Saint Kanye)            47.496
 18 #19 Chen Hui (Chengdu)                     47.507 
 19 #777 Abdoulaye Goita (Saint Kanye)         47.557
 20 #30 Kyidawa Sherpa (AutoModi)              47.629
 21 #39 Rustam Ilyich Yudin (UrGa)             47.633
 22 #9  Asmira Doleeb (Wednesday)              47.640
 23 #7 Vijay Tripathi (Wednesday)              47.660
 24 #96 Shao Mengxia (Guilin)                  47.679
 25 #75 Kiki Lambosa (Dahon)                   47.773
 26 #32 Kalden Tso (Kowloon)                   47.838
 27 #42 Euroli Islander (Dart Group)           47.866
 28 #22 Wangdi Yao (Chongqing)                 47.914
 29 #49 Lotara Novorali (Dart Group)           47.963
 30 #80 Cao Qian (Guangzhou)                   47.992
 31 #44 Lakpa Fang (Guilin)                    47.997
 32 #08 Kang Jibo (Macau)                      48.015
 33 #07 Juracai Klianiota (Dart Group)         48.044
 34 #97 Rulita Kikaba (Dart Group)             48.077
 35 #92 Wu Yong (Shenzhen)                     48.117
 36 #21 Chai Dong (Nanning)                    48.490
 37 #87 Kizara Mo'aaki (Dart Group)            48.577
 38 #10 Nirav Dhimal (Aggarwal)                48.667
 39 #66 Xiao Shibao (Macau)                    48.821
 40 #28 Lu Ming (Changsha)                     48.924
 41 #86 Che Zechi (Kowloon)                    48.962
 42 #3  Xiu Guanying (Jiujiang)                DNF
 43 #29 Hei Mi (Kunming)                       DNF
 44 #82 Chou Min (Xiamen)                      DNF
 45 #0 Mercy Binayas (Badai Angin Tim)         DNF

Open charters for the Guangxi Telecom 400 are awarded to Chris Holmes and Dinggu Wang.

[Hapilopper]

Marquette Raceway, Hampton Island
The Shellshock Batteries 400
Frank Bronson was still in a great deal of pain as time drew near for the Shellshock 400 in Hampton Island. It was the kind of pain that kept him from sleeping much that night, and the fact that Team Blue was not all that willing to give him any painkillers (that might have been ruled illegal under anti-doping regulations), Frank felt like hell as he got ready to race. But at least he had some things to dull the pain when he was out there on the race track.

Underneath his firesuit, Frank was also wearing a bullrider’s flak jacket and a TENS unit that would offer some pain relief on demand when he needed it. He had informed the crew that under no circumstances would he give up his car, regardless of his pain, but Team Blue had Mark Arbuckle, one of their HASCAR drivers, on standby just in case the pain was too great for Frank to continue. Mark was a good driver. He had won four times in HASCAR races this season, and was in the hunt for the HASCAR Challenge Cup. But the chance of him actually getting in the car was not great.

While Frank was wanting to get in the car to just get this race over with, Drake Stevenson was facing a different issue. Turns out there had been an issue with some tweets he had fired off to Gil Archer in response to Archer’s typical incendiary attitude. Several Team Blue administrators requested that Drake try to retract the comments in an attempt to, in the words of one administrator, “not drop to that little shithead’s level.” There was also rumors of Drake heading over to the Jaguar Racing pit to personally apologize to Alfonso Mercado for the tweets, but Drake declined to comment when asked by reporters.

The race, on the surface, was not great for the team. Drake and Taylor Henderson battled tight race cars all race long, while Frank battled his own tolerance for pain. Every time he’d hit the brakes to set the car up for a corner, he would feel a little bit of pain. He’d feel a little bit every time the yellow came out and he had an opportunity to think about it, rather than running hard on the limit. It led to an uncomfortable drive, but when he got out of the car after his 17th place finish, he looked like he was reasonably OK, especially when interviewed by the Hapilopper Television Network.

“Oh, I was fine,” Frank said to reporters. “I knew I’d be fine. I wore my Drake Stevenson shirt today. We were gearing up for the crash and it never happened.”

But when he got on the Team Blue Shuttle to fly back to Hapilopper, it was clear he was in a ton of pain, laying down in several seats as soon as the plane got to cruising altitude. Now that he didn’t have a race to worry about for a few days, Frank took enough painkillers to wipe out any pain he was still feeling and fell asleep for the rest of the flight back home.

Meanwhile, Drake got out his laptop and checked out the news going on back home. Rumors were rampant that the Hapilopper National Football Team was going to be disbanded entirely following that disastrous second half of the World Cup qualifiers. Two Buckridge residents had been arrested after attempting to steal a tank from a military museum and parade it through downtown. And Chris Holmes, in the first race for the new Hawking-Byrd Motorsports concern, won the Rumble in the Rice Fields in the Sherpa Empire, dominating the race and winning comfortably ahead of Dinggu Wang and iBen Toralmintii.

“Uh, guys, anyone want to see Holmes next week?” Drake asked uneasily.

“What do you mean?” a crew member asked.

“Holmes dominated the Rumble in the Rice Fields,” Drake explained. “Apparently Scott Hawking and Chet Byrd’s team sent a car out to the Sherpa Empire and just cleaned house. I wonder what kind of support Preston Autos gave them.”

Turns out, they were giving Hawking-Byrd a lot more support than they were letting on, and they weren’t really willing to talk about it. When a Team Blue administrator called Marty Lewis at Preston Autos to ask about that support, Marty declined to comment on it.

“Honestly, it’s between us and the Hawking-Byrd guys,” Marty said. “It is on a need-to-know basis and you don’t need to know. But just know that your support has not been cut. We’re going to support five cars next year, not three, and we can do it.”

[Wrecker]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
PR Contact: Jamie Paulson, (1005) 3005-2796, jpaulson@hawkingbyrd.co.wre

CHRIS HOLMES TO COMPETE FOR HAWKING-BYRD MOTORSPORTS IN THE SHERPA EMPIRE

Guilin, Sherpaland – Hapiloppian driver Christopher Holmes will drive the #56 Warner Hall Pizza Super Skychief at this weekend’s Guangxi Telecom 400 at the Li River Speedway for Hawking-Byrd Motorsports following a dominant performance in the IRACT-sanctioned Rumble in the Rice Fields, with an eye on a full-time ride for the Hapiloppian/Wreckerian team in NSSCRA X. Holmes led a vast majority of the Rumble in the Rice Fields at Li River Speedway en route to his first victory in IRACT competition and his first victory since last season’s Kermania Fortress Run in Jebslund.

“This is a great opportunity for a fresh start with a new team,” Holmes said. “We’ve got a great shot to do some great things next weekend here in Sherpaland, and I think we’ll be surprising some people. Of course, it’ll be wonderful to carry the new colors of Warner Hall Pizza and Hawking-Byrd Motorsports, so watch us. We’ll be doing some great things next season.”

“Chris Holmes is one of the most underrated drivers in all of stock car racing,” said team co-owner Chet Byrd. “His performance in the Rumble in the Rice Fields really showed it, and I think he’s going to show a lot of people out there in the NSSCRA paddock what he’s made of. He had some rough times dealing with some negative personalities, but now I think that’s taken care of and you’ll see him really impress people on race weekend.”

Holmes dominated the race, finishing comfortably ahead of Sherpalander Dinggu Wang, another driver with NSSCRA experience. The two will have guaranteed starting spots for the Guangxi Telecom 400, a race that will be aired live, flag-to-flag, across Wreckerian TV this Sunday.

ABOUT HAWKING-BYRD MOTORSPORTS:
Hawking-Byrd Motorsports is the newest team in international motorsports, and is a partnership between Wreckerian driver Scott Hawking and retired Hapiloppian stock car champion Chet Byrd. The two men bring a combined 65 years of experience to the table, in bringing a new and dynamic force in motorsports. Next season, the team expects to field a two-car team for Hawking and Chris Holmes, a driver proven to run up front and contend for championships.

ABOUT WARNER HALL PIZZA:
One of the most popular restaurant chains in Wreckeria, Warner Hall Pizza is known for their delicious deep-dish pizzas featuring anything and everything you want on it. The slogan “Quintessentially Wreckerian. Absolutely Delicious.” rings true with every pizza sold across Wreckeria in its 757 stores across the Reformed Republic, and/or delivered to an estimated 65 million customers last year. Warner Hall Pizza will sponsor the two-car Hawking-Byrd Motorsports effort in NSSCRA X, as well as a NSSCRA race in Wreckeria next season.

[Recuecn]

Abdoulaye was looking forward to visiting the Sherpa Empire, a place he'd always wanted to see, but when he got the offer from GFR Motorsports to drive in the rumble, he was even more excited to see his new friends from Saint Kanye again. When he arrived in Guilin, however, he realized that he'd arrived earlier than the Yeezies, since he'd had to prepare for qualification for the Rumble; Thea, Skip, and Jeremiah would only have to show up in time for qualification for the Guangxi Telecom 400 itself. However, Goita got to hang out with Sage Caldwell as he prepared for the race, and was also introduced to Daryl Calhoun and Ricky Lee, two other young Kanyean drivers.

Abdoulaye got on Sage's nerves a little bit since he kept trying to make sure Sage only ate safe food--the last time the two had been supposed to race together, Sage had gotten food poisoning and wound up hospitalized. Although Abdoulaye knew better, he also couldn't help that he'd been influenced by his family, who had some pretty uninformed views about people from the Sherpa Empire, and specifically some prejudiced opinions about the food they ate. So he kept trying to get Sage to stick to the meals provided by the GFRM Motorsport team chef and the noodle shop/ice cream parlor that was Kai Qiang's childhood home, while avoiding any other local cuisine. Abdoulaye was definitely worrying too much about Sage's health in the first place, not to mention his questionable opinions of Guilin food, so it got a little bit annoying. But mostly he and Sage had a good time and were happy to see each other again and practice together.

When Abdoulaye had come to NSSCRA the first time, he'd been star struck to be hanging out in the same circles as so many big names: Kai Qiang, Skip Stiller, Stacie Houston. After a while the novelty had begun to wear off, but now that he was back for the Rumble, Goita experienced that all over again: iBen Toralmintii would be on the track alongside him at the Rumble. Jama'obo Pegasii would be there too--one of Abdoulaye's rivals from the WGP2--but Abdoulaye was especially excited to race against the WGPC driver who'd done so well recently. Being around an NSSCRA star like Kai Qiang was one thing--that was really cool. But Toralmintii was a star from Abdoulaye's own sport, and he was a bit flustered to race against him. It's good to get these fanboy jitters out of the way now, thought Abdoulaye, assuming that I'm going to be going up against him on the regular next WGPC season.

Abdoulaye handled the jitters well, apparently: he did very well in qualifying, coming in seventh, which was far better than he expected after being merely average at the Pencurve. However, when it came time for the actual race, he didn't manage to hang on to his starting position, falling back and ultimately finishing in 19th. Abdoulaye wasn't too upset: he hadn't really expected or planned to actually win a charter for the NSSCRA race, he'd just been happy to drive in the Rumble and get to do one more stock car race. And he was pleased with his qualifying performance (he felt weirdly proud of beating the other Saint Kanye drivers). All in all he'd definitely enjoyed himself, and he planned to stick around to hang out with the other Yeezies and cheer them on when they showed up for the Guangxi Telecom 400. He'd be glad to see them in person again.

While he waited for the NSSCRA race, he went over to find Toralmintii: he figured if they were in the same place it would be good at least to introduce himself and shake hands with his future opponent.

[TJUN-ia]

This blog was written by Derrick Carlisle, Jaguar Racing's Social Media Manager

The Shellshock Batteries 400 put Marquette, Hampton Island under the spotlight of NSSCRA and the Chase. With the number of races decreasing by the week, the pressure is most certainly on the Top 12. Jaguar Racing was looking for good running in their rainbow armbands, but the switch was flipped...

Alfonso Mercado (@AM64) started 16th in his first race with a charter. However today he was...distracted by something. Out of the blue, even. I don't know if it has anything to do with what distracted his teammate yesterday, but it certainly made an impact. His race was a rollercoaster, in that he would either be near the front or the rear of the field at any given time. 30th is not the best but it will be fine if he recovers from these jitters in the final 5 races.

Meanwhile, Michael Stefan (@00Stefan) started down in 28th. We all know how distracted he was yesterday, but it was nice to see him more focused today. His race was also a bit of a rollercoaster but Stefan has more experience with these sort of races and managed to bounce back to finish a respectable 13th.

Kai Qiang showed why he is the defending champion by winning in style in Marquette. The podium was rounded out by Cocoabo #28 and Gwen Tracer Allison. 5 retirements, including open-charter Ashley Matthews of Newmanistan while Lexi Patterson made her comeback...in 35th. We'll see what happens to Lexi in the future.

The cut off for the Top 8 will occur after the Guangxi Telecom 400 in The Sherpa Empire. It's IRACT's backyard (literally, as their HQ is near the start line) in Guilin, so the two open-charter slots were decided by the Rumble in the Rice Fields on the street circuit. The two drivers will be local Dinggu Wang and...Chris Holmes of Wreckeria's Hawking-Byrd Motorsports. Yes, you read that correctly. Chris and Chet will be at an NSSCRA event for the first time since the TJUN 600, now racing under the colours of the Wrecker. Daniel Marx may be gone, but Harpa Gylfisdóttir (@Isfruin) hopes there are no hard feelings between her and her predecessor's friend.

Standings Watch: Stefan - 18th (920pts/1W), Mercado - 37th (385pts)

---

Another OK day in the office for Michael Stefan. He was looking forward to Guilin and what it could offer, due to his open-wheel roots, but was concerned. Very concerned.

The Sherpa Empire, while liberal in some areas, is very much conservative on the issue of LGBT+ rights. Jaguar Racing is planning on wearing rainbow armbands for the remaining races, including this upcoming race. He thought that the team will not be welcomed kindly in Guangxi, neither will Wilma von Cärinthen either. But JR is not backing down for its position, especially after what happened to his teammate a few races back. He's not sure what Wilma will do in a society that pretty much hates her, but he knew that she wouldn't back down either.

Speaking of Alfonso Mercado, Stefan hadn't received a reply to the...suggestion he gave him last week in Xannaria. It distracted him during qualifying yesterday but would appear that it was a big deal for Mercado too. He appeared distracted in the race, at least according to Derrick Carlisle.

But before he could think about how Mercado was feeling about this entire thing, someone called him over. It was one of Mercado's mechanics and he was holding a piece of folded paper. Stefan knew what was up and walked over to the man in blue.

Mechanic: Hello, Michael.
MS: Hello. Everything alright on your side of things?
Mech: Yeah, we're cool. It's certainly gonna be interesting in Guangxi, but I'm not afraid of the crowd.
MS: Fair enough. As long as we focus on racing, we should be fine.
Mech: Indeed. Anyway, this is for you.
MS: Ok...? What is this about?
Mech: I have no idea. I was just told to give this to you and to get you to write a response.
MS: Write a response?
Mech: Yep. I've got a pen.
MS: Ah right, Ok. Cheers!

As the man in blue gave him the paper and the pen, Stefan chuckled to himself. Alfonso, I wasn't expecting a Promposal out of you. I thought you were wiser than that! It seems childish, but he could never know for sure until he saw the message itself. So he did, ensuring that the man in blue didn't see what was written.

Su idea es interesante, por decir lo menos. Estaría dispuesto a aceptar, ¿podemos tomar esto con calma? Sé que estoy enamorado de ti, pero eso no significa que quiera que esto se desarrolle rápidamente. Eso podría significar mantener esto oculto por un tiempo, pero no me importa en absolute.

Ihre Idee ist interessant, um es gelinde auszudrücken. Ich wäre bereit zu akzeptieren, können wir das langsam angehen? Ich weiß, dass ich in dich verliebt bin, aber das bedeutet nicht, dass ich möchte, dass sich das schnell entwickelt. Das könnte bedeuten, dies für eine Weile versteckt zu halten, aber das macht mir überhaupt nichts aus.

Via ideo estas interesa, por diri almenaŭ. Mi pretus akcepti, al ni povas preni ĉi malrapida? Mi scias, ke mi enamiĝas al vi, sed tio ne signifas, ke mi volas rapide disvolviĝi. Tio povus signifi teni ĉi tion kaŝita dum iom da tempo, sed mi tute ne atentas tion.

Your idea is interesting, to say the least. I would be willing to accept, to can we take this slow? I know I'm in love with you, but that doesn't mean I want this to develop quickly. That might mean keeping this hidden for a while, but I don't mind that at all.

It was longer than he was expecting, but the answer he certainly was. Mercado must have been shocked at the idea of him suggesting that he would give him love so that he could stay as he is. Must have been a culture shock to the young man, but it was something Stefan was willing to do in order to keep the status quo. His response was short, but it contained everything it needed.

Su idea es interesante, por decir lo menos. Estaría dispuesto a aceptar, ¿podemos tomar esto con calma? Sé que estoy enamorado de ti, pero eso no significa que quiera que esto se desarrolle rápidamente. Eso podría significar mantener esto oculto por un tiempo, pero no me importa en absolute.

Ihre Idee ist interessant, um es gelinde auszudrücken. Ich wäre bereit zu akzeptieren, können wir das langsam angehen? Ich weiß, dass ich in dich verliebt bin, aber das bedeutet nicht, dass ich möchte, dass sich das schnell entwickelt. Das könnte bedeuten, dies für eine Weile versteckt zu halten, aber das macht mir überhaupt nichts aus.

Via ideo estas interesa, por diri almenaŭ. Mi pretus akcepti, al ni povas preni ĉi malrapida? Mi scias, ke mi enamiĝas al vi, sed tio ne signifas, ke mi volas rapide disvolviĝi. Tio povus signifi teni ĉi tion kaŝita dum iom da tempo, sed mi tute ne atentas tion.

Your idea is interesting, to say the least. I would be willing to accept, to can we take this slow? I know I'm in love with you, but that doesn't mean I want this to develop quickly. That might mean keeping this hidden for a while, but I don't mind that at all.

Ja x

As the man in blue walked away with his response, he suddenly realised he made a mistake. Why the fuck did I put a kiss at the end of the message. Why the fuck did I do that?! Now he's gonna think I've got some sort of feeling for him...but...do I? It's a question that he will have to answer at some point down the line...

---

HARPA GYLFISDÓTTIR ✓

@IsfruinJR

Guilin is going to be interesting for multiple reasons. I look forward to seeing both old and new.


#NSSCRA : #JaguarRacing : #JungleFever : #YQué

MICHAEL STEFAN ✓

 
@00Stefan

@CHolmes81 Nice to see you and Chet back. I hope we can duel nicely.


#NSSCRA : #JaguarRacing : #JungleFever : #YQué

ALFONSO MERCADO ✓

@AM64

Guangxi, eh? Gonna be interesting. I'll try my best


#NSSCRA : #JaguarRacing : #JungleFever : #YQué

[Newmanistan]

THE ROCKET REPORT

FIVE CAR DRIVER KNOWN

by Taylor Larson,

Rocket Motorsports knows who will be driving the #5 car, replacing Bryan Harrison, next season. They are just not ready to announce it, according to a recent press release following the Shellshock Batteries 400. The statement would read, “We would like to let everyone out there know that the replacement for Bryan Harrison next season is known to us, and is known to that driver. We are not ready to make such knowledge public.”

It was a short statement, leaving a lot of people wondering what is going on. We tried to pry information away from Bryan Harrison, or even Kevin Daniels or Rockii Ezis, or any crewmen on these teams, but none of them could provide any information. This seemed to be because they sincerely did not know rather then trying to cover up the information. Right now, only the top executives at Rocket Motorsports, and whoever this driver is seem to know. We did asked Ashley Matthews if it was her and she replied, “If the driver already knows, that it is definitely not me.” Other past drivers, such as Travis Barkley or Shawn Curtis, have also denied that they will be taking the ride next season.

We have begun to ask other known drivers throughout the Empire, and have not got anywhere trying to figure out who it is. Perhaps, they are just putting on a good front, but it seems to me that the team has made an agreement with someone outside of Newmanistan. That can open up all kinds of rumors in the series. Attempts to figure out when the right time to make the announcement for Rocket Motorsports have also been unsuccessful. The race team simply responds that when they feel it is time, that they will say so. Let the speculation fly, I suppose.

[The Sherpa Empire]

Kai Qiang was glad he hadn't spewed as much anti-cocoabo hostility as Liangmei Li. With 6 laps to go in the Shellshock Batteries 400, Cocoabo #28 was in the lead, but Kai Qiang and Gwen Tracer Allison were gaining on it. The cocoabo tried to hold onto its position, but it didn't try to shove Qiang into the wall. He was becoming increasingly convinced that the cocoabo knew who was who, and it was purposely more aggressive toward Li. It was close quarters as Qiang and the cocoabo battled for the lead. They weren't necessarily trying to crowd each other, but there was only so much they could do to stay out of each other's way when they were both trying to follow the same groove. And then Qiang saw an opportunity to slip past the cocoabo on the inside -- maybe. There wasn't a lot of room, but he went for it. He didn't have time to overthink it.

Qiang took the lead, but the #28 car didn't fall far behind. It was still in 2nd place when they crossed the finish line.

Despite finishing 3rd and therefore standing on the lowest platform, Gwen Tracer Allison still towered over Kai Qiang and Cocoabo #28 as they stood on the podium. It looked awkward, but Qiang still had fun spraying champagne around and trying to share the bottle with the others.

"Aw, come on," his crew chief said, as Qiang offered Cocoabo #28 a sip of the champagne. "Don't make the Tropicorp guys look after a drunk cocoabo. Those things are goofy enough when they're sober."

"It's not going to hurt anyone," Qiang said.

"Give me that," Houzhi Chang said, and he grabbed the bottle and took a swig himself. The pit crew passed it around, and the bottle was empty by the time they were done.

Qiang didn't stick around in Hampton Island very long after the race because he was eager to get home to Guilin. The next race of the NSSCRA calendar was in Qiang's backyard -- literally. The track ran across the land that Qiang had farmed before his racing career took off. He no longer owned the farm, but he still wanted to have as much time as possible in his hometown. He was going to be helping his wives and daughter move into their new house, and he wanted to have time to enjoy their company.

It was convenient that the win in Hampton Island took some of the pressure off, so he could just enjoy racing at his home track and not spend the whole time agonizing about the results. Of course, he still wanted to do well at home so he could give the fans something to cheer about... He just didn't have to worry about getting knocked out of the Chase if something went wrong.

Li and Rinzi didn't live in Guilin, but it was close enough to home that their friends and families could come out to watch them race. Tashi Sherpa had her parents come to Guilin too, so that they could meet Rinzi's family and go through the motions of planning an "arranged" marriage. Tashi's family had never been racing fans before she started dating Rinzi, and they were terribly out of place at the race track. Both her parents looked at the food carts selling roasted bushmeat on sticks like what the fuck is that?

Rinzi was happy to see his personal plans coming together, but he was very anxious about what was happening at the track. He'd already had one clutch win to keep him in the Chase, and now he was on the brink of elimination for the 2nd time.

[Hampton Island]

(Stafford City CEO attempts to call Lexi Patterson a couple days after the race)

CEO: Sixth try. She will pick up the phone eventually when she realizes I am not going to stop.

(Two.... hours.... later)

CEO: Try eight, come on.

Lexi: (picks up phone) Stop calling me. (Hangs up)

(One hour later, he calls Alex Knight)

CEO: Alex, I need you to do me a favor.

Knight: What?

CEO: I need you to call Lexi Patterson and have her talk to me so we can discuss matters pertaining to her future here.

Knight: I am not your secretary.

CEO: Don’t get smart with me. Need I remind you that you just blew an engine that was entirely your fault for not shifting correctly? Charged Up doesn’t like seeing blown engines. You do know that, don’t you.

Knight: Fine.

(Moments later, Knight calls Patterson)

Knight: Hello, Lexi, how are you.

Lexi: I am well, Alex, tough luck about the engine.

Knight: I enjoyed being able to race against you while you were able to drive the 34 car for us.

Lexi: It was a real pleasure, as you know, I did it for my fans here and not for anyone else.

Knight: It looks like it went over really well, and it was pretty cool how you were able to do that in Marquette. What are you going to do now?

Lexi: Just go back home and be with my family. I will be ready to run for Jebslund when they are ready to bring me back. But being away and driving for them means I can’t spend much time with my family and friends here, so I am just going to make the most of it.

Knight: That sounds like a good idea. I hope you don’t miss racing.

Lexi: I will miss it a little, but I can accept what happened. I guess I can drive go-karts or something, right?

Knight: I suppose so. I’m sure going back to your roots will be great.

Lexi: There are some things I can do here, and for the community. Driving is fun and all, but I have grown so much as a person, that I would like to talk to young girls and try to be an inspiration for them. Especially talk to younger attractive girls and tell them to never let themselves be exploited for their appearance to where people cannot see what is inside.

Knight: I fully support that. If you need any help in the off-season with that, please feel free to let me know.

Lexi: By the way, tell that Stafford City loser to stop calling me. I don’t know what he wants, really, but I will never speak to him again. He has so many phone extensions that I can’t block every number that comes up, because he knows to use a slightly different one each time.

Knight: Yeah, he probably is trying to get you to drive for him.

Lexi: I know he is. I will never, ever drive for that man. Driving the 34 car in Marquette allowed me to drive for someone else. I know he gets a royalty from that, but that part I didn’t care about. The Marquette people are much more friendly and respectable. Secondly, I don’t know how I would drive for him anyway, all the seats are taken.

Knight: Probably more open charter requests.

Lexi: Yeah, not interested in that. And I definitely wouldn’t take the ride if it meant you, Kevin, or James lost their ride.

Knight: I appreciate hearing that.

(After more small talk, the conversation ends. Knight calls CEO)

Knight: Hi. I called her. She doesn’t want to talk to you.

CEO: She must talk to me! I have a great opportunity for her!

Knight: Based on our talk, I can save you the time and let you know she isn’t interested.

CEO: That would be foolish of her.

[Abanhfleft]

Rustam Ilyich Yudin was exhausted. No, not just exhausted; he was beat. Driving in the Abanhfleft Racing Truck Series had turned out to be an actual physical experience. Yudin actually felt like he had gone through ten rounds with a heavyweight boxer. There was definitely a lot more shoving and pushing around in this series than in NSSCRA or any other that Rustam knew. A surprising lack of wrecks though. Maybe because everyone here was used to such close quarters. Rustam was still learning his way through this whole thing. He had to avoid a lot of those drivers shoving each other, and it didn't do his race pace any good. That was an area that he had to work on; moving through traffic at a quick pace.

Rustam wanted nothing more than to jump into a sauna and let his muscles sweat away the tiredness. But before he could do that, he had to check his email for updates from the team about his performance and suggestions they had to improve the car for the next race, which happened to be the Rumble in the Rice Fields in Guilin. Those emails were there in his inbox just has he expected, but there was another email that he didn't expect to see. It was from his fellow Ceroatian and former NSSCRA teammate Pyotr Lavrentiev.

"Ah, Pyotr, my friend, so nice to hear from you," Rustam muttered in his native tongue. He read the email and then sat down in front of his laptop to compose his reply.

My dear friend Pyotr,

It's nice to hear from you again. Congratulations on finally securing a spot in Saint Kanye's racing tournaments. God knows you out of all of us deserve to be in a regular ride, and I look forward to seeing you at the top level, in KURT or NSSCRA, soon.

It's good to hear that Saint Kanye has been treating you well, brother. Abanhfleft has been kind to me as well. I've been entered into the Abanhfleft Racing Truck Series, and I'm currently driving for Manalastas-Archer Racing. Yes, one of the team owners is none other than Guillermo Archer himself. We've all heard the antics that he's been up to, and while I certainly believe that the less said about it the better, my time here in Abanhfleft and ARTS has shown me that such behavior is actually normal over here. But more about that later, my friend.

Abanhfleft is a very nice place, I have to admit. It almost makes me forget about Ceroat. Almost. There will always be no other place like home, but with current advice from the Foreign Ministry saying not to go back to the motherland just yet I am not too troubled about having to stay. This country has almost everything, from huge cities to cold plains to hot and high desert plateaus. It's almost like racing in NSSCRA, traveling between all these different biomes and locales.

About ARTS though, brother Pyotr. This racing series is a very strange one indeed. All the behaviors and tactics that Mr. Archer is using in NSSCRA and shocking us all are all apparently old hat over here. Nothing like Archer exposing the sexuality of a fellow driver, but things are still quite mad here. Just yesterday one driver publicly accused another of using a rolled titanium-steel fender to destroy the bodywork of other drivers.

The people here are very big on rivalries as well. Actual fights, with both fists and feet, are a regular occurrence over here, brother Pyotr! It's an actual wonder that anyone here is actually in any condition to drive a truck what with all the bruises and black eyes. A part of me is honestly relieved that you found your way to Saint Kanye, Pyotr. I'm not sure you would have found ARTS as much to your liking as KURT and its second tier. But, to be honest with you, I haven't experienced a lot of fights and accusations of my own. But the fact that I am racing for one of the older and more established teams in the series may have something to do with this. Mr. Manalastas and Mr. Archer both have reputations here, and the other teams are much more cautious around our team as opposed to the others. Make of it what you will, brother.

Allow me once again to congratulate you for making it to the Saint Kanye racing scene. Tell your friends at Glorious Free Republic Motorsports thank you for giving you a chance after our team collapsed, since it is because of them that we Ceroatians are finally being recognized for having decent race pace on our own. Without GFR taking you under their wing UrGa probably would not have done the same for me.

See you again soon, brother Pyotr.

Your dear friend,
Rustam Ilyich

---

"I've seen you Haps angry. I'll take my chances. Just wish you put up this much of a fight when Nexus was giving you shit cars day in and day out. No, that's too long," Guillermo Archer muttered, erasing the twii that he had typed up and trying to come up with a new one. It had been a surprise to see the Hapilopper boys (Frank Bronson, Drake Stevenson, and Chris Holmes) jumping to the defense of Alfonso Mercado after Gil had outed the latter as being gay. Gil felt no remorse for that particular action; ARTS drivers went on Chirper and, more recently, twii.tur to talk shit about their opposition all the time. The only difference about this incident was that Mercado's secret was much more personal than the usual mudslinging happening in ARTS.

Gil was surprised to see the Hap boys take Mercado's side, and it had put him in a quandary. Like the moment when he had accidentally shunted into Tyler Linde during the early stages of his rivalry with Jaguar Racing, Gil was not sure of what to do next. Like Linde, he was actually fond of the Hap boys. Gil really believed that Drake Stevenson got screwed out of a promising WGPC career by Nexus Racing and their honest-to-God stupid-looking eight-wheeler. Gil believed that Chris Holmes had the makings of an excellent stock car driver, if only he could rein in his inner prankster and get a hold of his emotions. And Gil had nothing really to say about Frank Bronson, which for those who knew Archer was quite the compliment indeed.

Then Gil remembered that the Hap boys, or Bronson at the very least, was among those still in the Chase, and his competitive nature kicked in and he geared himself up for a new fight with Team Blue. As things stood, this was an unexpected complication. Kai Qiang was not giving Gil any more ammunition to use against him, and much as he tried to tell himself to give up on Jaguar Racing their interactions had left him little choice but to continue playing himself up as the antagonist. It was no fun playing against children (JR) and a guy who won't play by the rules (Qiang), so the entrance of Team Blue into the picture could be a very welcome distraction indeed.

Recent twiis seemed to indicate that Drake Stevenson was going to be the one taking the lead of Team Blue's fight against Gil. His latest twiis included the standard good-guy "fighting against bullies" talk; nothing that Gil hadn't seen or heard before. And it was the twii responding to Stevenson that Gil was composing while he sat inside his car waiting for the adjustments to be made. Or at least that would have been the twii he sent out before he heard the horribly familiar sound of metal crunching against a barrier. "Jesus, fuck! What the fuck was that!?" he cried out as he squeezed himself out of the car to look out at the track.

"Someone just wiped out," James Santiago replied. "I think it's Bronson."

"Jesus Christ!" Gil exclaimed. And then he saw the scene of the accident itself, and he winced both physically and mentally. The green-and-white Preston was little more than a crumpled ball of metal, and there were flames licking out of the crushed body. "What the fuck happened here?" he asked.

"I saw it, man," James said. "Something fell off the back of Hendo's car." "Hendo" was Taylor Henderson, Team Blue's female driver. "Bronson drove over it and... well, there's the result."

"Jesus Christ," Gil repeated. The sheer nature of the incident was driving him to repeated blasphemy. As much as Guillermo Archer was an asshole on, and sometimes off, the track, he still had the racing driver's aversion or hatred for seeing another driver crash. No matter if it was friend or foe; Gil Archer did not like seeing another driver crash. It was that reason why he accepted his suspension by UrGa without a fight; the thought of being directly responsible for Tyler Linde potentially losing his life sickened him, and Gil himself probably wouldn't have been able to drive at full pace in the race where he had been suspended. No matter that Linde didn't see—or refused to see it that way; Gil didn't like almost killing a young driver which he saw as a friend.

And it was very much the same thing with Frank Bronson's crash. Bronson might be a Chase rival and someone who was now in Gil's sights, but that didn't mean Archer derived any satisfaction in seeing the Hapiloppian driver being hauled out of his crumpled car. All thoughts of challenging Team Blue to a fight left his mind, at least at that moment. Guillermo Archer had been fighting low and dirty the whole time he had been in NSSCRA, just as he wanted. Now it was time to take the high road.

GUILLERMO RODOLFO ARCHER ✓

@ItsGilArcher69

We may be on different sides of a certain dispute but no one deserves to be in an accident. Praying for your recovery @Frank_Bronson


#NSSCRA : #ShellshockBatteries400 : #PrayForFrank

[Vilita and Turori]

Chase Race #5 Top Scores

1 [166] :: @rubbers

2 [160] :: @King_Of_The_Mountain

3 [158] :: @ceeptrainer2

4 [154] :: @Pogoaib92

5 [150] :: @FujiKYK22

Season Event #32 Top Scores

1 [187] :: @ceeptrainer2

2 [177] :: @Lovely_Lhamu

3 [172] :: @MeghanWolcottOfficial

4 [158] :: @PinkHKluvs2718

5 [155] :: @I_Need_Healing

Chase Challenge Standings (Round 2)

1 [297] :: @rubbers

2 [296] :: @melvin_tha_gr8

- [296] :: @MeghanWolcottOfficial

- [296] :: @FujiKYK22

5 [283] :: @Filly_Gurl27

6 [280] :: @PinkHKluvs2718

7 [275] :: @ceeptrainer2

8 [271] :: @King_Of_The_Mountain

--------------------------------

9 [270] :: @eelcat827

10 [259] :: @SurfinSummer

11 [254] :: @Pogoaib92

12 [227] :: @Ametza014

Throughout the inaugural Vilita & Turori Racer NSSCRA Pick 'em campaign the story has almost exclusively surrounded the battle between a pair of Cassadaigua based participants, @Filly_Gurl27 and @PinkHKluvs2718. The duo put in a combined ten top-performance results in the Regular Season, finishing 1st and 2nd in the regular season point standings then immediately backed it up with top performance score victories in the first round of the V&T Racer NSSCRA Pick 'em Playoff Chase Challenge Competition.

It was clear that it was not a matter of if, but when the Cassadaigua duo would advance to the championship 4, and really the only question left to decide would be which of those two users would be crowned the V&T Racer NSSCRA Playoff Chase Challenge Champion.

Then, however, came the Shellshock Batteries 400. The Cassadaiguan duo certainly were left shellshocked at the results with @PinkHKluvs2718 putting in the worst score of all the twelve remaining competitors. @Filly_Gurl27 did not fair much better scoring only 8 additional points to place 10th of the 12 remaining NSSCRA Pick'em Playoff Chase Challenge contenders.

With just one race left in the Round of 12, the duo now find themselves in a precarious situation. While both are still inside the Top 8 of the Playoff Chase Challenge standings, there is little remaining room for ever as the NSSCRA circuit visits the Li River Speedway in The Sherpa Empire to close out the Round of 12. With two users having already collected top performance victories in the first two events of the Round of 12, just six spots remain in the standings for advancement through to the Round of 8. With the possibility that a participant outside the Top 8 posts the highest score for the Li River Raceway race weekend, the key position to stay ahead of is 8th as only the participants above 7th would be guaranteed if a winner comes from the bottom of the standings.

After not having had to consider points all season long due to either the massive points gap they had built up in the regular season, or through posting top performances and securing guaranteed advancement through to the subsequent rounds, @Filly_Gurl27 and @PinkHKluvs2718 were in unfamiliar territory. Just 9 points separated @PinkHKluvs2718 from the drop zone and rival @Filly_Gurl27 was faring only marginally better, 5th place in the current standings just 12 points clear of 8th placed participant @King_Of_The_Mountains of The Sherpa Empire. Of course, with it being a home event for @King_Of_The_Mountain it is widely expected that the Sherpalander will have a good round at the Li River Speedway and could play the role of spoiler for the participants currently inside the Top 8 ahead of them.


The second event of the second round of the V&T Racer NSSCRA Pick 'em Playoff Chase Challenge was won by the sometimes outspoken Tropicorp based participant @rubbers who joins @melvin_tha_gr8 as competitors guaranteed through to the Round of 8 with a chance to earn a place in the Championship 4 showdown. The two event top performers of the round also sit at the top of the point standings for the round though Cassadaigua's celebrity participant @MeghanWolcottOfficial and the Filindo competitor @FujiKYK22 are just one point behind. SherpaLander @King_Of_The_Mountain currently occupied the 8th and final projected transfer position having gained a boost from a runner-up performance aligned with the NSSCRA event in Hampton Island but has absolutely no room for error with Vilita & Turori based @eelcat827 just one point behind.

---

After a miserable opening round to the NSSCRA Season 9 Chase Playoffs, Vilita & Turori Motorsports finally got something going at the Marquette Raceway in Hampton Island. Typically for a team of VTM's stature there would be little to celebrate on a day where none of their drivers finished inside the Top 10 but the team were desperate for a strong finish from one of their Chase Drivers. Since the end of the regular season, Yraaga Gilli'i's opening round victory in Hapilopper was the only Top 10 finish of any kind by a Vilita & Turori Motorsports driver in the NSSCRA Playoff Chase. For former series champion River 'Shark' Suzgar II it was the longest stretch of races without a Top 10 since their rookie season and it has left Vilita & Turori Motorsports on the outside looking in in the Chase Playoff Standings.

After a DNF in Xanneria, Yraaga Gilli'i will likely need a victory in order to advance to the Round of 8. While the Tropicorp-backed driver is no stranger to performing in the clutch and ran out front for stretches in Hampton Island before slipping back to 7th place at races end. The strong performance cut Gilli'i's deficit to 8th place Jeremiah Brooke down to 26 points - a mathematical possibility but theoretical improbability to be made up on points alone. Considering that Gilli'i has never previously posted a Top 10 finish at the Li River Speedway it seems the #41 Tropicorp Racing Supply Dart team is hunting for a miracle in their quest to keep the NSSCRA's longest active streak of Championship 4 appearances alive.

For teammate River 'Shark' Suzgar II, just five points out of the Top 8, a strong Top 5 finish should be enough to move them into the next round but anything outside the Top 10 is not likely to be enough as Vilita & Turori Motorsports sit at risk of having no drivers in the Round of 8 for the first time. While Yraaga Gilli'i has never finished inside the top 10 at the Li River Speedway, the outlook for Suzgar is much more optimistic as the driver of the #14 Toys '4' All Hybrid Dart has finished in the Top 10 every time the NSSCRA circuit has visited the Li River Speedway, including a 4th place finish in last seasons event.

In preparation for the Sherpa Empire race weekend at the conclusion of Round 2 of the chase, it was a story once more of close but no cigar for current top-tier World Grand Prix driver iBen Toralmintii looking to earn a spot in the Guangxi Telecom 400. Toralmintii was part of The Dart Group's contingent for the Rumble in the Rice Fields, an IRACT event held one week prior to the big NSSCRA race weekend at the Li River Speedway. For the second consecutive season, an agreement was in place that the top two finishers at the Rumble in the Rice Fields would earn guaranteed open charter slots for the NSSCRA event at the track.

Just as it had one season prior, it all started out very promisingly for the two-time World Grand Prix Championship runner-up as Toralmintii would qualify on pole position for the Rumble for the second consecutive season. It wasn't long before the Turorian yielded the top spot, however, with Hapilopper's Chris Holmes taking over the top spot and dominating much of the event from that point. Holmes, who was available to run the Rumble on account of having lost their full time NSSCRA ride to Hapilopper's golden boy Drake Stevenson, would go on to take the checkered flag to earn a spot in the Guangxi Telecom 400. It was a bit of redemption for Holmes who not only earned their spot in the NSSCRA event but also demonstrated their skill to owners around the multiverse looking for new drivers - not least iBen Toralmintii who likely has an open seat at his own iBen Toralmintii's Race Eelandii! Vilita and Turori World Grand Prix Motorworks team on the World Grand Prix Circuit after Stevenson's return to full time Stock Car Racing.

Crossing the stripe behind Holmes would be top IRACT competitor and former full-time NSSCRA driver Dinggu Wang. Wang stretched their advantage over Toralmintii over the final 10 laps to ensure their place in the home nation event leaving Toralmintii on the outside looking in once more. The three drivers, Chris Holmes, Dinggu Wang and iBen Toralmintii were by far the class of the field at the Rumble with a large gap behind Toralmintii to the rest of the contestants led by a pair of UrGa motorsports drivers as well as last seasons winner Chungba Thapa.

For Toralmintii, it was the second time this season that the Turorian had been just one spot away from qualifying for an NSSCRA event. The veteran driver was favored to earn a spot in the Vilaye Energy Drink 314 through the Dart Group's Fast Lap Qualifying Challenge but was pipped to the spot by former NSSCRA and World Grand Prix teammate Juracai Klianiota. Unlesss an unexpected deal materializes between now and the end of the season, NSSCRA Season 9 will be the first that iBen Toralmintii has failed to start a race since way back in NSSCRA Season 3. The Turorian driver's best season on the circuit came in NSSCRA Season 5 where they had 4 Top 10 finishes in the opening seven races including a career best 2nd place finish at the HorusLand 400. Toralmintii's best finish at their designated home race on the circuit, the Challenge at the Rocks (or Vilaye Energy Drink 314) was a 9th place finish during NSSCRA Season 7.

[Saint Kanye]

Marquette Raceway, Marquette City, Hampton Island
After the Shellshock Batteries 400

The last time the Glorious Free Republic Motorsports drivers raced in Hampton Island, all three of them put on subpar performances, causing them to no longer want to stick around, and leave for home as soon as they can. They came into the season's second visit to the country wanting to do better this time around, but instead, it was a repeat of that terrible race almost a couple of months ago.

"It's certainly a wake-up call for us. Usually those come when you've been doing poorly, leading you to want to get better, but in our case, it came after we've been doing well, reminding us that it can't always be like that, and that we can't get too confident", Jeremiah Brooke told reporters. He limped to the line twenty-fourth in an overheating car with hardly any brakes. Added Skip Stiller, who somehow got fifteenth in an ill-handling vehicle: "Well, the next race just got more exciting, what with the Chase standings getting shaken up. All the Chasers are gonna be trying their hardest to advance to the next round, and that includes us, of course." Indeed, six of the twelve playoff drivers are within five points of each other, including both Stiller and Brooke. Only eight will advance, including defending champion Kai Qiang, who has recently won his fourth race of the season.

Nineteenth place finisher Thea Alvarez, who was already eliminated from title contention, also had some words for the reporters. "Of course I'm disappointed in my result as well. You might think that since I'm out already, the next races won't matter, but I'm still trying to get as many points possible. And I'll be trying to help my teammates as much as I can. If I'm not getting the title, I'll be seeing to it that either of them does. As much as the rules allow me, of course."

Asked about Frank Bronson's crash in pre-race practice, said, "That I was very sorry to hear. Just because he was able to still race doesn't mean that crash isn't as bad as people think", said Brooke, with Stiller adding "He got through it because he was strong. I admire that strength, and I'm hoping that he'll recover quickly and be competing with us at a hundred percent when race day comes."

Just as they did the last time, the GFR trio gathered their stuff early and were in the air before the day ended. "Can't wait to go back to Sherpaland", said Alvarez to her fellow drivers. "I'd love to take a tour of the Guilin countryside once more. Maybe that will help take our minds off our recent performance." Brooke replied, "Me too. Thing is, none of us had talked to Qiang to take us. Too bad, as it would've been a nice group with our other teammates also there." "Why don't we just go by ourselves?" suggested Stiller. "We're adults, we can find our way around."

---

Glorious Free Republic Motorsports garage area, Li River Speedway, Guilin, Sherpaland
After the Rumble in the Rice Fields

Like their full-time counterparts, GFR's Rumble participants didn't do too well, but judging by the mood in the garage area after the race, they still had fun. After all, it's hard to stay miserable in the middle of the beauty of nature in the Sherpa Empire. Sage Caldwell, Ricky Lee and Daryl Calhoun (twelfth, sixteenth and seventeenth, respectively) planned to stick around for the whole week, and they invited Recuecian Abdoulaye Goita (nineteenth) to stay too.

"Hey, Goita", Caldwell told the reigning WGP2 champ. "Even if none of us will be in next week's race, I figured it would be nice if you could watch it with us."

Calhoun added, "If you're not busy, that is. And then maybe, just maybe, we could go to Kardashia a week after that, for the race there."

"And you could stay with me this time. Unless Thea offers to take you in again. Or maybe you'd want to choose me. Your choice, really", said Caldwell again. "Point is, we think it would be cool to have you around for a couple more weeks."

"Yeah, we need a champ here to inspire us", spoke Lee. "And who's that champ? You."

---

Pyotr Lavrentiev was washing his dishes in his Kardashia residence when the alert on his laptop came: he had one new email, from Rustam Ilyich Yudin. Lavrentiev's fellow Ceroatian was talking about his new home in Abanhfleft, as well as his new career there driving for the truck series. Apparently rivalries there are nothing like Brooke's friendly competition with Stacie Houston. Drivers get rough, both physically and verbally. No wonder Guillermo Archer (incidentally the owner of Yudin's truck team) wouldn't think twice about pulling off his shenanigans in the NSSCRA, Lavrentiev thought, since that's basically what he had to put up with back at home.

Lavrentiev returned Yudin's congratulations to him on finding a new home and career, and promised to keep in touch and root for each other. He sent Yudin a link to the website where he could watch KYLE races and highlights; as for ARTS, he said that he would be waiting since Kanyean channel SKYNET Sports 12 was already working on getting broadcast rights from the owners of the Fleftic league, just as they did for the Sherpa IRACT.

---

After a few hours of flying, the GFR trio were out of their jet and in a team bus. It was a long ride to Guilin, so Alvarez and Brooke passed the time by playing a game where they counted various things on the road (among them old women on bicycles, trucks carrying animals, pink cars, green cars, Flying Fish taxis, Chadwick cars) while Stiller took videos of the journey for his vlog. Later, Alvarez just played with her toys Cocoabo #46 and Pinkerton the pink iguana, Brooke listened to One Salamida, The Hunters, the Space Ogres, and for lack of a Sherpa rock band he knows, DJ Phat Karma. Stiller stared at the window until he fell asleep.

Over in Guilin, Caldwell, Calhoun and Lee waited for their teammates by playing video games, card games and pool, and taking walks to admire the scenery, while Goita wandered around looking for drivers he knew from the open wheel scene. When the trio finally came after a couple of hours, what other teams were left were starting to pack up and go home. Alvarez ran toward Goita and attacked him with a hug, Brooke high fived Caldwell, Stiller waved to the two prospects, and soon all seven GFR drivers are in the bus, heading to the traditional inn they rented. No fancy hotels this time - the team wanted to take in the rural charm.

The next morning at four, Lee was walking back to his room after going to the bathroom when he noticed that Stiller was up and awake. "Yo", said the prospect. "Got up so early, or didn't sleep at all?"

"The former", replied the veteran. "Hey, wanna go exploring the countryside with me? Wasn't able to do so last season, but Jeremiah and Thea did."

"This early?"

"Be nice to see the sunrise, don't you think?"

"Well, whatever. Just know that I won't be of much help, I'm one quarter North Chinese, but I lived my whole life in St. Kanye so I wouldn't know how to read the signs."

"No problem, Ricky, I bought a guidebook."

---

Some random farm, Guilin, Sherpaland
Monday, around 9 am

"I thought you said you bought a guidebook", Lee told Stiller as they passed the same white barn for the sixth time. The GPS in their phones proved to be useless in such a remote place.

"I thought I still had it in my bag. I forgot that I was reading it to bed."

"So what do we do now Skip, keep wandering until we find someone who speaks English?" asked Alvarez, who joined the trek after being woken up by Stiller.

"That seems to be the plan."

"We haven't met anyone else in hours, let alone someone who can understand us", said Calhoun. Only the four of them went out exploring; Brooke, Caldwell and Goita stayed at the inn.

"Maybe we should go back to where we met that local family that time", suggested Lee.

"Problem is, we don't even know what direction that is, or if they're still there", responded Stiller.

"I say we burn down this field and wait for people to see the smoke." Calhoun got a light punch in the arm fron Alvarez for his suggestion. "I'm kidding!"

---

Preparation for the Kardashia Chadwick Dealers 400 is still underway. Kardashia Autoring management have already started sending invites to companies wishing to put up booths. Car companies were excluded; Chadwick, the race sponsor, will be the only one present. Tyler Abbott, Johnny Betta, Ashley Matthews and Lexi Patterson have still not confirmed (or denied) participation, so the track people thought that resending their invites won't hurt. The armbands made by the TJUN-ians for the Pencurve Electronics 500 in Jalton proved popular, so another order was placed. And finally, Rich Discount Stores, who sponsored Goita in the Pencurve, confirmed that they will appear on the #19 vehicle of Sage Caldwell in Kardashia.

---

"It's three in the afternoon and Skip and the others still haven't come back. Do tours around this place usually take that long?" Caldwell asked Brooke as they are watching (or rather, looking at) a black and white kung fu movie, undubbed and unsubbed.

"That depends on whether you know the place or not. Qiang took us last season; the only reason we took long was because we wanted to really take in the view."

"They never talked to a local though, did they?"

"They're adults, they can find their way around."

---

"We can find our way around. Pfft!"

"Stop mocking me, Thea! Okay, this was poorly planned, I admit. But as long as we stick together, we can find a way back. However long it takes."

"Oh, come on! Did you really have to say that last part, Skip?" asked Lee. "And for goodness sake, are we heading toward that same freakin' barn again?"

"Shut up."

"No, you shut up!"

"No, really, Ricky, shut up. Someone's coming."

It was the Northwesterosi team. Liuyong Xu was taking Paul Nystrom and Tyler Linde on a tour, but they had a van with them. Xu told the Yeezies to get in the back, and they went on their merry way, staying to watch the sunset later.

That night, Stiller and his companions told Brooke, Caldwell and Goita what had happened to them that day, and much laughing ensued. "It was so crazy, man. You had to be there!" Stiller told Brooke. "No way", was the reply. "See, this is why you bring locals along." "Or a guidebook", added Alvarez. More laughing.

The next day was a rest day, and the day after that, they agreed to go on a proper tour with Xu and the Norwesties. The rest of the week was spent on practice, with the prospects observing the trio and even trying their hand at the simulators themselves. With all that had gone on that week in Sherpaland, the Hampton Island fiasco had been all but forgotten.

[Cassadaigua]

The Fantasy Life,
by Jessica Robinson

I would like to thank Five Star Mobile for partnering with Team Cassadaigua to allow me to publish a blog about playing a fantasy game. If you play V&T Racer, or if you have been following it, then you know me as FIlly_Gurl27. Somehow, I have been able to become the dominant player in this competition, and I can’t believe what all of this has led too. I was just a simple fan at home, seeing this contest, and I decided to play it. I went with Stacie, but other then that, I was picking drivers that I thought could do well. I gained a lot of points by getting Taylor Henderson in a lower tier, and then Guillermo Archer out of tier 5. I was kind of surprised that more people did not go with Archer. For me, it seemed like a very easy pick, given that he was coming from a nation in Abanhfleft that has been good in everything they have done. The guy from Banija got a lot of play, too, and I know you could say the same thing about them. However, the Abanhfleft intent seemed greater then Banija’s from the get go, with the three car national sign up. This was going to be the one to watch, and Archer seemed to be top driver they were offering. Henderson, too, was an easy pick for me. Why not pick someone from Hapilopper after they had done so well in their first season?

Guillermo Archer is a big reason I am where I am today. Five Star Mobile has offered generous cash bonuses along the way if certain criteria were met, and I have been able to pick up a chunk of that. I am hoping to do more, but one of the first things I used that money on was to purchased an autographed Guillermo Archer diecast. He’s an aggressive driver on the track, but sometimes the races need a guy like him to make it interesting.

Eventually, during the regular season, Hannah Kennedy, otherwise known as PinkHKLuvs2718 began cutting into my lead, and I felt it was pretty cool to see another Cassadagan doing well, and was glad that she was my top contender. I had never met her before, but we had exchanged private messages on Twii’tur to get to know one another a little bit. During the Five Star Mobile 500, we met face to face as well as meeting Stacie Houston privately. That was so amazing and something I will never forget. All of this has happened so fast and more keeps coming. I have even been able to exchange private messages with Meghan Wolcott. We will be able to meet in person once the World Cup is over and she has promised to give me a bunch of World Cup swag! I can’t believe all of this is really happening!

Well, I am actually close to the cut line going into this final race, and it is fun being the person everyone is shooting for. It makes me realize what it is like to be someone like Stacie Houston. She is close to the cut line, too, and I am sure she is going into this race with a lot of confidence and is going to make it a great day! So, I will do the same thing! Thanks for reading!

---

Kardashia Open Charter Race Request: Team Cassadaigua would like to use this on a #29 machine for Maddie Alexander instead of Tyler Abbott. SubHouse will still be the sponsor, and it will look just like the #17 car but with a new number.

[New Northwesteros]

Tyler Linde ran the Rumble in the Rice Fields like he had something to prove, because he really did. Dinggu Wang is now his IRACT teammate, and he wanted to make him proud. For the other locals, he wanted to show them what to expect of him in the upcoming IRACT season. And the foreigners? He wanted them to not overlook New Northwesteros when talking about countries with capable drivers. Linde's efforts ultimately paid off, as after spending the entire race within the top twenty, he finished tenth, his first top ten in an international race. Not enough to get one of the two open charters for the NSSCRA race, but still a very solid result in his mind. He went over to Wang, who took runner-up honors, and said "Great race, right? Congrats!" This was simple enough that Linde hoped Wang would understand, but just in case, he repeated his words to Elyse the translator.

That night, some of the Nanchang drivers decided to induct Linde into the club with a round of drinks. It didn't take long for the others to start laughing and joking around; not wanting to miss out, Linde asked Elyse to translate some of the jokes for him. Some were puns that made no sense in English, but the others were simple enough for Linde to laugh at as well once translated. At the end of the night, all of the drivers can't see straight and were reduced to babbling that was neither Chinese nor English. Elyse started dancing around and telling people that she's Kai Qiang (for some reason) before disappearing. Linde found her the next morning sleeping in a flower bed.

Since his translator was out of commission for the meantime, Linde decided to go with Liuyong Xu instead. Xu asked if Linde wanted to see the Guilin countryside, which he accepted. Paul Nystrom, their other teammate, also said that he'll go along. So it was quickly settled. Xu hired a van and told the other two to meet up with them that afternoon.

Meanwhile, Direwolf Auto Team, Linde, Xu and Nystrom's NSSCRA team, have made some statements regarding their plans for next season. Firstly, they would try to buy back the number 99 from the struggling Banijan team, using it to replace Xu's 9 car. Also, they have said that Linde is "likely" to be in a chartered car next season. Whether this means that the team will have two charters, or that Linde will take Nystrom's charter, is unknown as of the moment.

[Hapilopper]

Li River Speedway, Guilin, Guangxi Territory, The Sherpa Empire
Leading up to the Guangxi Telecom 400
Any time a Team Blue crew member or driver walked by the garage containing car 56, they got a little uneasy. Any time Chris Holmes walked past the Team Blue Center, there was a shred of uneasiness. Race weekend in the Sherpa Empire marked the first time in a while that Chris would be competing in the NSSCRA, but this time, he would be driving for a different operation than Team Blue. Instead, he would be driving for a new team, Hawking-Byrd Motorsports, an organization apparently formed from Scott Hawking’s shoestring operation, Chet Byrd’s involvement and an undisclosed amount of factory support from Preston Autos.

Drake Stevenson and Deacon Myers, the car chief for the 81 car, were standing outside the Team Blue Center smoking a cigarette when Chris Holmes and Chet Byrd walked by. The four men stared coldly at each other before Chet and Chris went on their way. There was some obvious animosity between the groups, owing to the way Chet and Chris had been essentially turfed from Team Blue months earlier. To see the animosity between the two parties was a shame, though. Drake had taken Chris in as a protégé, but couldn’t stomach Chris’s constant stupidity, and the incident at the Jungle Fever Party had been, to put it mildly, the last straw.

There were no words shared between the two parties. Drake took a drag from his cigarette, looked at Deacon and shook his head.

“You wonder if they learned their lesson,” Drake said. Deacon chuckled.

Meanwhile, Frank was standing outside his own race car as Mark Arbuckle, Team Blue HASCAR driver, was sitting in the driver’s seat. Hours after returning from Hampton Island, Frank went to Allison Memorial in Hapilopper City where he underwent surgery to stabilize two broken ribs from his grinding practice crash. Titanium plates were installed to stabilize his ribs, and in an effort to recover from the injury, Mark would practice and qualify the 8 car, while Frank would start the race and make every attempt to run as much of the race as he could.

But Team Blue had a plan to take Frank out during the first caution and put Mark in the car. Frank didn’t like the idea, but the team was not willing to budge.

The idea generated something of an argument in the Team Blue Center among Frank and several Team Blue administrators.

“Look, I hurt, but I’m fine,” Frank said. “I go out there and I don’t even think about the pain. It’s not going to be an issue.”

“But it WILL be an issue if you have another wreck and you get hurt again,” shot back Amanda McAlister, the team’s principal. “That’s what we’re concerned about. We can give you all the flak jackets and all the shock therapy units you want, but that’s not going to stop you from reinjuring yourself if you get wrecked.”

“It’s a risk I’m willing to take,” Frank said. “Nobody else is driving my car. Period.”

“Frank, we’re just trying to protect you,” Amanda said, exasperated but understanding. “We don’t want you out there because the chance exists that you’re going to wreck. You’re driving a race car at speed. You lose control and you hit something hard enough, you’re going to re-injure yourself and possibly make things worse than they already are. I appreciate you gutting it out, but just listen to us this time. I don’t need you killing yourself just to prove a point.”

“Kill myself? God damn it, Amanda, I’m trying to win the championship!” Frank snapped. The level of anger in Frank’s voice surprised the other people in the room. “This is the best chance I’ve had at winning a title in 20 years, and you’re just going to take it from me? I don’t want to hear this bullshit about trying to protect me. I’m trying to win the title.”

“Frank, it’s not worth it,” Amanda tried to reason. “We love you too much for you to take this kind of unnecessary risk. I get how important the NSSCRA title is to you and to all of us. I get it. We all do. But we want you to live to fight another day and live to fight for another championship, whether it’s NSSCRA, HASCAR or whatever. If you don’t win it this year, it’s not the end of the world.”

Frank looked at the other people in the room and thought about his response for an uncomfortably long time. The emotions of giving his car up to another driver were getting to him. It was nothing against Mark, and everyone knew it. Mark knew it too. Race car drivers hated the idea of someone else driving their car. The idea – even thinking about it – seemed gross.

“Amanda,” Frank said quietly, slowly, and very seriously. “I know it’s not the end of the world. You’re right. I know you’re right.”

Before he could say anything else, he looked around the room at the other people – Mark Arbuckle, the relief driver; Sal Freeman, his crew chief; Russ Jimerson, the team’s competition director; and Andrew Simpson, one of the team’s leading technology men. He was thinking about what to say next and it was getting to him in more than one way. Amanda knew he wasn’t done talking and let him take his time. She knew it was hard for him emotionally, to let someone else drive his car. But she was doing what was right.

“But you need to understand one thing. I don’t know how many more chances I’m going to get,” Frank said, looking past everyone in the room. “I’m 41 years old. I haven’t had many chances like this. I won HASCAR in 2000 and then lost my ride the next year. I spent almost 20 years looking for a top-shelf ride. But almost every time, I’d get the same responses: ‘You’re not what we’re looking for.’ ‘Our team is full.’ ‘We don’t think you’d mesh well with our team.’ So I rode around driving some shitbox cars, trying to do something with nothing. Then Team Blue called asking if I wanted to drive. It took some getting used to but I could still win races.

“And now here I am, possibly in a position to either advance for a championship or get eliminated,” Frank continued, now looking Amanda square in the eye. “I have to win and I feel like I can. Nothing against Mark. I know he’s great and he’ll be a champ one day soon. But I can win in that car and I don’t know if Mark can. I don’t want my championship hopes being decided at the hands of another driver, especially when this could be my last chance.”

Amanda slowly nodded her head understanding Frank’s position. But she wasn’t budging.

“I got you,” she said. “I really do. But what keeps me up at night is the prospect of you crashing again like you did last week and something going horribly wrong. I don’t want to see you suffer a career-ending injury or worse because we didn’t take you out of the car and then you hit something really hard. I don’t want that on my conscience. You’re getting out of the car at the first caution and Mark is getting in. This is not a negative mark on you, Frank, nor is this a vote of no confidence. You’ve helped keep this team together through some real bad moments. We’re doing this because we want to keep you. We’re doing this because we love you.”

Frank looked around, towards the ground, breathed heavily and then looked back to Amanda and nodded his head.

“Fine,” Frank said quietly before walking out of the room. Nobody in the room held it against him. These were all racers who had seen how difficult it was, emotionally, for a driver to give up his seat in his car for another driver. Never mind it happening in a scenario like this – where Frank essentially had to win to make it to the next round of the NSSCRA Chase.

[Wrecker]

Li River Speedway, Guilin, Guangxi Territory, The Sherpa Empire
Leading up to the Guangxi Telecom 400
Chris Holmes and Chet Byrd walked past Drake Stevenson and a crew guy unknown to either of the two. There was plenty that both Chris and Chet wanted to say, but there had been way too many people around, and neither wanted to start an incident right then and there before Chris even hit the track. It was his first NSSCRA weekend with the new Hawking-Byrd team, and he wanted to make an impression on the rest of the NSSCRA garage and to the millions that watched every week across the multiverse.

For starters, Chris wanted to show the world that he had changed. He wanted to show people that he was no longer that manchild that liked to do stupid things just for a laugh. The weapons-grade fireworks had been left in Hapilopper City. Any idea of blowing up a toilet or driving an expensive luxury car into a hotel swimming pool had left his mind. He had cut his hair, too. Rather than showing up with those long brown locks of his, Chris’s hairstyle resembled more a military flattop look, maybe to show people that he meant business.

There had also been changes in his personal life. During the time between his dismissal from Team Blue and the day he showed up in Sherpaland, Chris and Claire Randall went their separate ways. Claire had decided she had grown tired of Chris’s antics, and told him just before the last World Cup qualifying match of Hapilopper’s cycle that she couldn’t stay with someone who wouldn’t grow up.

“I don’t need someone who’s always acting like some juvenile punk,” Claire told him. “I’m going to move on and you do too.”

Chris had been working on getting a new house in Hapilopper City, but that fell through when he and Claire split up. But it was around that time that Chet called him up, informing him of a new opportunity that was building through the buyout of Scott Hawking’s organization.

It turns out that Chet, with the assistance of the Preston Automobile Company, was in the process of purchasing controlling interest in the team, a move that would dramatically increase the budget of the team. For starters, the team would have a budget that would more than clear its travel costs and its equipment costs. No more would Scott Hawking have to rely on old used parts and take it easy with what he had. Now he could run better, faster equipment that could bring him more success.

Even better, the team was in the process of signing huge sponsorship deals with two big companies, now that Chet Byrd and Preston Autos had gotten involved. Warner Hall Pizza, one of the top restaurant chains in all of Wreckeria, agreed to sponsor one car, while Good Motor Oil, a brand of gas stations in both Wreckeria and Hapilopper, agreed to sponsor the other. Scott Hawking could now run a team with a proper budget.

Chet and Chris talked over the phone for about an hour and a half telling him about these new opportunities. It would require Chris to move to Wreckeria, but it would also give Chris some new scenery that he might have needed.

“You see, Holmes, I think some new scenery would help you more than you think,” Chet said. “Wreckeria’s a nice place. Halsted’s a nice town and it’s got a lot of great people. We can build this new team to be a good as Team Blue. What do you say?”

“Hell, why not?” Chris replied. “I think we can do it.”

The changes had already become evident. Part of the Hawking-Byrd team had been in Sherpaland for over a week, having competed in the IRACT-sanctioned Rumble in the Rice Fields, and dominated the race, taking a convincing victory over Dinggu Wang and iBen Toralmintii. A few days later, while hanging out with Hawking-Byrd crewmembers at a local restaurant, Chris remarked that the car “felt just like a Team Blue car.”

“I heard something about how these cars were shitboxes, and honestly I couldn’t see it,” Chris said. “That car was fast. You guys know how to set up a race car. It felt like a Team Blue car, not some used piece of junk that someone said.”

“Well, that little investment we got from Preston helped,” a crew member said. “You should have seen what we had to deal with.”

Either way, the improvements were being seen back home. Scott Hawking no longer had to rely on his garage in the backyard of his house, much to the relief of his neighbors. He had purchased a warehouse to convert into a race shop in an industrial park in Halsted, a few miles from his house. The team could hire more people to do more specialized tasks, allowing them to do their specialized task better, rather than having to do everything at once.

And on this day in Sherpaland, Scott looked, and felt, more at ease than he had felt in weeks past. He had given up his charter, having felt like his team hadn’t been up to the standard of an NSSCRA team. This change, though, would bring his team up to what he felt was that standard. The new start for the Hawking-Byrd team was this weekend.