This blog was written by Derrick Carlisle, Jaguar Racing's Social Media Manager
After an entertaining weekend on the many tracks of Vilita, it's off to the coast now for Round 7 of the NSSCRA X season. Yes, we're back on the half-road/half-sand long boi known as the Tropicoast Beach Course here in Tropicorp for what was expected to be 2 very entertaining races: the Tropicorp Sifaka 300k in Contenders today and the main series Tropicorp 500 tomorrow. But what about the Vilaye Clash? Well, you all know what happened but due to an arrangement, I can only mention a few things today.
Let's start with T1 qualifying and Alfonso Mercado (@AM64) who started 7th in the 2nd Heat of the Clash's Open Heats, the process of qualifying for the main show itself. That's all I can say for know but no matter what happened in Vilisorma, he certainly acted better today than he did at the Ring last Friday. With how long this track is and two surfaces to tame, some drivers were better than others and Mercado certainly took advantage today, qualifying as the last non-charter in 21st, just ahead of open-charter Euroli Islander and more than a tenth ahead of Sword Island's Kassie Collins. It looks like a return to form for the #64 team, no matter if they are participating in the Pit Crew Competition or not. The #64 were not allocated a spot in the event but it could take up a spot as one of the final 2, depending on a fan vote for anyone attending the races this weekend. It won't be a dealbreaker if they don't make this competition, but it would be fun nonetheless.
As for Michael Stefan (@Stefan07), his crew already have a spot in the Competition already but that doesn't make up for the fact he had the worst qualifying of the JR drivers today. I mean sure, 31st compared to 21st isn't really that much of a difference, but still, it's a bit of history repeating itself here on Tropicoast. Alfonso was the better driver when we turned up here for NSSCRA 9 and it would appear as though it may stay that way this weekend. I don't know what is causing Stefan to struggle on the sands of this shore, but maybe that is a rare flaw that he will need to improve on at some point.
Clearly, we live in a gender-neutral series as the Top 4 for tomorrow are all women - Thea Alvarez just ahead of a Valentine Z 2-3-4, Gwen ahead and Clarissa and Anastasia. Anavella Ariiki was the highest non-charter in 6th while Cocoabo #78 did well to make it in 11th. Lexi Patterson and Frank Bronson once again impressed in 15th and 16th respectively while Ganglie Zhe just beat Alfonso Mercado to 20th, Chris Holmes nowhere to be seen as he was fired by HBM. A sad end for a great driver like him and hopefully, he will be back soon. Micheal Rush and Shigeru Ishikawa did great jobs in the Top 20 while Hengxing Tian managed 23rd, ahead of a whole host of great drivers in this mixed-up grid.
But if #64 isn't voted into the Pit Crew Comp, maybe #03 will. Maddison Riley-Jones (@MaddyRJ03) was also in action today in Contenders as she tried to make up ground on the top of the leaderboard. Robin Dragonovic started this race on pole ahead of Lexie Shelby and Maddie Alexander, with our Maddy starting down in 14th. It would turn out to be a chaotic day on the coast, with 6 drivers failing to make the end, but it was a good day for both drivers with similar names: Maddie winning this race while Maddy climbed up to 7th in the end, both getting important points in the standings. Al Shelton and Rustam Ilyich Yudin completed the podium with Robin falling to 11th from pole. Contenders are at it again and Maddy now finds herself back up to 8th in this te=ight battle for 2nd, the other Maddie now with a 24 point advantage at the top of the tree.
No matter what happens on race day, the Tropicorp 500 will certainly be a blast! See you tomorrow!
Current Standings: (T1) #07 - 21st (155pts)/#64 - 33rd (75pts)/(T2) #03 - 10th (152pts)
Next T1 Race: Tropicorp 500, Tropicoast Beach Course, Tropicorp
Next T2 Race: Tropicorp Sifaka 300K, Tropicoast Beach Course, Tropicorp
(Updated on Sundays to avoid confusion)
She sat on the beach in the full moon with a sense of belief and joy in her mind. Maddy was enjoying the moonlight and the shoreline while she thought about the events of the last few days. While her performance in the race earlier was certainly an improvement, she had a suspicion that it may be due to what happened the day before. The 2nd meet up with Robin Dragonovic. She didn't even intend for it to happen yesterday as she hadn't heard from the South Newlandian since she sent out letter no. 2 in Vilita. But, just like how she walked over to him in Sun City, Robin would do the same on the beach on Friday.
RD: Hey Maddy! Good to see you!
MRJ: O-oh, Hello Robin! Nice t-to see you too!
RD: Thank you for your letter! What have you been up to?
MRJ: Oh, n-nothing much really! It’s n-nice that I’ve got the T1 guys again for a few r-races, but I’ve been o-on a bit of a slump...obviously. But I’m n-not giving up just yet and who knows, m-maybe the sand will do wonders for my racecraft! How about y-yourself?
RD: Oh, I’m okay. Yeah, you had some bad luck the last few races, but we all know that you’ve got the talent to get back to winning really soon.
MRJ: Really? Thanks f-for the optimism, I hope it’s contagious! So...racing on a beach, eh?
RD: Yeah, it really is weird to go from the desert to the freezing cold to the beach, and it’s kind of interesting to see who can quickly adjust on the fly. That’s what I love about NSSCRA; every race is different!
MRJ: Indeed. Y’know, t-this whole coastline reminds m-me of my hometown, Wollongmatta Bay. Just add, you know, an entire city and you’ve basically got what it’s like. Both urban metropolis and coastal beauty in the s-same spot. It’s weird, but a-also cool at the same time!
RD: Your hometown sounds lovely! I wish I grew up on a real beach instead of the cold cliffs of northern South Newlandia.
MRJ: Unless y-you want sand everywhere, then it may not be the best. Peninsula doesn’t have a beach either, but it d-does have a bay - the Bay of Peace. It’s kinda like a mid-major city which is s-stuck in the shadows of TJUN-ia City but due to the Jungle Circuit, it’s kinda gotten its own identity as “Race Town”. It’s a blast nonetheless and h-hopefully you will enjoy it just as much as I do.
RD: Oh, I’m sure I will! And what a beautiful name that is for a bay.
MRJ: Definitely. A little corny, considering TJUN and all that jazz, but it works! Now, t-this question may seem weird, but it’s been a thought many in TJUN-ia have had back home. Why is it called “South Newlandia”? W-where is “North Newlandia” or whatever?
RD: Well, it’s less exciting than most think it is, honestly. There is no North Newlandia; when South Newlandia was discovered, people just decided that it was south and also new. According to the legend, they made that decision on a Friday just before midnight; I know I am not creative at that time.
MRJ: Fair enough. TJUN-ia did the same. In o-our culture, we believe there are 3 universes and in Universe 2, TJUN decided it wanted a “testing ground” for its Representatives. So, it made its way to this universe, what we call “Universe 3” and just decided to call the nation they founded “TJUN-ia” because t-they simply couldn’t think of any other option. It sounded unoriginal as hell but it stuck, like really stuck and so...that’s that.
RD: Wow, that sounds very interesting! I guess we actually have more in common than we thought.
MRJ: I g-guess so. It’s always interesting going to new places and meeting o-other cultures. Not that SNL is considered “new” by TJUN-ian standards, but still!
RD: I’m going to be honest, I never knew much about foreign countries. Most of the things I know are from the World Cup Qualifiers, when South Newlandia played TJUN-ia.
MRJ: Oh yeah, f-fair enough. Football is the “Global Game” after all, so it’s understandable that you have heard of TJUN-ia through that. In fact, SNL has never lost a game to TJUN-ia. So...yeah!
RD: I’ve been in the stadium for the match South Newlandia hosted. I was a student at Newport Politics Institute at the time, so it wasn't a big way. In retrospect, I’d rather have attended a game with, you know, goals, but it was pretty good.
MRJ: There is a reason why TJUN-ia’s football team is r-referred to as t-the “Draw Masters”. No matter the outcome, we a-always seem to end up with a point one way or another. Like, in our debut tournament, we only won 1 game and d-drew most of the rest in the groups. We’re known for getting draws out of nothing in the past, sometimes for good and other f-for bad. I guess that sums up TJUN-ia for you: no matter what happens, we always g-get something in the end.
RD: South Newlandian football has always been more “all-or-nothing”, so I guess those Qualifiers were a weird tournament for both of us. I think TJUN-ia only drew a few and South Newlandia drew a lot, right?
MRJ: Yeah, that happens, but we’ve been through worse before. The main reason they became the “Draw Masters” was due to WC85 Qualifying. We played 24 games. How many do you think we drew?
RD: Oh, I’ve got no idea. I only remember two games from that tournament, to be honest. 11, maybe?
MRJ: You’re...absolutely correct! 11 draws and only 6 wins with that. Very interesting and very f-frustrating at the same time!
RD: I can certainly believe that! We can be glad there are no draws in racing.
MRJ: Yeah, that would be weird. Imagine after racing full race distance only for everyone to get the same amount of points. No one would really win, would they?
RD: No, no one would feel like a winner at least.
MRJ: Indeed. Everything would be all for nought. Everything…
RD: A big waste of everyone's time.
MRJ: May as well just not run it at all.
RD: Yeah. May I ask, what do you do when you’re not racing? I’d be curious about what you do for work.
MRJ: Well, mostly simulator work and stuff like that but other than that...not much really. I don’t really have a life, per se, outside of JR. I don’t really have much in the way of people to talk to outside of JR...apart from you, of course. I mean...I’m not really the social type so I just...stayed in my lane all the time. It’s definitely something I have to work on but i-it’s really hard.
RD: Yeah, I know what you feel like. I had, or still have, similar problems, too. But I think it’s really awesome that you can make a living from racing alone!
MRJ: Indeed. What about you? Do you have something beyond the whole “Representing-my-nation-in-motorsports” thing?
RD: I… really don't, honestly. I don't really have a direction to go in at the moment, not since I dropped out of university.
MRJ: Oh..fair enough. I guess that's another similarity between us. We don’t have much of a life beyond the Everlong journey. Sorry for the pun, I j-just thought i-it was fitting.
RD: Heh, no worries, I like puns. And you are right, too.
MRJ: Cheers, I guess...Uh...So...you’ve been alright since we last spoke?
RD: Yeah, I’ve been mostly alright. The race results are still surprisingly good for me, so I can’t really complain.
MRJ: Surprisingly good? Mate, y-your one of the best drivers out there! You're a race winner in waiting. Is this truly a surprise because from my perspective, it certainly isn’t.
RD: Thank you! That's nice of you to say that, but I am not an actual race winner, like you are. I don’t really consider myself one of the top drivers of the Everlong series, but I’m taking whatever I can get.
MRJ: Really? I mean...you are a good driver, mate. You always have. I mean, you’re ahead of me in the standings - of course your good! Why wouldn’t you be!
RD: Thank you, but at the end of the day, the thing that really matters is winning races. I haven’t won one yet, and I doubt that will change very soon, honestly.
MRJ: Look...I didn’t really think I was going t-to win a race either. The whole point of t-this season was to be an introduction to NSSCRA racing and to try and make JR proud in a new series and...you know that happened. If I can win a race, I’m sure you can!
RD: Thank you… for believing in me. I’m certainly going to try to win, you can count on that.
MRJ: No problem. Someone has to believe in you or else y-you may as well not exist. Belief is a powerful force and if you have b-belief, you can do almost a-a-anything. I hope you get that dub one day because I know y-you can, I can see it in you...mate.
RD: Thank you so much, honestly. I’m sure you’ll be back on top of the podium soon enough as well.
MRJ: Thank y-you, mate. I’ll certainly try, as I know you will too.
RD: Alright, I’ve got to go now. I hope we can stay in touch; and because you gave me my number, I thought I’d give you mine as well, if you don’t mind?
MRJ: I d-d-don’t mind at all! It’s o-o-only fair, I g-g-guess?
RD: Yeah, exactly. I’ll see you on the racetrack!
MRJ: Same to you! So long, mate!
Robin left the scene and even one day later, Maddy felt it really did go better than last time. She certainly felt connected to Robin through their similarities and she knew there may be more as well. Maybe that meeting helped them both come race day, with Maddy putting in a good performance in 8th and while Robin was 11th, he started on pole - a definite sign that maybe she was right about calling him a "race winner in waiting".
She went into her pocket and produced the contact information Robin gave her that day. It may just be on a piece of paper but to Maddy, it may as well have been on gold sheets. It was the first time she actually exchanged information with someone else and she felt like it was her duty to protect it and to use it wisely. The main question is, when would it be wise to try these out. If she was nervous in person, she especially was n the phone. E-mail may work but again when would be the right time? She pondered these questions while at the same time realising what she said that day. She referred to him as "mate", a popular expression back home. Is Robin her mate, or just an acquaintance? Did he pick that up? In the end, maybe Robin was her friend. Maybe she had someone, after all this time, to talk to. Someone to rely on. Someone you could tell your darkest secrets...
(The conversation was made in collaboration with South Newlandia. If possible, a portion of the RP bonus can be given to them. They deserve it
)
