Drag Strip Racer by Matt Christopher

Author:Matt Christopher [Christopher, Matt]
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Tags: General, Fiction
ISBN: 9780316095532
Google: 3rSeY2KeCXkC
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Published: 2009-12-19T05:00:00+00:00

NINE

KEN WRACKED HIS BRAIN trying to think of a place to practice driving his car. They were on the highway heading back toward Wade, but he didn’t feel like returning home just yet.

Only the buzzing drone of the Ford’s engine and the hum of the tires on the road cut into the otherwise silent cab of the pickup. They passed by fields of short-cropped grass, feathery-foliaged jacaranda trees, and tall, single-trunked palms. It was while passing a field in which cattle grazed, placidly ignoring the white egrets that stood on their backs feasting on bugs, that Ken thought of a place. The field just north of here, off Lychee Road. An old abandoned airport.

A smile creased his face as he stepped on the gas and sped to the junction where Lychee Road turned off the highway. Four miles farther on they were there.

He stopped the truck in front of the gate leading onto the field, gazed at the weather-beaten hangar and the black-topped runway, which had begun to sprout stubbles of grass, and smiled again. “Perfect!” he exclaimed. “Now if we can get permission to use it.”

He turned the truck around and drove to a small ranch house about a mile back. The man who answered his knock was the abandoned airport’s owner. Ken kept his mental fingers crossed as he asked for permission to drive his car on the runway. He wouldn’t be there more than half an hour, he promised.

The man—a tall, rotund figure in overalls—glanced past Ken’s shoulder at the little red car sitting on the trailer and, without blinking an eye, said, “Sure, you can. It’ll be the first time anything’s been on that runway in five years.”

Ken was instantly alight with excitement. “Thank you. Is the gate locked?”

“Just lift up the chain,” the man told him.

Ken thanked him again, then returned to the truck and drove back down the road to the gate. He got out, lifted the chain from the fence post, swung the gate open on groaning, rusty hinges, and drove in.

He parked beside the old building, which he could see now had part of a damaged airplane’s fuselage inside of it. Then he unloaded the racer, put on his firesuit, helmet, and gloves, and drove the car onto the airstrip.

Sitting behind the wheel again filled him with excitement. The sound of the motor was like an eight-piece orchestra joined in perfect harmony, and he was the man with the baton.

He nodded to his sisters, who were standing by the pickup, watching him with eager faces.

Then he pulled back the gear lever and stepped on the gas. He pushed the pedal down only about two-thirds of the way. He didn’t want to start off with full power just yet. Treat it kindly the first two or three times, he figured, then put the pressure on it.

The Chevy leaped forward without a hint of hesitation, each piston responding like a musician the instant the baton signaled the command.

Ken then pressed the accelerator to the floor and felt the car take off under him.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.