Chapter 41 Pole Position
On the track, Wu Shi twisted his neck; it was his turn to set his lap time.
He floored the accelerator a few times, the engine humming intermittently, and after confirming his complete control over the vehicle, he began laps.
sieve!
The vehicle accelerates to its top speed on the straight road and then crosses the grid lines, at which point the timer begins.
"It's starting!" Louise shouted.
Seth took a deep breath. Whether he had made the right choice or not, today would tell!
A race car driver needs not only unparalleled skills, but also an unparalleled mindset. In his first competition like this, will Wu Shi make mistakes due to nervousness or being too eager?
These are things that cannot be seen during regular training.
Rustle!
Wu Shi felt the wind hit the race car and then flow backward along the outer shell.
The air intake on the left continuously draws in fresh air and sends it into the engine.
Buzz!
He noticed something was wrong with the engine, and by slightly easing off the accelerator, the problem was quickly resolved.
By then, he had arrived at Turn 1.
When navigating this type of corner, it's difficult to gain a significant lap time by taking it normally. He entered the corner 0.1 seconds later than everyone else, and when exiting the corner, he made full use of the track and grip, achieving an exit speed similar to everyone else.
If you look at the comparison curves, you'll see that Wu Shi's car was already slightly ahead as soon as it entered Turn 1, and maintained that lead as it exited the turn.
On the straightaway, everyone's speed is limited, and everyone will step on the gas.
However, when entering the combination bend, Wu Shi's tracking brakes were slightly delayed again.
Squeak! Squeak!
The tires made a screeching sound as they rubbed against the ground.
"It's skidding!"
"No, the vehicle has stabilized."
"He's driving so fast, can he control the car?"
Some dissenting voices emerged on the field.
However, Wu Shi did not correct his steering, and with the car on the verge of skidding and losing control, he directly entered the combination bend.
He deliberately avoided several of the apex bends because there was a certain height difference between the bend and the ground there. If he took too much of a bend, the vehicle would bounce up, which would mean a temporary loss of grip.
In his plan, every bit of grip, every moment, needs to be fully utilized.
"There are differences after crossing the route."
"Yes, but it's obviously more concise and faster."
"It is indeed very fast, but can this state be maintained indefinitely? If there is even a slight deviation, the running time might be lost significantly, right?"
"I think this is a suitable running style for qualifying. Once the race starts, a more conservative running style will be needed."
The audience consists of either veteran drivers and coaches or long-time enthusiasts who are quite knowledgeable about the specific aspects of racing. By simply observing the car at each point on the track, they can discern the driver's driving style.
After passing the bend, Wu Shi felt unwell, probably because he hadn't eaten well that morning and felt nauseous.
He suppressed his nausea and continued to focus on his entry line into the corner. Because of the high speed, he would sometimes deviate slightly from the apex of the corner, but this deviation would not lose much time and was completely within his control.
Wow!
For the next long stretch, Wu Shi ran quite smoothly. As he was about to cross the finish line, most people subconsciously looked at the timing board.
call!
A moment later, the timer flashed, and a score appeared.
1:16.773.
"hiss!"
"incredible!"
"What's going on?"
"Wow, driving a mini car to this level."
Exclamations of surprise rose and fell.
"Who is number 398? I need to know his information immediately!" a team leader from out of town said to the person next to him.
Sid stood next to Raul. Although he had resigned, he was still a shareholder of Laya, which was quite normal here.
"Mr. Raul, do you see that? Pole position, an indisputable pole position," he said softly.
Raul remained unmoved, sitting in his chair and looking at the field in front of him.
"Unbelievable! My God!"
Seth jumped up immediately; normally, this guy would never run a lap like that.
"Indeed, his talent should have come to Europe." Martina smiled. Last night, she had specifically told the little guy to run with all his might and not to hold back.
Your path will only be clear when your performance is excellent enough to dispel any doubts.
She now only hopes that Wu Shi can maintain this level of performance in the next few years. As long as he performs well enough in the World and European Karting Championships, she will be able to help him find a Formula Renault team that is willing to take him on.
Whew~
As soon as the race car pulled into the pit lane and stopped, Wu Shi got out of the car, and Seth rushed over to give him a big hug.
"Team leader, are you trying to strangle me?!" Wu Shi exclaimed hurriedly.
"Sorry, sorry, I was just too excited!" Seth blurted out without thinking.
"Wu Shi, do you usually hold back when you run?" a teammate asked as he stepped forward.
"I only added a little bit," Wu Shi said, scratching his head.
You're a pervert!
His teammate sighed. He'd be lucky if he could get under 18 seconds, but this guy clocked 16 seconds. He was sure the race organizers would be coming to inspect his car soon.
"Get some rest. You'll start from pole position for the final race this afternoon. Let's have a great PTW!" Seth patted Wu Shi on the shoulder and walked towards the race organizers.
Wu Shi rubbed the spot where he had been patted. This team leader was bigger than a bear. Couldn't he have been a little gentler when patting people?
"Congratulations, Wu Shi!"
Louise stepped forward, opened her arms wide, and said happily, "They've all celebrated for you!"
This sentence translates to: I want a hug.
"Thanks."
Wu Shi also opened his arms. Sure enough, a girl's body is different. Even in a racing suit, she can feel the softness. She is much better than that burly guy who leads the team!
"Wu Shi, what's your birthday?" Martina suddenly asked.
"December 3rd," Wu Shi replied.
"Then you won't turn 10 until the end of this year," Martina said.
"Yes, so I can't participate in KF5 events in other countries right now."
Wu Shi didn't care too much; once he finished running this year's ACI, everyone would know who he was.
However, winning every race in karting is not an easy task.
Because different teams use different manufacturers for their go-karts, even if they meet the standards, the frames, engines, etc. are all from different manufacturers. Therefore, there are differences in the tuning, and the stability is not as good as the unified standard.
In other words, there's a risk of having to withdraw from the competition, which is something that must be taken into account.
"Young man, keep up your consistency in the main competition." Seth came back after checking with the organizers, and now he likes the kid very much.
"I will. As long as the race car doesn't suffer any mechanical failures, I will bring it back." Wu Shi nodded.
"That guy over there seems to dislike you," a teammate suddenly said.
Wu Shi looked over and saw it was Dionysios from the Laya team. He wasn't familiar with the name, so he didn't consider him a competitor at all.