the karts, tearing round and round. He felt awful. He kept having visions of a crash, a wrenching of metal and bone. He looked at the sky, hoping storm clouds might suddenly appear in the clear blue sky and make it too dangerous for them to go onto the track. No such luck.
‘…the right pedal is your accelerator, the left pedal is your brake. Don’t stamp on the brake too hard or you’ll stop with a real jolt. And I wouldn’t recommend putting your foot down too far on the accelerator either. OK. Are we all set?’
They followed the man over to the start-point of the track, where half-a-dozen go-karts sat waiting for them.
‘Right, take your pick. They’re all the same.’
Paul chose a bright red kart, Heather picked a dark green and yellow one, Kirsty chose a blue one and Jamie sat down in a black kart marked with silver stripes. Chris remained where he was.
‘What’s up?’ said Paul, looking up at Chris. ‘Aren’t you joining us?’
Chris gestured beyond the track. ‘This is the beginner’s track, so it’s a bit too tame for me. I’m going to head over to the other track. But I’ll meet up with you later.’ He smiled and said, ‘Have fun,’ then walked off, Lucy following him.
‘Right,’ said the attendant, clapping his hands. ‘Seatbelts and crash helmets on.. Remember, right for speed, left to brake. If you have any problems, give us a shout. Now, away you go.’
Paul put his foot on the accelerator, made a thumbs-up gesture and sped away, joining the other karters, belting around the first corner. Kirsty headed off next, a little more cautiously, then Heather. Jamie sat and stared through his visor, sweat rolling down his forehead. The attendant was looking at him, making a sweeping gesture with his hands, encouraging Jamie to put his foot down. He gripped the steering wheel, his knuckles white, and then his body took over. His legs stretched forward, his feet found the pedals, and his right ankle applied pressure to the accelerator.
He was away.
He shot over the starting line far too fast, overtaking a blue go-kart on its second or third lap. Panicking – thinking he was going to crash – he took his left foot off the pedal and his go-kart almost stopped. He heard a screech of brakes behind him as a kart nearly crashed into his tail, and the driver of that kart shook her head at him as she went by. Jamie knew he had to get moving, so he gently applied pressure to the pedal. His kart sped up, and once he was moving at a reasonable speed he kept his foot steady. He rounded the first corner, then the second. Paul sped past him, as did Kirsty, who waved. He couldn’t wave back as he wasn’t confident enough to take either hand off the wheel. But then, as he began his second lap, he realised to his surprise that he was enjoying himself.
He started to go faster, taking corners more confidently, even overtaking a few people, including Heather and then Kirsty. He waved at her. Paul was still bombing around the track in his bright-red kart at almost twice the speed as some of the others. Jamie couldn’t believe he hadn’t done it before, but he had no reason to lie. He was clearly a natural. Or maybe now he had found a girlfriend he felt capable of anything, and that added confidence had turned him into a superstar karter. Jamie was pleased about Paul and Heather. Not just because he was tired of listening to Paul bemoaning his lack of luck with women and saying how dearly he needed a shag, but also because he wanted Paul to be happy. Paul was a good bloke, and a good friend. He deserved to be happy. It was an added bonus that he was going out with Heather. They didn’t have to worry about Paul introducing a new girl into their circle, a girl that they might not get on with. In fact, it was good news all round. They could go out as a foursome – maybe even go on holiday together. That might be a laugh.
He kept on karting for another hour, although the time seemed to go much quicker. Jamie saw Kirsty slow down and head off the track, then Heather did the same, and he followed. Paul kept going.
Jamie got out of his kart and pulled off his helmet, then went over to Kirsty