Solaris Racing Event
Dunnet Forest, Thurso
Solaris VII, Independent Clan Territory
8th September 3115The second event in the Solaris Racing League had come up quickly after the racers and their support crews had packed up their equipment into a dozen GESV’s and other transport vehicles and traveled from San Bardo Canyon across Solaris to the city of Thurso near Dunnet Forest. This race track was longer than the San Bardo Canyon race and took place in and around the City of Thurso and the nearby Town of Crownkirk. Sitting in his ASF-23 Protector Aircraft Jonnie Mjalby felt pretty confident his win at San Bardo had been partly because of a decent time and partly because the public had gotten behind his race style but today was a whole new challenge. The San Bardo Canyon relied on maneuverability over speed Dunnet Forest/Thurso Racetrack on the other-hand depended on speed with several long straights on which Mjalby’s Protector would struggle with.
Listening to the announcer Rick de Graff Mjalby maintained his altitude at just over two hundred metres and maintained crusing speed on his main HUD he saw the countdown timer had started. “Today ladies and gentlemen our winner from the previous race Jonnie Mjalby, piloting a ASF-23 Protector aircraft, begins proceedings the others will be using his time as a benchmark and watching his performance for tips. Good luck Mjalby!†He said as he did the countdown timer hit zero and Mjalby dived his aircraft below one hundred metres and headed for the starting line.
Unlike San Bardo Canyon the Dunnet Forest was designed from the ground up as a spectator stadium with dozens of stands filled with a live audience just to add to the pressure on the pilots. Now was not the time to think of spectators Mjalby thought as his fighter crossed the starting line. Almost immediately he turned the Protector into a hard-right turn onto the first straight maintaining altitude of eight metres he flew past the towering spectator stand on his left-hand side before heading out across the Thurso River which bisected the course. The trip across the choppy river water was a short one and Mjalby was quickly on the other side immediately entering the first stadium known locally as Pittodrie. The area was essentially an oval cut out of the forest with spectator stands, food and drink stands and medical facilities on all sides. Mjalby maintained his speed as he flew into the area ignoring the flashing lights from the stands he concentrated on making the perfect right hand turn fighting the g-forces put against his body as the aircraft completed the turn. Levelling out his fighter was gone from Pittodrie Stadium as quickly as it had entered and was heading back across Thurso River flying pararell to the Interstate Highway 16 Bridge passing by the town of Crownkirk the Protector passed over the Road Tunnel leading into the town and then Mjalby pushed the aircraft into a shallow dive slowing his speed slightly he entered Nevis Tunnel, a man-made paved tunnel through the hard rock of the same name. Following the “S-Bend†track of the Tunnel Mjalby accelerated as he exited entering the second stadium Hillhead.
Smaller than Pittodirie but still packed with people Hillhead was a loop with four tight left turns and one tight right turn. Too fast you’d overshoot and have to raise in altitude to turn and re-enter the course losing time and points, too slow and this section could cost you valuable time. Mjalby’s Protector was well suited for this section maintaining the same speed he held the turn again fighting the g-forces once more he quickly left Hillhead Stadium heading back into Dunnet Forest flying between the trees on one side and Nevis Rock on the other he followed the path of the course left around Nevis Rock and back towards Crownkirk and into the next section.
This part of the course Jonnie Mjalby knew his Protector was not well suited for it with long sweeping turns that took them through the forest and towards a raised area known as Beinn Hob. Here planes with a high top speed would have a significant advantage the turns suited high speed flying with relatively low g-forces there wasn’t much he could do but ride through the long turn and concentrate on not messing up. Raising out of the trees and up Beinn Hob Mjalby focused on the next section which would see him travel up, down and then up again long “S-Bend†over the hill which would take him into the third S-Bend. By the time Mjalby’s Protector had the hill for a second time he could see the third stadium section the Daniel Keith Stands. Named for one of the founders of Crownkirk the Daniel Keith Stands jutted out of the side of Beinn Hob and Mjalby felt sorry for the packed spectators below as the winds up the side of the hill buffeted the area. He wasn’t here to feel sorry for them or watch the crowd however instead he was here for an almost leisurely right turn between the stands followed by a second right turn that took him back down the hill and into Dunnet Forest. According to the race guide this section could catch a pilot off guard as the trees appeared to come up rapidly as the aircraft accelerated down the hill and back into the forest but they were no trouble for Mjalby who carried on the straight towards the bridge of Interstate Highway 16.
Unlike his previous encounter with the ground road this time the course took Mjalby’s fighter under the huge bridge that connected Thurso with other parts of the region. He could see plenty of spectators and emergency services in the area watching his fifty-ton fighter pass under the bridge and then once cleared from that obstacle make an immediate right turn under a natural rock formation known as Angelica’s Archway. From there Mjalby crossed the Thurso River for a third and last time now entering Thurso itself to finish the race. Along the sides of the course there were lines of trees which helped dampen the noise for the residence of the city who were only a few hundred feet away. The trees also hid energy barriers similar to those in the Solaris Mech arenas which were designed to absorb an aircraft hitting them and force the craft either into the ground or into the air Mjalby hoped if he ever hit any of them it was the latter result and not the former.
Travelling past the trees Mjalby’s Protector entered the final section known as the Janet Porter Stadium, again named after a founder of Thurso, it was a commercial haven like the other spectator stands with food, drink and advertising throughout designed like the rest of this course to make money little else. Flying around the series of left turns Mjalby intentionally rolled the aircraft in a barrel roll showing off for the crowd counting on their votes to help keep him up the boards as they headed into the final race of the season. Making the last left turn before the finish line Mjalby knew that speed alone would not help him win and instead pulled the aircraft back doing a loop-the-loop just short of the finish line adding a little flourish to his performance.
As he flew away from the course Jonnie Mjalby knew all he could do now was wait for the other competitors to finish. There were seven other competitors that would follow him five of those aircraft would outrun his Protector in open flight he just had to hope the crowds were still on his side or one of the others made a mistake.
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Hours later the final competitor had crossed the line and the spectator vote had been counted leaving Jonnie with a fourth-place finish. During the course of the other competitors flights Irene Steele the Guardian pilot who had come second in the San Bardo Canyon run had lost control of her fighter and crashed. She’d been able to eject but the fighter was a right-off in the medical GESV Mjalby visited her they’d known each other for years competing in various one-off events.
“Glad to see you made it out of that wreck in one piece†he said greeting her Irene was the same age as Jonnie Mjalby, twenty-six, originally from the Federated Suns she’d moved to Solaris sixteen years before when her father had come looking for fame and fortune. He’d been killed in the Solaris Mech Arenas and Irene had decided that life was not for her instead taking aerospace fighter lessons with the intention of gaining a position within the LCAF. Things hadn’t turned out that way and instead she’d started flying acrobatics on Solaris to make money now that income had been taken from her.
“Yeah Segura didn’t come out of it so well.†Irene replied, the fighter had been destroyed in the crash. “That’s me out, I see you didn’t do so well either?â€
“Still there†Jonnie Mjalby said looking down at his injured friend. “Listen I asked the doc you’re still flight capable, your injuries are not all that severe.â€
“Thanks for reminding me Jonnie, but I’m lacking a fighter.â€
“I happen to have a spare†he said smirking he saw her surprised one fighter was expensive a second was nearly unheard of. “Juliusz Kamil decided to hang up his flight gloves before this tournament†he explained she’d heard the “Grandfather of Flight†had retired earlier in the year. “His Striking Cobra was going cheap.â€
“I thought Kamil wanted to put it in a museum?â€
“He did, it might still end up there, but it’s got more miles in it and I offered him more.â€
“What difference does that make to me, Jonnie, I’ve barely got enough for my medical bills and to pay off the support staff. I’m out of this game.â€
“I’ll give you the Striking Cobra†he said raising his hand to stop her speaking “on credit. You place in this tournament you pay me some of the money for it. You win it you can buy it outright from me.†He suggested offering her a lifeline he could see tears in her eyes.
“Why?†She croaked
“You deserve to see it to the end, just don’t crash that thing before I get a chance to fly it.†He said winking to her before turning to leave. With her last place at Dunnet Forest she was fourth place in the championship out of the major money making positions but still in touching distance to the leaders going into the last round at the Slanotov Industrial Zone in Solaris Arctic Zone. If she placed and he didn’t at least he’d get some of the money back from this event.
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Topic: Solaris Racing League (Alternate Timeline with Thanks) (Read 17651 times)