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STORYLINE #1: PTSD Revisited

If you've seen the descriptions on some of my previous posts, the 2023 Tokyo race might have popped up a couple of times, but for perhaps the wrong reasons. Tails had wanted to do well in that race so badly after suffering from a deteriorating morale, and the team had done everything to help him make that happen, but everything we had done to help him do that was crushed on the very first lap of that race, thanks to an accidental shunt from Jordan McAdams' Jaguar F-type. Tails never recovered and ended up finishing 13th that night. McAdams would make a recovery while his Danish teammate Mikkel Pedersen, who drove a flawless race that night, took the checkered flag. McAdams narrowly defeated me for second place to give Jaguar a 1-2. Tails was so emotionally wrecked over what happened that he developed PTSD from the incident, and it became clear he would suffer from the lingering effects of that night until we run that race again in May this year, hoping more than ever that he will win it.

McAdams insisted it was completely accidental, especially considering that it had rained that night and the track was damp and difficult to find grip on, but that along with Jaguar's 1-2 that night left a bad taste for Tails, and the fox, though never admitting it, held the Jaguar team in contempt from then on but never showed it publicly due to his humble and modest nature. This was even despite the fact that Pedersen had nothing whatsoever to do with the Tokyo incident, and McAdams was occasionally aggressive behind the wheel but off the track he was one of the kindest of those young British drivers. Surprisingly, Tails would not have another real duel with either of the Jaguars ... until nine months later at Daytona in the opener of the 2024 season.

Everyone had just completed the first cycle of pit stops, and Tails found himself leading after a great stop guided by none other than Sonic. However, by lap 25, the fox, after building what looked like a sizeable lead, suddenly looked in his mirror and saw not one but BOTH Jaguars teaming up and closing in on him fast. Going down the back stretch, Tails' two-second lead eroded to nothing by the time they went through the chicane heading into turns 3-4 of the oval. Seeing both Jags side-by-side behind him, inside Tails was practically crying. Pedersen tucked in behind him (pictured here), and the American crowd roared as the fox tried to block Pedersen, only for McAdams to sneak around the outside, the Jags clearly having thought out a strategic maneuver. They left Tails trying to figure out who to block, and as they braked for turn one, going into the infield section, Pedersen dove to the inside and took the lead from Tails' grasp while McAdams was not able to make it past him. When they went through the final corners again, McAdams tucked in behind Tails, but the fox successfully resisted him. Two laps later, Tails would try this himself on Pedersen, but the Danish driver saw this coming and prevented him from gaining enough momentum to even attempt a pass, allowing McAdams to try again, but Tails remained sandwiched between the two Jaguars until the pair pitted at the end of lap 32.

I wonder how much of an emotional journey that must have been, seeing as I was in fourth place during that two-on-one battle yet there was nothing I could do to help Tails because I was roughly 2-3 seconds behind them. I was proud to hear he didn't falter, and it goes to show that bad relationships don't always have bad endings. One day, Tails will surely come to respect the Jaguar team when his heart finally heals from last year's Tokyo incident.

STORYLINE #2: A Podium and Tons of Points

We may not have won at Daytona, but there was one accomplishment we DID pull off that I was very proud of: for the first time in our team's history, all four of us finished in the points. Although only the top-finishing car from each team can contribute to the Teams' Championship, we did leave a mark on the Drivers' Championship after the first round. Even though Tails won pole position and was the favorite to win, it instead was Diddy Kong who was the highest-finishing Nissan in third place to get our team on the podium alongside the victorious Jaguar team (having finished 1-2 with McAdams winning) and keep our podium perfection streak going through six events. Yukichi Suzuki was right behind Diddy in fourth, Tails, suffering from exhaustion, bravely came home in sixth place, and I was right behind him in seventh. 60 points for Diddy, 50 for Yukichi, 30 for Tails and 20 for me. And, of course, a little bronze prize for everyone's favorite red-capped simian. The only downside to this is that we'll all be plagued by success ballast for at least the next few rounds so that other teams can have a chance, but we showed we've got potential to go far in 2024. Great momentum to start the season!

Tails and Diddy character models by SAB64 .

Description

STORYLINE #1: PTSD Revisited

If you've seen the descriptions on some of my previous posts, the 2023 Tokyo race might have popped up a couple of times, but for perhaps the wrong reasons. Tails had wanted to do well in that race so badly after suffering from a deteriorating morale, and the team had done everything to help him make that happen, but everything we had done to help him do that was crushed on the very first lap of that race, thanks to an accidental shunt from Jordan McAdams' Jaguar F-type. Tails never recovered and ended up finishing 13th that night. McAdams would make a recovery while his Danish teammate Mikkel Pedersen, who drove a flawless race that night, took the checkered flag. McAdams narrowly defeated me for second place to give Jaguar a 1-2. Tails was so emotionally wrecked over what happened that he developed PTSD from the incident, and it became clear he would suffer from the lingering effects of that night until we run that race again in May this year, hoping more than ever that he will win it.

McAdams insisted it was completely accidental, especially considering that it had rained that night and the track was damp and difficult to find grip on, but that along with Jaguar's 1-2 that night left a bad taste for Tails, and the fox, though never admitting it, held the Jaguar team in contempt from then on but never showed it publicly due to his humble and modest nature. This was even despite the fact that Pedersen had nothing whatsoever to do with the Tokyo incident, and McAdams was occasionally aggressive behind the wheel but off the track he was one of the kindest of those young British drivers. Surprisingly, Tails would not have another real duel with either of the Jaguars ... until nine months later at Daytona in the opener of the 2024 season.

Everyone had just completed the first cycle of pit stops, and Tails found himself leading after a great stop guided by none other than Sonic. However, by lap 25, the fox, after building what looked like a sizeable lead, suddenly looked in his mirror and saw not one but BOTH Jaguars teaming up and closing in on him fast. Going down the back stretch, Tails' two-second lead eroded to nothing by the time they went through the chicane heading into turns 3-4 of the oval. Seeing both Jags side-by-side behind him, inside Tails was practically crying. Pedersen tucked in behind him (pictured here), and the American crowd roared as the fox tried to block Pedersen, only for McAdams to sneak around the outside, the Jags clearly having thought out a strategic maneuver. They left Tails trying to figure out who to block, and as they braked for turn one, going into the infield section, Pedersen dove to the inside and took the lead from Tails' grasp while McAdams was not able to make it past him. When they went through the final corners again, McAdams tucked in behind Tails, but the fox successfully resisted him. Two laps later, Tails would try this himself on Pedersen, but the Danish driver saw this coming and prevented him from gaining enough momentum to even attempt a pass, allowing McAdams to try again, but Tails remained sandwiched between the two Jaguars until the pair pitted at the end of lap 32.

I wonder how much of an emotional journey that must have been, seeing as I was in fourth place during that two-on-one battle yet there was nothing I could do to help Tails because I was roughly 2-3 seconds behind them. I was proud to hear he didn't falter, and it goes to show that bad relationships don't always have bad endings. One day, Tails will surely come to respect the Jaguar team when his heart finally heals from last year's Tokyo incident.

STORYLINE #2: A Podium and Tons of Points

We may not have won at Daytona, but there was one accomplishment we DID pull off that I was very proud of: for the first time in our team's history, all four of us finished in the points. Although only the top-finishing car from each team can contribute to the Teams' Championship, we did leave a mark on the Drivers' Championship after the first round. Even though Tails won pole position and was the favorite to win, it instead was Diddy Kong who was the highest-finishing Nissan in third place to get our team on the podium alongside the victorious Jaguar team (having finished 1-2 with McAdams winning) and keep our podium perfection streak going through six events. Yukichi Suzuki was right behind Diddy in fourth, Tails, suffering from exhaustion, bravely came home in sixth place, and I was right behind him in seventh. 60 points for Diddy, 50 for Yukichi, 30 for Tails and 20 for me. And, of course, a little bronze prize for everyone's favorite red-capped simian. The only downside to this is that we'll all be plagued by success ballast for at least the next few rounds so that other teams can have a chance, but we showed we've got potential to go far in 2024. Great momentum to start the season!

Tails and Diddy character models by SAB64 .