Capricious Starts

Troy was wrapping up the work on the van. He was cold. Tired. Miserable. The crosswinds were bitter. The drive-shaft was finally connected. After a few final pieces, the van would be fired up and driven to the shop.

The sound of an approaching V8 brought a smile to the two tired cold men. They didn’t look up or stop their progress, but they definitely enjoyed the rumble and burble of power that was rolling by.

As the sound slowly drifted away, a change in note caught Troy’s attention. The motor started to sound labored and running lean. Whoever was driving, was not aware of the change in fuel mix, as they pressed on to continue.

Allowing his imagination to run again, Troy pictured Sally struggling to keep a big block V8 fed with fuel by feathering the throttle. He was picturing her keds and fitted jeggings, making his face flush over a little.

A backfire surprised his buddy, but Troy knew that was coming. The driver had been romping the gas pedal trying to get the laboring motor to obey. The massive dose of fuel had overwhelmed the motor and ran out into the exhaust and creating the loud bang of a backfire.

Whoever was driving was not intimidated by the sound, as the surges in the motor’s sound suggested the driver was pressing and urging the vehicle to continue.

Troy recalled there was a massive steep hill nearby. What if this driver was trying to navigate this particular hill. It was one few attempted to climb without an SUV. It require a lot of power and traction. Especially in weather this cold, rubber didn’t have the same degree of traction as it would in warm weather. That’s where the advantage of an SUV came, all-wheel drive. Assurance for the climb.

This driver was determined. Traction came and went. The motored sputtered at times and came to life at others. Progress didn’t sound too good.

Wrapping up, Troy put his tools away. Being the more experienced driver, Troy would be driving the van while his buddy followed in his car. The sound of the embattled V8 had not abated. With his friend with him, investigating was not an option. His passion for damsels in distress had to be kept a total secret.

As they drove towards the shop, they rounded one of the bends near the mega hill. Troy saw a classic Impala backing down the road before making an abrupt stop. The motor reved a few times as the chassis rolled side to side. Then, the nose rose as the driver gave a massive run towards the hill.

The heavy dark puff of gas that plumed out the rear, as the car rose up the hill, let Troy know the drive had matted the pedal in hopes of making the full run.

Unfortunately, this burst of power overwhelmed the traction available and the right rear tire immediately lost traction. The driver didn’t let up. The passenger looked very much like Jen, a classmate of his.

A surge of thoughts raced through Troy’s mind, one of which questioned the sanity of stopping to watch/help while his buddy was following. A quick look of the mirror made the choice easy. His friend was stopping and judging by the slackness of his jaw, was smitten by the developing scene.

Jen, holding the dash, was hoping this run up the steep hill would be the one that worked. They had tried a few times. The motor had complained and failed them. When the motor sang at full song, the tires poured out smoke. It was frightening yet exhilarating at the same time.

“Come on!” shouted Sally as she floored the pedal.

The car lumbered up the hill but was losing momentum. The loss of traction was wasting precious power that should have catapulted them clear to the top.

“You can do this!” exclaimed Jen to the car as she punched the dash encouragingly.

Near the top, the motor started to fade and lose power. The spinning tire slowed and gained traction again. The motor threatened to quick.

Sally quickly pumped the pedal to urge the motor on. The big block grumbled.

“No… no… no…” lamented Jen as she rocked herself in her seat to urge the car forward.

“Not this time you don’t” warned Sally as she stomped the pedal into the carpeting.

With a brief hesitation, the motor paused and fell silent before jumping to full roar. This overwhelmed the tires. Sally was not giving up, she was so close to cresting the hill.

The rear of the car slid a few feet to the right as the tires melted and belched out acrid smoke. The car slowly crawled forward and crested the hill.

Before momentum was built or the car shot forward, Sally let off the gas. Instantly, the motor coughed and died.

“Well…” sighed Sally, “at least we’re over the top”.

Jen smiled. She was feeling a bit flush and foolish from being so excited about clearing the hill. Worse, it felt as if she was embarrassed that Sally was seeing her so flustered.

“Yeah…” Jen sheepishly whispered.

“You OK?” Sally asked. “It’s as if you’re in front of your crush or something”

“Please don’t… uh… I’m OK” Jen stuttered wishing she could sink into the seat and vanish.

“No judgment. I get it. But first, let’s get this beast fired up” Sally concluded.

After several cranks and lots of pedal thrashing, Sally finally re-fired the capricious motor. As she slipped into gear, she saw in her mirrors a dilapidated van pulling up over the hill.

“Good thing this beast fired up, we’ve got company” Sally tensely alerted Jen.

“Um… that’s not good… I know that van” Jen replied weakly.

Not wanting to stick around, Sally jammed on the gas to pull away. The car lunged ahead and she quickly went on her way. Their destination was not too far. Once on site, if there was any possible threat from that van, there was help.

Troy saw the change in body language and understood that the ladies didn’t know it was him. The van did look horrible, for now.