The Team // A Formula One AU

Alex

"Me first!"

"No, I'm going first."

"There are two simulators, right? So let's split into groups of ten–"

"Guys... I think I broke it."

I snap my head towards Charles who stands with an expensive racing simulator steering wheel hanging in his hand.

"Well, I guess there's only one simulator now."

"Where's Tom?" Lewis wrings his hands nervously. "He's going to be so mad at us..."

"Listen," Max claps his hands to bring the crowd to silence. In the absence of any adults it falls to him to be the voice of reason. "Line up tallest to shortest and I'll give everyone a number. Then we'll pick random numbers to decide the order we get to play on the simulators."

"That's short-people-ist!"

"No it isn't, Lando. Your height is just to decide your number."

"Make me number one then."

"Fine, I'll start with your end, but you aren't the shortest. If you want to use the simulators, line up!" Max shouts through the small dark room. None of us are exactly sure what such expensive simulators are doing in the middle of Hawaii but we certainly aren't complaining. This is our first chance to have a go on real Formula One circuits and see what it might feel like to race in proper cars. So naturally we all want to go first.

Max numbers us and pulls his phone out to decide the order. I'm think that by the time he's done all this the adults will be back from wherever they are, but I guess they must have really gotten lost because Kimi has fixed Charles' steering wheel and is half way around Monza by the time they get back.

"What's going on?" Tom furrows his brow as he peers into Kimi's seat and the boy swats him away.

"We sorted it out without you," Max replies nonchalantly without looking away from Fernando's screen.

"Oh... Well don't look too pleased with yourself, you're banned from practice, remember?"

Max's eyes widen as he remembers his brilliant idea in the airport. "Tom... Please!"

"Fine... I guess we'll see. At least everything seems to be under control here. Those of you who aren't driving follow me, Erik has a lesson for you to get on with in the meantime."

A chorus of groans echoes through the simulator room but we trudge out into the much brighter office around the corner. It's filled by a giant oval table surrounded by ergonomic chairs and I sit at one, slumping forward onto my hand to stare down the table at Erik.

"Today we're going to learn about motor imagery."

"Is that like x-raying our karts?" Nico asks and I snort in laughter. But then I realise I don't know what he means either.

"No. Motor imagery is a technique used by a lot of athletes, especially top racing drivers, to prepare themselves for a race. A few of you probably already do this, but it involves visualising your lap like a sequence of moves in your head. This means that when the time comes to do it in the real world you brain is already used to the sequence."

Erik hands out the usual semi-helpful sheets of paper and I read back the exact words he just said to us, complete with the phrase "use your imagination" and a smiley face.

"Imagine you're driving your favourite corner on your favourite Formula One circuit, just one corner for now. Try to use all your senses if you can. How does your kart sound under breaking, hitting the apex and accelerating? What are the vibrations like, does the corner have an incline? Close your eyes, let's all try it together."

Daniel sniggers and shakes his head but does as he's told. It seems kind of stupid to me too, but I guess the reasoning makes sense. I close my eyes and rest my hands forward onto the desk, stretching out my feet as if searching for the pedals. Seb kicks me and I squint at him through my eyelashes, but soon we all get comfortable and I imagine my steering wheel in my hands.

"It's a little different in karts because you have no gears and very few, if any buttons on your wheel. Just try to focus on the pedals as you approach your corner, reach the apex and then make the perfect exit. And don't forget about your racing line."

I bet most of the others have finished a whole lap by now, but I'm still trying to choose a corner. I think I'm settled on Silverstone, but Maggotts and Becketts isn't a heavy braking zone so I scan my mental image of the track for something else.

"Now try a chicane."

Vale. That's a better place to imagine, but I can't quite remember what the corner after that looks like. I roll my shoulders and shake my wrists out in the hopes I might remember soon.

The door opens.

"What's going on in here?" I hear Kimi ask behind me. What comes after Vale?

"Are you in a trance?" Fernando asks. He waves his hand in front of my face, I can tell by the way the sunlight from the window flashes on my eyelids.

"Sit down," Erik tells them, "we're doing motor imagery."

"Like sports photography?"

"No."

I finally open my eyes, totally unable to concentrate. Kimi looks around for a spare seat but soon notices there are none left. He folds his arms and leans back against the wall.

"Where am I supposed to sit?" he asks.

"Oh, right..." Erik looks around at us. "How about Lando and Alex head to the simulators next. Make sure you practice on the track you've just been visualising!"

Lando leaps straight out of the door and Kimi steps forward and waits for me to vacate my chair for him. I lace my fingers together nervously. I haven't visualised anything yet.

"Can't I go in the next group?" I ask sheepishly.

"You don't want to drive the simulator?" Nico widens his eyes at me.

"I'll go!" Daniel stands up, sending his chair flying backwards. He's gone before Erik has time to respond. Our engineer just shrugs.

"Okay everyone, back to work. If you think you've mastered the chicane, just– "

"What are we doing?" Fernando chirps.

Erik sighs. "Motor imagery. Don't try to guess what it is..."