CHAPTER 2
The following weekend, race time came around again. This time, the Mason boys were at the Lakeville Speedway.
“You ready to race, Cole?” Danny asked.
Cole pulled on his helmet as the pit crew pushed car 9 out of the garage.
“Sure am, Danny,” Cole replied. “I have a really good feeling about the race today. I just know I’m going to beat Harvey Nickel this time.”
Danny patted his brother on the back and headed into the garage to watch the race on the TV monitors.
About halfway through the race, Danny stood in the garage. He was leaning on his push broom, staring at the monitors.
He watched car 9, Clean Cole’s car. Cole was driving hard, but just like last week, he couldn’t pass Harvey Nickel.
Suddenly, Danny felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned.
It was Jim Yolk, one of the new guys on Cole’s pit crew. Danny knew that Jim was the eighth man on the crew.
Normally, only seven men were allowed over the wall and onto the track during a pit stop. Sometimes, though, an eighth man could go over.
The eighth man wasn’t allowed to do everything. He could only do things like bring water for the driver or clean the windshield.
Most of the time, though, Jim didn’t have anything to do during a pit stop.
Jim was a tall, broad man, and he smiled all the time. It wasn’t a nice smile, though. It was creepy. Danny thought there was something weird about him.
“Hi, Danny,” Jim said.
“Hi,” Danny replied.
“Your brother is really giving his all out there today,” Jim went on, glancing at the TV monitors.
“I guess so,” Danny said. “He already has Scott Stanley beat. I know he wants to beat Harvey Nickel, too.”
Jim winked. “He sure does,” he said. “I’d say he’d do just about anything to beat Harvey Nickel, wouldn’t you?”
Danny shrugged. “I don’t know,” he said. He thought about it for a moment. “Well, I don’t think he’d do anything.”
Jim patted Danny’s shoulder and turned to leave. “Well, don’t worry too much,” Jim said. “I have a feeling he’s going to win this race.”
With that, Jim Yolk headed back to his place with the pit crew.
Danny watched the rest of the race closely. With three laps to go, Harvey was still in first place, and Cole was still in second. They led the pack by a long way, but Cole was no closer to getting around Harvey.
“I guess Jim was wrong,” Danny mumbled to himself.
But suddenly, as Harvey came around a curve, his engine cut out completely. Car 14 just rolled to a stop!
Danny gasped as Cole sped toward the stopped car. His brother was a great driver. He was able to steer around the stopped car and take the lead.
But the third-place driver, Lou Dyver in car 5, couldn’t swerve in time. He rear-ended Harvey’s car, sending both cars into the wall!