Even in his past life, Liam wouldn't have dared to attempt a maneuver like that in a kart.
He remembered clearly how fans used to call Fernando Alonso the "Magic Samurai" because he could wrestle a car that understeered on entry and snapped oversteer on exit to lap times that defied physics.
Liam had analyzed Alonso's driving style extensively. It required an insane level of sensory perception and car control. If you missed the window by a fraction, the car wouldn't turn—it would spin.
"This relies heavily on muscle memory and feel. If your grasp of the chassis balance isn't perfect, you won't carry enough momentum to initiate the rotation. And without that rotation, you can't snap the nose to the apex in that split-second window," Liam explained.
"That's... magical," Tyler shook his head in disbelief.
"Want me to show you?"
"Yes! I brought a camcorder. We can analyze the footage later!" Zach shouted.
"Wow, rich kid," Liam teased, clicking his tongue.
Liam hopped into his kart. For today's demo, he'd asked Mr. Chen to delay shipping it to Riverdale.
Even he needed his own dialed-in machine to pull off this specific, physics-bending line.
Vroom!
The kart sprinted down the straight. Approaching Turn 1, the speed barely dropped. But in reality, Liam had already lifted off the throttle, severing the drive to the rear axle.
He yanked the steering wheel. The front tires instantly exceeded their slip angle and lost grip. The kart began to understeer—plowing straight ahead.
At that exact moment, he stomped on the gas. The rear tires lit up with sudden torque, pushing the chassis forward violently before breaking traction themselves.
The rear stepped out. The entire kart rotated. And miraculously, the nose—which had been refusing to turn—snapped directly toward the apex.
Because of the change in vehicle attitude, the front tires realigned with the direction of travel, regaining full grip. The understeer vanished.
Liam counter-steered instantly, catching the slide before it became a spin, and rocketed out of the corner.
Screech!
He brought the kart to a halt halfway down the next straight.
Zach and Tyler ran over, staring at the rubber marks on the asphalt in disbelief.
"That was brutal!" Zach gasped.
"Insane," Tyler agreed.
"I actually don't recommend you try this. It's incredibly easy to lose control, and it murders your tires."
Liam pointed to several spots on the tarmac. "Here, here, and here. If your reaction is even a millisecond slow—if you don't lift, or if you don't counter-steer precisely—you're in the wall."
"How did you do it?" Zach fell silent.
"Absolute control. You have to know exactly what the kart is doing at every moment."
"How is it possible for a human to do that?" Zach muttered, before realizing the human who did it was standing right in front of him.
"Thanks. That... is something I can't learn," Tyler shook his head, a sense of defeat creeping into his heart.
"Don't mention it. I didn't really teach you anything useful." This was why Liam hadn't wanted to take the money. His driving style was inimitable. Even he couldn't replicate it perfectly in a different chassis.
"What about the rest of the track?" Zach asked.
"Let's walk it. I'll explain as we go."
For the subsequent corners, Liam broke down both his "Qualifying Line" (the alien style) and the "Conventional Line." The former was impossible for them, but the latter was gold.
"So that's how!"
"I learned a lot."
Zach and Tyler were full of praise.
Racing was a sport of seeking limits. If you felt completely in control while driving, it meant you weren't driving fast enough.
But defining that limit—and knowing exactly where to place it—was what separated drivers.
Liam's explanation illuminated that gray area for them.
When you understood the optimal line and maximum speed of a corner, you understood your own margins.
"But I don't suggest you copy me exactly," Liam cautioned.
"Why?" Zach asked.
"You need to develop your own feel, your own judgment. If you go far in this sport, you'll eventually face competitors in machines with different characteristics. When that happens, you can only rely on your own understanding," Liam said.
"I get it. The fundamentals are universal, but everyone faces different variables. Solving the equation depends on the individual," Tyler mused.
"Nerd!" Zach gave a thumbs up.
"Alright, that's the track walk done." Liam clapped his hands. Walking the track with friends... it was its own kind of fun.
"Liam! We have to treat you to dinner tonight. What do you want to eat?" Zach thumped his chest.
"Anything's fine. Keep it simple." Liam wasn't picky.
Zach's mother walked out of the garage holding a fruit platter, waving at them. "Boys, are you done? Come take a break."
"My favorite! Cantaloupe!" Zach sprinted off.
"So energetic," Liam rested his hands behind his head.
Liam spent the entire weekend at the track. In his downtime, he started his own physical conditioning routine—running, push-ups, planks.
Time flew by. The second round of the SKUSA Regional Series kicked off.
The Riverview Circuit in Riverdale was completely foreign to Liam. In fact, all the domestic tracks from here on out would be new to him.
But it didn't matter. The untimed practice sessions on Friday gave him plenty of time to learn the layout and find his braking points.
Because of his dominant performance in Portside, quite a few eyes were on him.
His father couldn't make it—busyness was the theme song of adulthood. Mr. Chen had planned to come but got held up by business. In the end, only his mechanic accompanied him to Riverview.
Liam didn't feel lonely, though.
Zach and Tyler ran over as soon as they saw him, eager to brief him on the quirks of the Riverview track.
"Is this really your first time here?"
"Yeah. Why would I lie to you?" Liam laughed.
"You looked so comfortable in practice," Zach was skeptical.
"I was driving slow. Of course I looked comfortable," Liam explained.
"That was slow?!" Zach looked even more incredulous.
If the term "humblebrag" existed in 2007, he would have accused Liam of it right there.
"Looks like you're winning this round too," Tyler said, his tone carrying a heaviness no one else noticed.
"Better Liam than that Linus kid! He's fast here, but after he falsely accused Liam last time, I can't stand him," Zach cursed.
"He doesn't seem to be here this round?" Tyler noted.
"Really? I didn't notice," Zach looked around.
"Yeah. His mother was reported for bribing other drivers. After an investigation, he got suspended," Liam said. The organizers had informed him since he was the victim.
"Whoa! Best news I've heard all day! Now I can fight you guys for the win properly!" Zach threw his arms around their shoulders, laughing loudly.
"I won't go easy on you," Liam smiled.
"Easy? You kidding? I know this track way better than you! Bring your A-game!" Zach remained confident, even after seeing Liam's practice pace.
Tyler stood by, maintaining a polite smile but saying nothing.
Liam noticed it. Ever since the track walk at Portside, Tyler seemed... diminished.
Riverview was a track of "stop-and-go" corners—lots of 90-degree turns and hairpins. It wasn't Liam's preferred style, but winning in this class was still well within his grasp.
Ultimately, he took pole position for the Pre-Final with a 47.633.
"Liar! Liar! You're a big fat liar!"
As soon as he climbed out of the kart, Liam heard Zach's voice screaming at him.
Those words sound familiar. Who else yelled that at me recently?