{"id":45899,"date":"2020-12-09T07:00:15","date_gmt":"2020-12-09T12:00:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.dodgegarage.com\/news-api\/?p=45899"},"modified":"2024-03-25T11:22:09","modified_gmt":"2024-03-25T15:22:09","slug":"the-mission-chapter-5","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/test.api.dodgegarage.com\/news\/showcase\/2020\/12\/the-mission-chapter-5.html","title":{"rendered":"The Mission: Chapter 5"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Excerpt from Chapter 4<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I did have a sense of Dodge-Zen as I leapt out of bed as if I had\ndone this before \u2013 a calmness that I was prepared for anything the SRT Hellcat\nRedeye would dish out. I threw on my clothes and as I walked out the door, I\nreached into my front pocket and found another new keychain with a tag that\nread \u2026 YOU\u2019VE GOT THIS.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Out the door I went\u2026<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYeah, I\u2019ve got it alright.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, I\u2019m finally back on the road to I still don\u2019t know where,\nthinking about the Bondurant instructors, the casino, and asking myself, \u201cIs it\nnormal to laugh so nervously when you\u2019re driving alone?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That\u2019s when the voice on the radio kicks in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cGreetings and salutations, your next stop is the Woody Creek\nTavern in Woody Creek, Colorado. There, if you make it, you will get your next\ninstruction key.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Before I can interject the voice interrupts, \u201cOh, and uh, don\u2019t be\nsurprised if things get a little weird along the way, just roll with it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now I\u2019m thinking about the Hunter S. Thompson quote, \u201cwhen the\ngoing gets weird, the weird turn pro.\u201d  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

What the hell, I just had some serious driving lessons from the\nBondurant instructors, a halfway decent night\u2019s sleep and my navigation reads\n\u201cFollow I-15 for 591 miles.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mile 1-5: Driving.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Miles 6-150: Wishing I had a copilot.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Miles 151-333: Thinking I\u2019m actually flying.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

5 hours of blue sky and now suddenly nothing but dark clouds.\nWrong turn? I\u2019m on this strange road leading into darkness that looks like it\nheads to nowhere when ahead I see a sign that reads, \u201croad may not continue.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

That\u2019s not one I\u2019ve seen before.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The adrenaline junky in me must motor ahead and get to the heart\nof this bizarre circumstance. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

A gravelly voice says, \u201cWelcome to Thunder Mountain or as some\ncall it, Bandimere Speedway.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Serious wrong turn. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I quickly look at the NAV and radio.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

IT\u2019S OFF.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What THE?! <\/p>\n\n\n\n

My heart practically leaps through my rib cage and onto the dash\nas I see out of the corner of my eye\u2026I now have the legend, Bill Goldberg\nriding shotgun. Oh man, he\u2019s even more monstrous in real life. Was he the\ncopilot I was longing for earlier?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(Right now, you\u2019re probably asking yourself the obvious, \u201cis this\nsome kind of a dream sequence?\u201d or \u201chave you gone completely mad?\u201d Truth is, I\nwish I could tell you. Has anything made sense so far on this journey? Just\nride this one out with me.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, back to Goldberg and me, the Thunder Mountain staging lane,\nthe impending 1\/4 mile, and the insane launch I\u2019m about to dominate.  Goldberg turns to me and says, \u201cYou know why\nI\u2019m here?\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I reply, \u201cI give up, why?\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cKid, I\u2019m gonna make you a better racer. You see, with me in the\ncar, you\u2019re safe. We can do anything, and I don\u2019t have to read any disclaimers,\neither. Why? It\u2019s your story, your time, and the audience knows they have to\nobey the law. See, kid…you and I, we\u2019re in the middle of an epic literary\njourney of HEMI\u00ae<\/sup> sized proportions, so ready yourself for that last yellow.\nTighten your harness. I wanna see 9s or better.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There\u2019s now a swarm of people chanting…<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cGoldberg! Goldberg! Goldberg!\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

He turns to me and says, \u201chear that, kid?\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I can barely reply, \u201cumm, yeah, that\u2019s for you.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

He smiles and pats my shoulder, \u201cno, no, kid, that\u2019s for us. Now\nlet\u2019s get up to that line and burn one out.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I absolutely light \u2018em up in the box, creating the gearhead\norchestral equivalent to Beethoven\u2019s Symphony No. 3 with a finely tuned 797 hp\ngrowl. Burning rubber so hot, one could argue my tires were made on the sun.\nI\u2019m surrounded by a mystical billow of deep stage smoke keeping our perfect\nroll undercover. This thing IS possessed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The rumble under my feet vibrates through my spine. The smoke\nbegins to clear and I look to my left to see just who I\u2019m going to be turning\nto toast. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Holy mother of all muscle milk, it\u2019s freaking Matt Hagan. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

He lifts his visor, I see the icy blues. Yeah, he means business. As\nis if the death stare wasn\u2019t enough, he blows me a kiss and snaps the visor\nback down with vengeance. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pretty sure he could hear my \u201cgulp\u201d all the way over the\nridiculous rumble in his lane. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I look over to ask Goldberg, \u201cwhat now?\u201d But he\u2019s gone. Vanished\njust as fast as he appeared. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

For a split second I forget the next steps.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I channel Goldberg\u2019s confidence.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I remember my training. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here goes everything.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And with that, GREEN.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Holeshot. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Warp Speed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A technicolor blur of my entire life moves through my mind in\nabout 9.7 seconds. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

And somehow\u2026Matt is behind me. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I win. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

As I\u2019m about to turn off, pick up the slip and collect the Wally\nthat I\u2019m sure is waiting for me, the voice comes back on my radio, \u201cWell done.\nBut it\u2019s still just a practice for what\u2019s to come.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In what world is racing NHRA Funny Car World Champ Matt Hagan\nPRACTICE? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This world. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This world where I somehow just passed a sign that reads, \u201cWelcome\nto Boulder!\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now I\u2019m actually starting to question just how mad I\u2019ve gone. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

 \u201cOk guys. I\u2019m spent, you\nwin, I can\u2019t take any more surprises.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The voice over the radio, \u201cShame, because you have to pick someone\nup at the No Name Bar on Broadway.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019m unable to fake it. \u201cHello, a little sleep wouldn\u2019t hurt. A\nlittle sanity. You know\u2026normal?\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe chose you because we knew you could handle this. And if you\npass the next test with your passenger, he\u2019ll meet up with you again for a\nsupremely amazing stop in the Motor City on your journey to New York. Hurry.\nBill Goldberg is waiting.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I think to myself, \u201cWait\u2026what? Goldberg was with me just 25\nminutes ago!\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The voice says \u201cNo, that was you channeling your strongest self,\nand it got you through it. This time you really WILL have Goldberg as your\ncopilot. Now Drive.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

By DodgeGarage member: James McCarthy<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Send your Chapter 6 submissions to us here.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Mission \u2013 Intro<\/a>
The Mission \u2013 Chapter 1<\/a>
The Mission \u2013 Chapter 2<\/a>
The Mission \u2013 Chapter 3<\/a>
The Mission – Chapter 4<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Excerpt from Chapter 4 I did have a sense of Dodge-Zen as I leapt out of bed as if I had done this before \u2013 a calmness that I was prepared for anything the SRT Hellcat Redeye would dish out. I threw on my clothes and as I walked out the door, I reached into my front pocket and found another new keychain with a tag that read \u2026 YOU\u2019VE GOT THIS. Out the door I went\u2026 \u201cYeah, I\u2019ve got it alright.\u201d So, I\u2019m finally back on the road to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":27,"featured_media":45901,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[638],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-45899","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-showcase"],"acf":[],"custom_fields":{"post_thumbnail_image":"https:\/\/test.api.dodgegarage.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/11\/The-Mission-Chapter-5.png","icon_selection":"article","external_link":"","featured_article":[],"upload_background_image":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.api.dodgegarage.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45899"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.api.dodgegarage.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.api.dodgegarage.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.api.dodgegarage.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/27"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.api.dodgegarage.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=45899"}],"version-history":[{"count":6,"href":"https:\/\/test.api.dodgegarage.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45899\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":45911,"href":"https:\/\/test.api.dodgegarage.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45899\/revisions\/45911"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.api.dodgegarage.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/45901"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.api.dodgegarage.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=45899"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.api.dodgegarage.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=45899"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.api.dodgegarage.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=45899"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}