2. Talladega Two-Step

Will grimaced behind his sunglasses as the sun beat down on the 2.66 mile asphalt track. He loved being at this particular racetrack before the accident, but now after the head injury he could barely stand to be in the light and heat.

The test driver Logan had hired to try the new car out had come and went turning some lackluster lap times and never reaching over 199 miles per hour. He had said the car was too stiff and "handled like a barge." Logan knew better than that, but he decided to take a closer look at the car since Will seemed lost in his own thoughts at the time.

"You sure you're alright, Will?" asked Logan. "Yeah hoss, I'm fine. How long do we have track access?" winced Will. "We've got until noon tomorrow, why?" Logan asked curiously. Will had already put on a firesuit by the time Logan noticed what he was doing. "I'm getting in that car and you can't stop me!" Will said stubbornly. "The hell I can't! You know you're not medically cleared to drive a golf cart let alone a race car!" shouted Logan. "Try and stop me!" Will shouted as he finished putting his helmet on and fired the car up.

Will had planned this for some time. He hadn't be in the driver's seat of anything since the accident. His life had been slowly falling apart and he needed the release only 750 horsepower could provide. The car roared to life and Will quickly shoved it in to first gear, revved the motor and dumped the clutch.

He made it all of five feet before the car stalled out and Logan was awkwardly trying to run towards him. Will scrambled and flipped switches until he landed on the starter switch. He put his foot to the floor and the car screamed to life. Just like last time he revved the motor except his foot was three quarters of the way to the floor on the pedal. Will dumped the clutch and two perfect black marks were left on the dull gray pavement.

Will couldn't hide the smile on his face as he raced through the gears and made it on the track from the garage area. The noise and beaming sun made his head pound but the feeling of the speed, the urgency and nuances of driving a car that handles like a barge through the turns made him feel alive. For the first time in almost two and a half years Will Austin felt alive.

Will glanced at the speedometer and saw he just crossed the 200 mile per hour threshold and couldn't help but laugh. After everything he had been through, after all the doctor's told him, here he was driving on the world's largest super speedway at over 200 miles per hour.

He made twenty laps in total and brought it back to the garage area. Logan was dumbfounded. He was angry that Will took off with a car that they both invested so much money in knowing his condition was not optimal, but Will had done something nobody had been able to do at that track since 1987.

Will had set a new track speed record at 230.78 miles per hour.