The Race Against the Mammoth Car

by Chase Wheeler

  Table of Contents

  Copyright Page

  Title Page

  Chapter 1 - THE MAMMOTH CAR

  Chapter 2 - NO LIMIT

  Chapter 3 - TRAIN WRECK

  Chapter 4 - THE MAMMOTH’S SECRET

  Chapter 5 - STUCK!

  Chapter 6 - STOWAWAYS

  Chapter 7 - HOT PURSUIT

  Chapter 8 - MESSAGE FROM THE BOTTOM

  Chapter 9 - CRUNCHER BLOCK’S NIGHTMARE

  Chapter 10 - SECRET HIDEOUT

  Chapter 11 - DYNAMITE

  Chapter 12 - THE MASKED RACER

  Chapter 13 - THE RACE GOES ON

  Chapter 14 - CHECKPOINT

  Chapter 15 - THE FINISH LINE

  Chapter 16 - IMPOSTER

  Chapter 17 - SMUGGLED GOLD

  Chapter 18 - A SWEET REWARD

  Teaser chapter

  GROSSET & DUNLAP

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  Copyright © 2008 Speed Racer Enterprises, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Speed Racer is a trademark of Speed Racer Enterprises, Inc., and is used under license. Published by Grosset & Dunlap, a division of Penguin Young Readers Group, 345 Hudson Street, New York, New York 10014.

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  The Marvelsof the Mach 5

  The mach 5 is one of the most powerful and amazing racing cars in the world. Pops Racer designed the mach 5 with features you won’t see on any other car.

  All of the features can be controlled by buttons on the steering wheel.

  This button releases powerful jacks to boost the car so Sparky, the mechanic. can quickly make any necessary repairs or adjustments.

  Press this button and the mach 5 sprouts special grip tires for traction over any terrain. At the same time, an incredible 5.000 torque of horsepower is distributed equally to each wheel by auxiliary engines.

  For use mhen Speed Racer has to race over heavily wooded terrain, powerful rotary saws protrude from the front of the mach 5 to slash and cut any and all obstacles.

  Pressing the D button releases a powerful deflector that seals the cockpit into an air-conditioned, crash and bulletproof, watertight chamber. Inside it. Speed Racer is completely isolated and shielded.

  The button for special illumination allows Speed Racer to see much farther and more clearly than with ordinary headlights. It’s invaluable in some of the meird and dangerous places he races the mach 5.

  Press this button when the mach 5 is underwater. First the cockpit is supplied with oxygen. then a periscope is raised to scan the surface of the mater. Everything that is seen is relayed down to the cockpit by television.

  This releases a homing robot from the front of the car. The homing robot can carry pictures or tape-recorded messages to anyone or anywhere Speed Racer wants.

  1

  THE MAMMOTH CAR

  Speed Racer, driver for the Go Team, sat ready in his race car: the incredible, incomparable Mach 5. Speed was at the starting point of the five-hundred-mile No-Limit World Race, a race that would take the drivers offtrack and onto real roads. The race would wind through deserts and up mountains and past oceans, ending outside the country. It was billed as the longest car race in the world.

  Speed and the other racers were in a huge stadium packed with thousands of cheering spectators. The Mach 5 was lifted many feet off the ground atop its hydraulic jack so the Go Team’s top mechanic, Sparky, could make some last-minute adjustments.

  “Okay, Speed!” Sparky shouted from beneath the car. “The brakes and the wheel systems are in perfect condition. We’re all set. Let’s get ready to race.”

  “Watch out, Sparky! ” Speed called. He disengaged the jack, and the Mach 5’s tires lowered to the ground with a smooth, solid bounce. He was about to pull into position when he heard someone calling his name.

  “Speed! Wait, Speed! Wait for me!” It was Trixie, a key member of the Go Team and Speed’s girlfriend. She was running madly across the track dressed in her red racing uniform and matching helmet.

  Sparky was just about to get into the Mach 5 when Trixie leaped past him. She hopped into the Mach 5’s passenger seat and shut the door in Sparky’s face. Since the No-Limit World Race was so long, drivers were able to take along assistant drivers as backups-and to help if there were any mechanical problems along the way. But the Mach 5 could only hold one assistant driver. Obviously, Trixie thought she was the one going on the race with Speed.

  Sparky stood outside the car, dazed. He had assumed he’d be Speed’s assistant driver.

  “You know you won’t win if you don’t have me for your assistant,” Trixie said to Speed. Then she winked.

  Trixie and Sparky weren’t the only members of the Go Team who expected to come along for the race. Speed’s little brother, Spritle, and his pet chimpanzee, Chim Chim, popped open the trunk of the Mach 5. Since the Mach 5 was designed as a two-seat race car, its trunk was where Spritle and Chim Chim were used to traveling. They liked to sneak in whenever they could.

  “Hop in, Chim Chim,” Spritle said. He helped Chim Chim into the trunk and jumped in after him.

  But before they got the trunk closed, their father, Pops Racer, reached in and pulled them both out.

  “Spritle, you know there’s no room for you in the Mach 5 during a race. I built this car to hold only two people,” Pops said firmly. “We can’t have anything-or anyone-slowing down the Mach 5 during this big race.”

  Racing cars ran in the Racer family. Pops was the head of the Go Team and an extremely talented race car designer. The Mach 5 was his greatest design, and he was very proud to have his son Speed be the one to drive it. Pops had another, older son—Rex—who long ago wanted to become a professional race car driver, but Pops had been too worried about his safety to let that happen. Rex wouldn’t give up on his dream, so he had run away from home years ago. The family
hadn’t seen Rex since.

  Now, Pops’s second son, Speed, had the same dream to become a professional race car driver. Even though Pops was often worried about his safety, he tried to be as supportive as possible. He saw how much racing cars meant to Speed. And Pops didn’t want to risk losing another son.

  “You ready for the big race, Speed?” Pops called. He closed the trunk securely so Spritle and Chim Chim couldn’t sneak back in.

  “Almost,” Speed said. “I just need an assistant driver.”

  He was looking back and forth between Trixie and Sparky, who were now in a full-blown argument about who would be his assistant.

  “Trixie,” Sparky was saying, “I know every single part of the Mach 5. You know I’m the best mechanic. Just let me ride in the race with Speed.”

  “Oh?” Trixie said, raising an eyebrow. She wouldn’t budge from the passenger seat. “I know every part of the car just as well as you do, Sparky. And I can do everything for the Mach 5 that you can do.” It was true that Trixie was a skilled mechanic. Every member of the Go Team—except maybe Chim Chim—had serious skill with cars.

  “But this is the most important race the team’s ever been in,” Sparky pleaded. “Please let me ride.”

  Trixie crossed her arms defiantly. “No way,” she said. “I’m the assistant.”

  “Get out of the car! ” Sparky shouted.

  “Never! ” Trixie shouted right back.

  Speed had had enough of their bickering. He had made his decision.

  “Sparky, just let it go. Let Trixie ride with me this time,” he said. Then he looked out toward the starting point on the racetrack. “See? No time to argue. The other cars are getting into position.”

  The Go Team forgot the disagreement as they looked out at all the different cars pulling up to the starting line. There were cars of every model and make. Classic cars. Brand-new cars. Specially designed cars. Exotic cars that no one had ever seen before. Cars in every color, size, and shape.

  “Wow!” Sparky said, forgetting his anger. “Look at those cars. This should be some amazing race. Any kind of car can enter! ”

  “That’s right,” Trixie said. “Any kind of car is allowed in this race. There are cars from all over the world.”

  “So that means all kinds of drivers,” Sparky said. “You can’t know what to expect, Speed. It could be dangerous.”

  Speed took it all in. He was confident that the Mach 5 could beat every car on this track. He just had to drive his best to make it happen.

  All of a sudden, everyone gasped in unison as a gigantic car barreled onto the race track.

  Black smoke curled from its exhaust pipes and its engine roared like a raging monster.

  “Hey, look at that!” someone in the crowd shouted.

  “That’s the biggest car I’ve ever seen!” someone else shouted.

  The gigantic car was as tall as a house. It was dark red, with a huge grille in front that made it look like it had a nasty, snarling mouth. The car was made of eleven connected segments, making it hundreds of feet longer than any other car in the race. The only windows were in the front, like two bright, angry eyes. In fact, the gigantic car looked more like a train than a regular car. As it pulled into position at the starting line, the crowd went silent. This car dwarfed every other car on the track.

  “That car’s almost as long as a football field,” Sparky said in disbelief.

  Speed shook his head in wonder. With Trixie sitting at his side, he pulled the Mach 5 into position.

  Once all the cars were in place, an announcement came over the stadium’s loudspeaker:

  “Hello, racing fans. The officials will now inspect the cars in the great No-Limit World Race! ” The crowd yelled impatiently for the race to start.

  The officials made their way over to the Mach 5.

  “Time to inspect your car, Speed,” the lead official said.

  Sparky ran over. “I have a question,” he said. “The rules say that any kind of car can be in the race, so why do you have to bother inspecting them?”

  “There’s a good reason, Sparky,” answered Inspector Detector as he approached the Mach 5.

  “Oh, Inspector Detector. We didn’t know you’d be at the big race,” Sparky said.

  “How are you, Inspector?” Speed asked. He reached out to shake the detective’s hand. Speed often found himself involved in Inspector Detector’s police investigations. Inspector Detector was always trying to find a way to help keep the bad guys off the streets.

  “Oh, I’m all right, Speed,” Inspector Detector replied with a smile. “Glad to see you here. But that’s not the reason I came to the track today.” His face turned serious. “Fifty million dollars in gold bars were stolen from the National Bank last week.”

  “Yes, I remember reading about that, sir,” Speed said.

  “Well,” the detective began, lowering his voice, “it’s possible that someone might try to smuggle those gold bars out of the country some time during this race. This is our only chance to search the cars. We can’t afford to let the robbers get away with a fortune like that! ”

  “But fifty million dollars in gold bars ...” Trixie burst in. “That’s a lot of gold! It would take an awfully big car to smuggle it away in, wouldn’t it?”

  “Yes, it certainly would,” Inspector Detector agreed. “But the bank robbers were very clever. We think we know who they’re working for, but we still haven’t been able to find the gold. We think they might have found a way to make the gold bars smaller. Or they could have hidden the gold bars inside a car somehow. We’re open to any possibility. So we even have to inspect your car, Speed.”

  Speed nodded to show that he didn’t mind.

  The officials opened the hood of the Mach 5 and began searching around.

  “So, who do you think the bank robbers are working for?” Speed asked.

  “Have you ever heard of Cruncher Block?” Inspector Detector said.

  “Oh, sure,” Speed said. “He’s one of the richest men in the world.”

  “We’re sure he’s the head of the robbers, and we know he’d stop at nothing to get that gold out of the country.”

  After a few minutes of thorough checking, the lead official gave Inspector Detector a thumbs-up. “The Mach 5 passes inspection, Inspector,” the official said.

  “Good. Well, good luck, Go Team,” Inspector Detector said.

  “Thanks! ” Speed said.

  Inspector Detector and the racing officials moved to the Mammoth Car to continue their inspection. It certainly was a car big enough to hold that much gold. With all those compartments, there was definitely enough room to hide it.

  The Mammoth Car’s driver leaned out of the window far up above the ground. He had a nasty face and a big, loud mouth. “You go right ahead,” he yelled at the racing officials. “Look around all you want. You ain’t gonna find nothin’.”

  “This car looks too big for the race,” Inspector Detector said. “It doesn’t seem fair to me.”

  “It is fair! ” one of the Mammoth Car’s driving assistants yelled. “The rules say any kind of car can enter. This is a car. It’s just a really long car.”

  Because the Mammoth Car was so big, it had many driving assistants. Speed had just one assistant driver for the race, but the Mammoth Car had at least ten.

  Another assistant yelled down to Inspector Detector. “Hey, you. You want a tour of the Mammoth Car? Then come on up.”

  Inspector Detector climbed the tall steps and entered the first compartment of the enormous vehicle.

  “The main engine has seventy-five hundred horsepower,” the Mammoth Car’s assistant driver told him. “Each mammoth wheel also contains an individual engine of fifteen hundred horsepower. Altogether, the Mammoth Car is driven by thirty thousand horsepower.” He began to walk Inspector Detector and the racing officials through the huge interior. Each compartment was just a giant, empty room.

  “Hmm,” was all the detective said as he looked around.
So far, there were no gold bars in sight.

  Outside the Mammoth Car, Sparky was doing some inspecting of his own. As an auto mechanic, he was always curious about cars. And he’d never seen such a massive vehicle in his entire life. His curiosity got the better of him. He walked the entire length of the Mammoth Car to get a closer look.

  Back inside the Mammoth Car, an assistant driver continued giving a tourto Inspector Detector and the racing officials.

  “The Mammoth Car can travel over five hundred miles per hour on any kind of road,” the Mammoth Car’s driver bragged in a loud, booming voice. “The brakes are magnetic and a single push of a button will stop the car. We have an army of mechanics that can fix anything if something goes wrong.”

  The Mammoth Car’s driver walked Inspector Detector and the racing officials all the way to the very last compartment of the car. Every compartment they passed through was as empty as the first. There were no gold bars. No boxes holding gold bars. It appeared to hide nothing.

  The driver showed Inspector Detector and the racing officials to the sliding metal door in the back of the Mammoth Car. He opened it, and they climbed down to the ground.

  “This car is so powerful, we can’t possibly lose this race,” the Mammoth Car’s driver announced. Then he waved and closed the door.

  Sparky, who had been peering closely at the Mammoth Car’s giant taillights, approached Inspector Detector.

  “Did you find out how many cylinders the engine has and if it’s equipped with a supercharger?” he asked excitedly.