Episode description
Pit Lane Light-Pulse: Reappraising the Choi Method: Part 3
An interview with Yoon Seo-jun, Technical Development Director, Incheon Thunderbolt
I’m not going to answer that.
The Team’s position remains that we do not comment on development or deployment of the Choi Method. What’s public knowledge is public knowledge and we see no need to go further than that.
Yes. Similarly we are not commenting further on Ms. Choi’s departure beyond our initial statement. We’re in constant communication with the Choi family, and, during the first two years, offered them all the support we could during that difficult time.
I’m not going to answer that.
I’m not going to answer that.
Yes, I’d say we were proud of Ms. Choi. Proud, at times. She was a visionary. And sometimes — no, no, I’ll be fine, they can ask this — think we can all agree that the clarity of someone’s vision can mean their intentions get a little muddled. I’m sure Ms. Choi had only the best in mind when she made the Method public knowledge, but the fact remains that we’re in the business of winning.
I’m not going to answer that.
I can’t comment on whether the Method has been altered or improved in recent years. I can draw your attention to Thunderbolt pit times. I think we’re all very proud of our research divisions.
Yes, well, these things are difficult. There’ll always be a cost to — no, let me finish —— and Ms. Choi made things harder for us. In that sense. If everybody has the same tools. If every improvement to the machinery that could be made, has been made. So I think it’s a natural progression to start thinking beyond the metal, as far as the Method’s concerned. It’s a competitive imperative to start thinking beyond the metal.
Right. So we’ve been — yes. Exactingly.
Contents
Plot
After Ronny’s request to the ABB Racing Team to destroy the Jackpot Supreme, the crew readies for the TriCity Classic. They discuss their plan of attack, weighing the benefits of just destroying the vehicle versus attempting to lap Jackpot, which (as per racing rules) would immediately remove the car from the race. The decide to try to lap the car, given the recent improvements to Trip’s car has made his vehicle extremely fast.
The TriCity Classic race begins in the morning, with the race set to last all day as it moves between all three cities (Bluffington Beach, Blough City, and Bluff City). All the previous racers are in attendance apart from Sonny, Baby, and Callista Lee (who are out due to injury). They have been replaced by Camilla Lee (Callista’s sister), the Jackpot Supreme (with an unseen driver), and Cameron B Castle (who was asked to attend by his good friend Sonny, and also by Ronny, who has asked them to look out for the ABB Crew).
The fact that Absolute is driving a different car to the Jackpot Supreme will now make their plan of lapping the vehicle to knock it out of the race more difficult, as it means that Absolute will be able to protect it on the track, and the team discusses their worries. As they take their positions for the race, they are relived to note that they are ahead of Absolute, and the Tiger Bite’s vehicles, which have been placed ahead of them, do not look as though they have been fully repaired since the previous race.
Tate shakes Trip’s hand and wishes him luck, and they agree to run a clean race. Absolute glares at them both through his windshield, still irritated by being under investigation for cheating (though he has been allowed to participate in this race as it is a charity event and not part of the racing season.
The race begins - Tate tries to make the most of the lead place in the starting positions and maintain his lead, while Trip unsuccessfully attempts to overtake him. Castle holds his position, stopping others, including Absolute, from overtaking either of them. Wanting to push Absolute further back, Froggy takes advantage of their knowledge of the track and overtakes them, pushing Absolute’s car further back to sixth place. Wrench builds off of Froggy’s actions, holding her position to keep Absolute away from both Trip and the front. SC unsuccessfully tries to overtake, as does the Jackson Supreme, which does slowly begin to advance through the other cars.
Tate, not wanting Trip to overtake him and having a vehicle too damaged to slam Trip off the track, tries to block Trip from overtaking him. Trip speeds past him, taking advantage of Tate’s fear of further vehicle damage to get around him. Castle follows Trip, also overtaking Tate. Froggy tries again to hold Absolute back but is unsuccessful, and Absolute passes them. Seeing Froggy be overtaken, Wrench chooses to hold her position rather than trying to overtake. SC and the Jackpot Supreme slide further up the group, with the Jackpot slamming into another car and sending it colliding into the side of the TriCity Tunnel.
The racers pass through the tunnel, pass onto a bridge area and are surrounded on all sides by the sea, briefly confusing to the drivers, before they emerge into Blough City for the second lap of the race, providing the background of an empty, crumbling cityscape for the racers.
Trip holds onto his first place position, speeding ahead and followed closely by Castle and Tate. Absolute takes advantage of Tate’s fear, overtaking Tate and advancing on Trip. Froggy holds their position to put a buffer between the other racers and Trip, while Wrench drops back, using the bulk of her car to block Jackpot from passing. SC advances to just behind Froggy.
Trip pushes forward, reaching the tip end of the group to begin the process of overlapping the nineteenth racer, Double Double, and removing them from the race. Castle attempts to slam into Absolute, partially wrecking his vehicle but managing to stay on the track. Absolute uses this to overtake Castle, heading towards Trip. Tate uses the Caste and Absolute battle to overtake Castle. Froggy tries to overtake Tate, though they only manage to hold their position. SC attempts to overtake the other racers, but is blocked by Castle. Wrench slams into Jackpot, damaging the vehicle. Jackpot hits Wrench back in retaliation, but Wrench dodges their attack. In doing so, their cars are close enough that Wrench can see through the Jackpot’s windows, revealing the driver is a slot machine-shaped robot.
The audience hears an explanation from Robby in voiceover, explaining the mechanics behind the Jackpot Supreme - it is absorbing the energy from Bluffington and Blough City as it passes through them in order to give that energy to Bluff City. If it completes this place, Bluffington and Blough will cease to exist.
As the driver’s approach the third lap they head through the tunnel again into Bluff City as the sun begins to set, displaying the crystalline beauty of the city.
Trip pushes forward, passing Wrench and Froggy, and ending up directly in front of Froggy. Absolute can’t hold their position, as Tate takes advantage of Absolute underestimating him and overtakes them. Froggy uses Absolute’s irritation at Tate to overtake them, frustrating them further. Castle holds his position, keeping Absolute and SC from moving forward. Wrench attempts to overtake Jackpot or at least hold them back but she’s not able to, watching as the magnetic tape inside the Jackpot’s robot is distorting the reality around them and affecting the landscape of Bluff City, ending up behind Jackpot.
Trip speeds past Jackpot, putting his vehicle in danger of exploding but successfully overlapping the Jackpot in order to disqualify them from the race. Tate overtakes Trip, heading into first position. Froggy, fearing for Trip’s safety from Absolute, slams into Absolute’s vehicle. Absolute doesn’t give in, holding their position. Froggy uses a turn in the track to their advantage, slamming into them again, and Absolute attempts to retaliate, Froggy’s car ripping the top off of Absolute’s vehicle in the process. Absolute barely manages to use their emergency ejector seat in time to avoid being killed in the resulting crash.
Castle holds his position, blocking SC from overtaking him. Jackpot, knowing it is not able to win the race, chooses instead to target Trip. Trip tries to outmaneuver it, overworking his car to the point of explode in the process, though he manages to survive the resulting crash. Jackpot continues on, but its vehicle is heavily damaged. Tate reaches out and manages to grab Trip before his body is flung out of the course, letting Trip ride in his vehicle for the remainder of the race.
Wrench slams her car into Jackpot from behind, using an upcoming turn to flip the Jackpot Supreme and stopping it from progressing any further in the race, though the robot driver inside does survive. Having been disqualified, the magnetic drones remove both drivers from the track.
The drivers head back through the tunnel towards Bluffington Beach and the end of the race. First place is awarded to Tate, with Froggy winning second and Castle winning third (Sc comes in fourth, driving conservatively to maintain his safety on the track).
As they bring their cars to a stop, the stands seem a little emptier, the rich a little richer, the poor a little poorer but the situation certainly could have been worse. Ronny brings them all flowers, and offers to let Wrench drive his car, which she does. Ronny thanks Trip for his sacrifice, telling him that now no one will have any doubt who is the better driver or better person. Trip chooses to make this race the end of his racing career, feeling that it is a positive end.
Froggy, having won second place and “most improved” in their last race, chooses to continue racing, having proven that they’re more than just a street racer and wanting to bring integrity back to the sport of racing. Ronny agrees, quoting the song Chattahoochee to back up their point.