Solitary Moment Prompt

10/14/2014

Write about a private moment you’ve experienced in a distant place. Perhaps a solitary walk along a beach or an elegant dinner at a restaurant far from home. Your goal, first, is to transport yourself back to this moment, then put the reader there. Tell us what you see, what you smell and hear, what you feel.

One moment like this I experienced was standing alone watching the Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta in Braselton Georgia.

The smell of burnt tires was in the fall air. Multi-Million dollar race cars were zooming past at about 160 mph down the long back straight of the nearly 3 mile road course. The feeling of exhilaration was palpable, knowing that a few yards in front of me drivers were racing for their livelihoods, risking their lives entering every turn inches from their rivals. It was also intense knowing that one mistake by any of the drivers could send their crumbling race car hurdling toward the wall and then slamming in to me inevitably killing me in the process. Along with the excitement there was also a feeling of pride experiencing the pinnacle of human engineering and fearlessness right in front of me. Thinking of the thousands of hours spent in labs and garages scrutinizing every little detail and inch of bodywork to hone them to perfection for a chance at winning this prestigious 10 hour race I was witnessing. In the end there were a few wrecks that happened near me, but both the drivers involved and I made it through the event unharmed. The finish of the race was close down to the final lap with a Porsche prototype from the p2 class trying to catch the leading p1 Audi r-10 prototype for the win. The Porsche failed in this attempt however, but overall the race was thrilling and amazing.