The Diary of Silas Volante

By Simon Coates

The diary of Silas Volante is a story told from the perspective of Silas Volante, a full-time racing spaceship pilot who competes in the prestigious Formula X Galactic Championship, the top branch of motorsport of the time. Think of Formula One but with spaceships and you won’t be far off!
Imagine, for a moment, that people could create spaceships that could get us to planet Mars in a reasonable time scale. Then just imagine if some people decided to tune up these spaceships, to make them specialised racing machines, capable of tremendous speed and performance.
Welcome to Formula X, the top branch of motorsport in the 24th century.
Join Silas Volante in the pilot seat of his fire-breathing Japan Racing Formula X racing machine as he competes in the manic, adrenaline-fuelled, thrilling and downright most dangerous sport ever conceived by humans. Read about his life as a professional racing pilot, including notes on testing, meeting with engineers, fitness regimes, and of course, getting strapped into the cockpit for a Formula X race. Feel the vibrations of a massively tuned solar power engine, imagine the loudness of such a thing, capable of propelling this incredible monster machine to huge speeds to cover a lap of Earth in just five minutes. So, sit back, take a deep breath, and let Silas Volante show you what it takes to be a top spaceship racer as he attempts to win the Galactic Championship. Sick bags optional!
Featuring fantastic illustrations of racing scenes by Mike Wood.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Simon Coates
• Release date: May 11, 2014
• ISBN: 9781311710772

Simon Coates

Well hello everyone. I am the creator of the Galactic Echo, which is the general fiction concept on which everything I write about is based. It is an idea of life in the 24th century, based on things that might really happen rather than stories about aliens and the usual sci-fi fare.On a more personal note, I have lived in the North East of England all my life, I have a wide range of interests. The main one of which is cycle racing in which I regularly compete up to National Championship level, so in case you are wondering yes I have raced against such illustrious competition including Sean Yates, Bradley Wiggins and Alex Dowsett. I also enjoy photography but find with my writing I have a sense of expressing myself in a way that is impossible to do with any other means, and hope that my love of the written artform comes out in the various stories you will see produced.I have created a website which has lots of things to do with the Galactic Echo, including loads of freebies connected to the stories, www.galactic-echo.com. I hope to make the Galactic Echo a sort of niche sci fi concept, rather than just have stories churned out every now and then. Feel free to contact me via the website or Facebook/Twitter, would love to hear from you if you have any queries about the Galactic Echo!

Book preview

The Diary of Silas Volante

A Year in the Life of a Formula X racing pilot

Many thanks to the following:

Copyright Simon Coates 2014

All rights reserved

Smashwords Edition

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental. No part of this publication can be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electrical or mechanical, without permission in writing from the author.

www.galactic-echo.com

Foreword by Simon Coates

Have you ever imagined a time in the far future, where humans have managed to populate planet Mars and the Moon? Where they have established colonies there so that everyday people live their everyday lives on these terrestrial objects, alongside planet Earth? Well, I did, and thought about what life might be like for them. What sort of jobs would they do? What would a daily routine consist of? And what sort of leisure activities would they take part in?

Well, if we did indeed live on the Moon and Mars, along with orbiting spacestations, we would need a reliable, affordable and safe transport system to get us around, much like we have cars, trains and aeroplanes today. To begin with, people would have to invent new engine systems to ensure this sort of interplanetary transport would be possible. Companies would come along and build such spaceships, and with that would come an inevitable interest in speed; how fast could they go? Clearly, if we wanted to get to Mars, we would have to be able to get there in a short time span rather than a number of years as is being suggested with the plans for a manned mission to the red planet at the present time.

So let us suggest such spaceships are possible, and that people can travel to Mars in a reasonable timeframe, say one week. Inevitably, companies would look to out-perform each other with faster and better models, much like for instance sports car makers do today. The fact that virtually no-one who has such a car, capable of over at over 200mph doesn't actually ever drive at these speeds seems to matter, having the Fastest Car in the World is a very prestigious title, and with motorsport formulas, being the fastest driver and car has been a factor of the sport since it began, as soon as cars became reasonably reliable.

Move forward to the future, where spaceships are developed, there would be an interest in who can make the fastest ship.

And with that, a motorsport is founded. This would be the top branch of motorsport of the late-23rd century, and the biggest sport of all. It would feature spaceships not designed to be comfortable, quiet and refined; these would be fire-breathing monster machines conceived to be the fastest and loudest rocketships of all, with massive capabilities. It would call on the best (and bravest) pilots of the time and a host of blue-chip companies recognising the advertising potential of sponsoring one of these racing teams. One of these elite pilots is Japan-born Silas Volante, racing for the Japan Racing Team, sponsored by spaceship builders Yamamoto, Sellac Electronics and Metaspeed, a turbine manufacturer.

The Diary of Silas Volante is told from the perspective of Silas, as he endeavours to become the overall Galactic Champion at the end of the season. So, put your racing suit on, get strapped in to his magnificent Jap E2 racer and let Silas take you on the race of your life. Sick bag optional!

Welcome to the maddest, fastest, loudest and downright most dangerous motorsport ever conceived by humans.

Welcome to Formula X. Hope you enjoy the ride.

Table of Contents

Introduction

A short guide to Formula X

Pre-season

Race 1, February 5th ,10 laps Earth

Race 2, March 5th, 5 laps Earth - Moon

Race 3, April 2nd, 10 laps Moon

Race 4, June 4th, 10 laps Mars

Race 5, July 2nd, 100 laps Deimos

Race 6, August 6th, 100 laps Phobos

Race 7, October 1st, 100 laps Earth

Post-season

Appendix: race results and summaries

Glossary

Introduction

I am Silas Volante, professional Formula X race pilot for the Japan Racing Team. I have been racing for just one year – 2298 was my first year in the sport – and I got this idea at the end of that racing year, to give you, the reader, a unique insight into what it is like to be a racing pilot. This whole document is a diary that I intend to update very regularly with all the goings-on in a full-time professional Formula X racing team during 2299.

This document will be written in the present tense, as each entry is written on a specific day. This is my first entry, written on Sunday, 11th September 2298, exactly a week after the last race of the season. What I will do is split the diary into different chapters, separated by the race date. If you want a brief lesson on what Formula X racing is, skip to the next chapter. I will probably write each day up on the day, or perhaps a day later, depending on what happens. The actual races I will try and explain in real detail, as the race unfolds, so how this works out, well I am not sure but it is going to be a lot of fun finding out.

To keep things simple, I want to firstly give you an introduction about myself, but don’t expect any juicy stories. Personal matters will remain personal, and I don’t think you wanted to read this book to read all about my personal life. If you want to do that there is plenty of choice out there about air-headed celebrities, their personal lives are actually far more interesting than mine! No, this book will purely focus on my racing season for 2299, giving you an insight into how life is for a professional racing pilot.

I was born on 7th December 2260, so for the 2298 racing season I was 37 years old, about average for a racing pilot. I never really harboured ambitions to become a Formula X pilot; it might be a bit of a cliché, but it ‘sort of happened’. I actually wanted to become a professional chauffeur, believe it or not! The idea of flying to different planets for people appealed to me. I got my ship pilot licence at the Rebus Racing Academy, where they discovered my talent for racing. Rebus are a fantastic training establishment that help you to gain ship flying skills, from the basics to professional level for long-distance freight travel, and then on to the option of racing pilot training which is what I received. I got interested in getting into the racing scene, and was offered a job with the Japan Racing Team in 2294 as a training pilot, testing the racing ships for Jason Stanton, who was the race pilot for that year. I must have done something right as Jason won the championship that year! In 2297 Jason retired, and the team decided to give me a go as full time pilot. My first year as full-time race pilot was a happy one for me; I won a race, and finished third overall, so for 2299 I will enter the year full of hope to make progress and finish higher in the championship. It has gone really quick, a real baptism of fire, but I learn quickly and have been lucky in many ways, I am at the top of my game at this point so am eager to make the most of it. Japan Racing are a top team, and the chance to race for them means I have the chance of winning races and the championship, something I want to take advantage of and get the best results possible. Some pilots never get the chance to race with a top team, so it is a real privilege to do so.

People often ask me why I became a racing pilot. It is actually quite a difficult question to answer, after all it is a very dangerous sport. There have been a total of 16 deaths in the sport since it began in 2283, and although the safety aspect has improved greatly over the past years, the stark fact is that there is still a high probability of being killed flying a racing spaceship. The aspect of having much safer and better ships now than ever before is balanced by the fact that we travel a lot quicker, so the improvements in safety are undermined by the sheer nature of the sport becoming more dangerous with the higher speed. An average racing pilot is in the sport for five years or so, it is unusual for pilots to stay on for longer than this, due to the extreme nature of what it entails. The sheer physical battering your body gets during a race is incredible, hence why the careers are so short. I think the attraction is that it is the most exciting sport there is; the combination of being in control of a machine with massive power, the sound, the sheer number of fans, the whole ‘package’, is just the ultimate thrill ride. One of the things I look back with a lot of happiness from the 2298 season is the feel of a ship when it is correctly set up, it is absolutely amazing. Nothing, and absolutely nothing comes close to the sheer intoxicating feel of a racing spaceship. It is the ultimate adrenaline rush. There is your answer then!

My first experience of Formula X in the real was a fair few years ago when I went with a few friends to see a race on Earth. I will never forget the feeling of waiting for the leading ships to come past. It started with a faint image in the distance, which got bigger very quickly, until we could just see a small shape on the horizon, and within seconds, it was above us and gone, accompanied by the most incredible, intense noise I have ever heard in my life. Then the other ships came over, leaving a massive pressure wave behind them and a massive, brutal, savage and very, very loud thundering noise. I was shouting a barrage of swear words, and running around like a schoolboy, due to the sheer, pure intensive thrill of it all but to be honest words don’t do it justice in any way! The ships I have worked with since that day, with being in the sport for a number of years, are obviously louder and more powerful, but that first ever encounter with a racing ship left a lasting impression on me. I have been besotted with Formula X racing ships ever since that amazing day. It is something that got ‘under my skin’, and the sheer thrill has since then never worn off.

So, here we go then, a year in the life of a pilot. I think it would be a good point at this stage to let you know how things went during the ’98 season. My results were as follows:

Race 1, 6th February, Earth circular, 10 laps

My first ever Formula X race. A lot of pressure was on me to perform, and I finished third! Really pleased, was on cloud nine for a week.

Race 2, 6th March, Earth - Moon return, 25 laps

This was a race I really feared due to the length involved. 25 laps meant we were flying for 12.5 million miles. It lasted over six hours, with average speeds around the 2 million miles per hour. An unforgettable experience, and very pleased to come fourth in this one. Shas’olum pipped Sladek Ducote to win his second race in a row.

Race 3, 3rd April, Moon circular, 1 lap

I was really fired up for this one – from the marathon of the previous race, just one lap of the Moon was really a sprint. I was hoping to post something spectacular here, but the ship just didn’t quite have the legs. Ended fourth again, with fourth in the championship standings.

Race 4, 5th June, Mars circular, 10 laps

Ship was absolutely fantastic for this race – was really challenging Shas’olum for the win early on, but he turned it on for the second half of the race to win by a lap. So, finished second, my highest position so far.

Race 5, 7th August, Earth - Moon return, 5 laps

WON!!! A memorable day. Ship was just awesome, didn’t miss a beat. My first ever Formula X win. The celebration afterwards was pretty mad to be honest! Moved up to second in the championship.

Race 6, 4th September, Earth circular, 100 laps

A real disappointment here. Actually held the lead for the early part of the race, before the turbine started to mis-fire so I had to pit, and was too far back when I re-joined the race. Ship just didn’t get to full power afterwards, and finished outside the points for the first time of the year, effectively ending my chances of winning the whole championship.

Race 7, 2nd October, Moon circular, 1 lap

Another manic short race, which saw Shas’olum winning and taking the championship. I ended third and third overall in the championship.

Being a racing pilot is a strangely weird feeling. With only nine teams racing, I am one of only a few people in the world who do this sort of thing. Considering it is the biggest and most watched sport in the world, with a fan base of billions, it makes me feel very proud and lucky to be doing what I do. It really is a dream come true for me. I know it sounds kind of mushy, but I am genuinely delighted that Japan Racing believed in me to offer me their pilot spot. But with this trust comes expectation; the team have been in the sport since 2286, have won two championships and twelve races, so with the positive results from 2298, a lot of pressure will be on me to ‘deliver the goods’ for 2299...

So, we come to the present day, with the season finished. At this point, the factory is closed for a few weeks. This is traditional for the team, as it gives us a bit of personal time for ourselves after a hectic year. Before I dive straight into the preparations for the new season, I think it is a good idea at this point to introduce you to the team. There are a total of around 50 people involved in Japan Racing in one capacity or another, with the main guys as follows, who I expect to be referring to at various times during the year, so at least you will know who they are and what they do:

Risteph Ishato – Team Manager. The big wig.

Katsumi Avison – Chief engineer. He is my main contact ‘on the ground’ in charge of general strategy; he is the guy I speak with during a race.

Saburo Akiti – Chief race mechanic.

Malik Yomosato – Test pilot. I was in this job before moving up to the full-time racer’s position.

Yuuta Ertil – Aerodynamics.

Shinichi Kundo – Chief engine mechanic.

Kiyoshi Barato – Engine tester.

Daiki Ishami – Chief chassis and ship designer.

Ento Ghislam – my personal trainer and physio.

Emi Suzuki – Admin manager.