In John Fastramp and the Mystery of the Ghost Speedway, the second exciting installment of the John Fastramp series, the adventure begins as John tests a new hydrogen engine in the Blue Spider. Blazing along at incredible speed, the Blue Spider’s velocity is matched by a strange car that appears from nowhere and can disappear!
John, Tom and their friends travel high into the Himalayan Mountains to compete in the baffling race called the Bhutali 500 better known as the Ghost Speedway. When this race ends it vanishes as do all the racers that haven’t completed the course!
Along the way, they make new allies with a secret organization and new friends. Unfortunately, they also meet Master Ice. Will John, Tom and their friends escape the plans of Master Ice and survive the Ghost Speedway?
Excerpt from John Fastramp and the Mystery of the Ghost Speedway
Ahead, the car turned a corner and vanished from sight. The Blue Spider turned the same corner and saw the racer turn off the street. The Blue Spider followed, and the boys found themselves in a large open space filled with tall mounds of rocks and sand. A mountain of boulders filled the far end of the lot, nearby were tall piles of pebbles and gravel. The boulders were carried by a long belt to a machine that crushed the rocks. The belt transported large boulders into the machine, where steel teeth ground the rocks to rubble. Finally broken down, pebbles poured from a large hose onto the lot floor. When one mountain of pebbles grew tall, the hose slid to a new spot, and a new rocky mountain began to form.
“I think this place makes cement,” Tom said.
John didn’t reply. He scanned the lot for their quarry. There were many places the mysterious car could hide. The Blue Spider slowly drove between the tall rock piles. The boys kept their eyes alert for the black race car.
They reached the end of the rocky lot. The conveyor belt loomed ahead, and John steered the car around another large pile of rocks. As the boys rounded the pile, they heard a high-pitched hum. The Spider began to vibrate.
“There it is,” Tom yelled. They rounded the stone pile and the black car faced them. The car appeared to become blurry and the hum became so loud it was painful to their ears. Then the boys heard a new noise, the sound of falling rocks.
John looked up. “Oh no!”
The loud vibration had done its job: a mountain of stones was falling towards the Blue Spider. John hit a button on the dash, and a tough, transparent shield slid shut protecting the boys. They watched as the car became completely covered by the rocky pile. The noise of falling rubble faded away and was replaced with total silence. The boys were trapped under a thick rocky blanket.
“How are we going to get out?” Tom asked.
“Let’s try the direct approach.”
John increased the engine throttle to full power and powered up the laser headlights. He glanced at Tom. “Are you ready?”
“Ready as I’ll ever be.”
John turned the lasers on, and twin beams of intense red light melted the rocks in front of them. Would it be enough? The boys sat in silence as red light filled the transparent canopy above them. Rocks melted and flowed away like dirty brown molasses.
“Look!” Tom pointed.
John squinted. Sure enough, there was a small opening in the rocks. It grew larger and, soon, it was several feet in diameter. John decided it was enough.
“Hold on.”
He pressed the accelerator and the car surged forward and hit the molten rocks with tremendous force. For a moment, nothing happened—it seemed that they would remain stuck. But, then, the car burst from its rocky prison.
Surprisingly, the black car was waiting. John sensed that its driver was just as surprised as he was.
“Unbelievable.” Tom frowned. “This guy is gloating because he trapped us.”
“Well, he made a mistake in not leaving when he had the chance. Let’s get him.”
The dark car’s driver appeared to have realized his mistake as well. The car shot past the boys and headed for the street with the Blue Spider close behind. The ebony car almost immediately left the street and turned into a parking garage. The boys drove the Blue Spider into the garage and watched as the blurry car ascended the spiral ramp to the upper floors.
“We have him now,” Tom said. “There isn’t any other way out.
John maneuvered the aerodynamic racer up the tight spiral ramp. They exited on an upper floor and watched as the black car fled into yet another room. As they pursued the elusive car, they again heard the now familiar hum. The Blue Spider began to vibrate.
“What’s he up to this time?” Tom asked.
The boys drove into the room and were relieved to see that it had no other exit. In fact, the dark car sat in the center of the room. The car was very blurry now, and the noise and vibration had grown stronger. The vibration caused Tom’s teeth to chatter.
“Gotcha,” John said happily.
As if the driver had heard John, the car accelerated straight for the concrete garage wall.
“Don’t do it,” yelled John.
But it was too late. The boys watched in horror as the car raced into the wall and…vanished.