In this week’s edition of Common Knowledge, we explore the elusive Blackbushe Racetrack. For years, it’s hosted Go-Kart events, presumably for someone, while providing a safe space for privately educated teenagers and parents who have too much money, or the genuinely enthusiastic karters, who I wholeheartedly support.
When the track isn’t in use, you can take the side path and even get on the track itself. It’s a hotspot for concrete sunbathing and trespassing, especially for Yateley Youth, often seen trading their favourite smelling salts. However, one of our readers wrote in about a ‘ghostkart’ on the racetrack. The Team, always intrigued by the supernatural, unanimously agreed we had to check it out. Months of preparation followed. We had to gather rare, antique equipment from the 80s, including Ecto goggles, a Proton pack and a PKE meter to track psychokinetic activity. Our expedition began badly. We lost one of our team to a tree root that tripped him down The Common Cliffs, and the discovery that racecar backwards was, in fact, racecar was another bad omen.
On finally reaching the Blackbushe Racetrack, we camped out till witching hour to ensure a spotting. What happened next can only be described as really scary. We heard it before we saw it: the high-octane zoom round the bend, the high-pitched buzzing of the engine and the screeching of tyres. It passed the finish line and carried on at a dangerous speed. Luckily, we brought Go-Kart pundit and 3 time Piston Cup champion, James Price, who immediately spotted that the ghost was a famous Karter who died tragically in a catastrophic accident on the very track in front of us. Quincy Q. (The Quake) Quadley was a young karter of great potential. The River Phoenix of the Kart World. After a promising start to the season in ‘88, Quincy refused a pit stop 4 times in a row, desperate to take 1st place from his rival, Zach Zoomin’ Zimmerman. Friends close to Quincy described their Heated Rivalry-esque relationship, prompting increasingly intense competition climaxing at Blackbushe racetrack. Quincy Quadley attempted an overtake on the 214th lap, but failed before the corner, crashing into the concrete barrier at 185 mph. The recent addition of heated seats (a well-meaning gift from Zimmerman) caused a fire in the engine and then an explosion. Quadley was eviscerated but probably felt no pain; however, it seems his spirit lives on. We watched as his ghost repeatedly catapulted round the bend, and crashed again and again into the barrier. Some say that one day he’ll turn just enough to make it round that corner, finishing the race, and freeing his soul from torment.
Coda
We were all hypnotised by the sight. One of our team, Chris, ran towards the track in a state of hysteria. We shouted and begged for him to come back, but he seemed transfixed and possessed- desperate to see him closer. Perhaps it was Zach’s spirit, trying to reunite with his lover. We’ll never know, as Chris and the boom mic were whisked off by the spirit as it ran him over, disappearing into the night. Another victim of the Ghostkart and its helpless, tragic driver.
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