A Karting Calamity

Two years ago, I remember feeling faintly suspicious when our International Law lecturer started his lectures by justifying the study of the subject, and having to explain what the subject actually was. Come the end of the (very long) year my suspicions were eventually confirmed. So, imagine my horror when our Jurisprudence lecturer was asked what Jurisprudence actually was, and answered that there was no accepted answer! That's a whole big step beyond the International Law scenario, but thankfully I'm not feeling suspicious about it, it's oddly satisfying studying a subject with no accepted answers.

Yesterday I finally realised an ambition that I put on hold in the first year after baulking at its price - karting. Karting is one of those words that Microsoft's spell check refuses to accept, and most people seem to react slightly oddly when you say it's what you're doing. But its relative obscurity is part of its appeal, although the speed helps too. So yesterday 29 of us took off to a local indoor karting track for a bit of racing action. We each took part in two qualifying races to determine positions for one of the three finals. I haven't karted for at least two years, and not in a proper racing kart for closer to six or seven years. Nonetheless, after starting 6th in my first heat, I was 2nd by the first corner, and finally came home in 4th, which I thought quite respectable. Unfortunately things fell apart in my second heat. I started 2nd, and owing to having a kart with less than perfect acceleration, I was 10th and last by the first corner. Eventually I pitted to get it checked out before being sent on my way. Perhaps I was pushing a little too hard at this point, but unfortunately what happened next resulted in me leaving my seat, and my kart, and ending up sprawled across the track! I'm not entirely sure what happened, but I remember coming into a 180-degree corner, and finding a kart spun on the apex. Unfortunately I had no time to brake, leaving my inertia to disagree with the sudden deceleration, the result propelling me out of my kart. Fortunately the red flags were thrown straight away and no-one hit me. But everyone looked a little shocked, not least the staff who obviously had the inevitable insurance claim running through their minds. But I soldiered on and got back in, to finish 9th, which doesn't say much for the guy who came 10th. In my final I started 2nd and finished 1st, which seemed to make up for the events of the second heat.

Despite all that though it was tremendous fun, and I can't wait to get back behind the wheel and do it all over again, although I wouldn't mind staying in my kart next time. I've got an impressive bruise and scratch on my back, very sore shoulders, and a nice bruise on my derriere, which seemed to take most of my track-bound impact.

By comparison with all that today's five hours worth of lectures and one supervision has seemed pretty dull. Although I did meet the five Dutch students who've come over from Utrecht this year. I was sat in the lecture theatre a few rows behind them before thinking "I know that language!", so I trotted down for a chat. My Dutch lectures continue to amaze me - I didn't know how much about language I was completely ignorant about. I'm the only non-linguist, so perhaps it really shows, but I'm sticking my hand up every few minutes to check on the meaning of dipthongs, indirect objects, definite articles and personal pronouns. And I still can't speak Dutch.