The classmates who didn't participate in the competition all went to the second-floor lounge to watch.
Though the prep area downstairs is closer to the track, the view on the second floor is better, with a platform allowing spectators to overlook the entire course.
And the ones racing on the track are those they spent countless days with, making the spectating classmates feel a sudden peculiar sensation.
Most of the non-participants are girls, plus everyone generally gets along well.
So while the classmates were preparing below, this group of girls enthusiastically cheered them on as much as they could.
Of course, as the class monitor, Zhu Hong received the most encouragement.
Most of the boys went down to compete, considering the chance to play go-karts for free and the irresistible stakes; the naturally energetic boys wouldn't miss this opportunity.
The cheers and encouragement from above reached the drivers below, despite wearing helmets and engine noise, the classmates' cheers upstairs were louder.
This race was a spur-of-the-moment decision without much prior planning, but as the karting venue manager, the coach still carefully checked each vehicle's condition and the students' gear for any issues before the race began.
Only after all the preparations were completed did they activate the starting lights hanging above the start area.
During training, he explained to the students that when holding a karting race here, the signal to start would be when the red lights go out.
And the time the start lights go out is manually controlled, making prediction impossible.
Once everyone was ready, the coach flipped the switch for the start lights, and a row of five red lights on the ceiling lit up.
While Qin Miao mostly thought about quickly finishing the race and going home to game, he instinctively extended his left foot upon seeing the five red lights, thinking to press the clutch for starting preparation.
Realizing he'd stepped on nothing after extending his left foot, Qin Miao remembered that at the moment, he was the passenger in the kart.
However, when the five red lights went out, Qin Miao instinctively wanted to start in his most comfortable way, fully immersed in the environment.
When Qin Miao realized again he wasn't the driver, Qimeng hadn't moved from the starting line yet.
After about half a second, Qimeng started along with the classmates, driving out of the start grid.
Actually, Qimeng's reaction speed isn't that slow; compared to other classmates, it was average. But Qin Miao is a professional esports player who can compete at a professional level.
His reaction speed is arguably the fastest among all classmates.
That's why Qin Miao would react and even have pressed the gas pedal while Qimeng and the others were still unresponsive.
Qin Miao's reaction speed was approximately 50 milliseconds faster than Qimeng's.
But eventually, Qimeng still drove the kart out, yet such a typical start meant Qimeng couldn't possibly bring any advantage to the team in the early phase.
Everyone's classmates; unlike Qin Miao and Zhu Hong with very thorough theoretical knowledge, everyone drove quite politely at the first turn.
After passing the first turn, everyone lined up in a single-file line.
At this point, Qin Miao relaxed into his seat.
Because Qimeng drives quite steadily, even with a kart.
The classmates' driving skills were also quite balanced, making overtaking difficult, and being overtaken equally difficult, forming a small train behind.
Yet there's an exception among them, that exception being Zhu Hong.
Zhu Hong started at pole position; although her skills aren't comparable to professional racers, she was two seconds faster per lap than the classmates.
So those watching above saw Zhu Hong gradually pulled away from the trailing classmates at a very noticeable pace.
With the increasing laps, the gap between the two sides widened more significantly.
After five laps, Zhu Hong's team had created a frightening half-lap distance from the second place.
Very soon, five laps were completed, and the classmates returned to the parking area to exchange drivers.
Zhu Hong was the first to enter, but due to the significant advantage, after Zhu Hong returned to the parking area and exchanged drivers with Fan Yue, the second-place student entered the parking area.
Qimeng's driving skills were only average, so when Qin Miao took over, their position hadn't changed, remaining in fifth.
The two drove into the parking area and quickly switched positions.
Sitting in the driver's seat, adjusted his seat beneath him, Qin Miao pressed the gas pedal and dashed out.
Following this, there's not much to say; although Qin Miao was only capable of racing in simulators as an esports player, his practical driving skills were weak.
But they're driving go-karts.
The speed of entertainment go-karts isn't particularly fast, and with an extra person onboard, the speed is even slower.
Qin Miao found driving quite easy, coupled with the classmates' average skills, resulting in a one-sided slaughter.
On the straight sections, the classmates ahead could still maintain their distance from Qin Miao, but upon reaching curves, Qin Miao was visibly closing in on the preceding kart.
In handling the curve details, they were on completely different levels.
Qin Miao easily utilized his cornering and racing lines to enter and exit curves faster than the classmates, then devoured the classmates ahead relying on speed down the straights.
While Qin Miao was dominating below, the owner, standing with arms crossed observing the event from the side, showed an expression of surprise and amazement.
Earlier, when Qin Miao broke her kart venue's fastest double-kart lap record, she was on her phone and didn't closely watch how Qin Miao was driving.
Initially, she thought Qin Miao's ability to break the record on the kart venue was merely because Qin Miao was young, light in weight, and the lap time unchallenged.
But after observing, the owner found Qin Miao indeed had skills.
Despite his driving style being aggressive, his karting control was meticulous.
Even though this is just an entertainment kart with low difficulty handling, such a precise yet aggressive driving style isn't something an ordinary student possesses.
Recalling her staff mentioning Qin Miao, the female owner displayed a contemplative expression.
Yet remembering seeing Qin Miao when opening in the morning and his bashful demeanor upon meeting her, the owner reached her judgment.
After all, thinking about it, Qin Miao was just a guest here for fun; whatever his intentions didn't concern her, thinking this, the owner helplessly shook her head and continued watching the race with great interest.
Now she's curious, wondering if five laps were enough for this seemingly talented kid to catch up to first place?