Free Desert Disaster by Axel Lewis

kiss goodbye to our place on the leaderboard.”
    For a few minutes they were silent. Jimmy was sweating now, the tiny fan that Grandpa had taped to the dashboard not making a shred of difference to the heat in the cab. Jimmy glanced at the clock and was reminded of the old saying: ‘Only mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the midday sun.’ He understood that now – the sun was so high and harsh at this time of day that it was making the controls in the cab too hot to handle, and Jimmy was becoming seriously thirsty. He suddenly remembered that he had left all his bottles of water in the tent in the rush to make the start line.
    Stupid , he thought. That’s exactly what Sir Rupert would tell you not to do!
    To top it all, there was a strange smell coming from somewhere...
    “Oh no!” said Jimmy. “I left the fruit and vegetables from That’s Shallot! in the boot! They must be cooking in the heat!”
    “Urgh!” said Cabbie. “I wondered why my sensors were picking up the smell of warm cabbage!”
    The stench was soon overwhelming, but Jimmy didn’t want to lose time by stopping to open the boot. “Emergency measures!” shouted Cabbie. The boot flipped up and a coiled spring inside released, flinging the rotten vegetables out of the back of the taxi. Behind him Cabbie left a trail of hot, stinky cabbage, putrid pumpkin and festering cauliflowers. Jimmy felt Cabbie shudder with disgust.
    “Would you leek at that,” Jimmy joked. “You’re like a mobile compost heap, Cabbie.”
    “Yuck! When this is all over I demand a full valet and car wash!” Cabbie complained. “I’ve got sand in my alloy wheels, filth in my windscreen wipers, and now I’ve got beetroot juice in my boot!”
    Jimmy couldn’t help laughing. Now the smell had cleared, the mention of food was making him hungry. “I could do with a snack,” he said. “And a drink!”
    “Hmm, well we can’t have you going hungry, can we?” said Cabbie. “Flick that little switch on your arm rest.”
    Jimmy found the switch and pressed it. Out of the passenger seat rose a small fridge.
    “I’ve been saving this, but now is as good a time as any,” said Cabbie.
    The door popped open, and a cool blast of air blew into the cab. It felt heavenly! Inside was an ice-cold bottle of water.
    “Wow!” said Jimmy. “This is the best! Thanks, Cabbie!”
    “Wilf wanted to make sure you didn’t get stranded without any refreshments,” Cabbie said.
    Jimmy looked in the fridge and pulled out a box. “Why are there cones in here?”
    Cabbie laughed. “It’s a treat for you! There’s only one food that comes on cones!”
    “Ice cream!” Jimmy grinned in delight.

Chapter 13 - Speeding Across the Sand
    Jimmy held a cone under a nozzle and out came a long white thread of vanilla ice cream, followed by a squirt of chocolate sauce and a sprinkle of hundreds and thousands.
    “Amazing!” said Jimmy. “This is Grandpa’s best invention yet!”
    “Hey!” grumbled Cabbie good-naturedly.
    Jimmy tucked in. The ice cream had started to melt already and he had to act quickly to catch the dribbles as they trickled down his arm. It was the best thing he’d ever eaten in his whole life! In twenty seconds flat he’d gobbled the whole thing and was wiping his sticky fingers on his jeans.
    Grinning, he tapped the Cabcom and Chip’s and Missy’s faces popped up. “Snack time!” Jimmy sang. “Chip, can you get Dug’s robotic arm over to my window?”
    “Sure thing!” the American replied.
    Jimmy didn’t want to be greedy, so he prepared two more cones for his friends. When they were ready he wound down his window and passed them out to the giant metal claw that was waiting there. Jimmy was amazed to see the hulking piece of machinery delicately grasp the two ice-cream cones and pass one to Missy in Monster’s driving seat, and one to Chip. All this while driving at high speed across one of the most dangerous deserts on earth!
    “Cheers, Jimmy!” said Missy,