The Day Knight-Rider Caught Fire

One of my clearest memories of childhood is the smell of smoke – not just any smoke but the acrid fumes of burning rubber.  This is one of the strongest and blackest smokes you can imagine.

When I was much younger a mere child in fact, I loved to watch television on a Saturday as that’s when the world of the A-Team and Knight Rider opened up to me.  They were different from everything else on at the time, and they drew me in completely.

When I was in the car with either my Mum or Dad I would have them pretend that we were driving the Trans-Am from Knight Rider.  When we got on to a long stretch of road or a motorway I would always be found straining with great glee on my seat belt, leaning forwards shouting “Hit the turbo boost button”.  At this command the driver would push in the cigarette lighter and accelerate a little.  I thought that this was the best thing ever and would get them to do it again and again.

Now, on one particular day my mum was driving me down to my Grandmothers house, which was great apart from the fact that she had forgotten my toothbrush.  We stopped at the local supermarket, the Park Centre to buy a new one.  My mum said to me, “Now I won’t be a minute, just stay here and I’ll be right back”.  So, there I sat, waiting like a good boy should.  Time seemed to be ticking by very slowly that morning, it felt like ages since she had entered the shop.  Isn’t that always how it is for the young, time seems to take longer to pass.  Anyway I sat there in the back seat watching people come and go with their weekly shopping; most were women with gaggles of noisy kids hanging from their shopping trolleys. 

After a while I got bored, which I did very easily, so I started to poke around under the front seats and in the glove box, even those little trays on the front doors.  I found all sorts of things from a half-empty packet of Polo mints to a set of mini screwdrivers.

 Nothing was as interesting as the fact that the keys were in the ignition.  I now had access to the radio, which I turned up full playing pop music.  It was then that it dawned on me that this was my big chance to ‘hit the turbo button’.  The very thought brought a wide grin to my face.  I pushed in the cigarette lighter with great trepidation expecting a sudden and immediate burst of speed.  It was clear straight away that the turbo wasn’t on that day so I went back to exploring the rest of the junk in the car.  Soon after turning away from the cigarette lighter I heard a popping noise.  As I looked back at the dashboard I noticed that the turbo button had popped back out, so I started to push at it and then pull on it.  When it slipped easily out of its groove it burned my thumb in the process.  I dropped the offending lighter on the floor in order to suck my thumb, which was very painful.  As with all children of a certain age the act of ‘thumb sucking’ can be like a natural sedative.  In a few minutes time I had started to nod off.

It was then that, that all too familiar smell first assailed my nostrils- burning rubber.  In my haste I had dropped the lighter under the front seat on to one of the rubber mats, and forgotten all about it.  Soon there was smoke billowing from under the seat in black waves.  It was the first time in my young life I had ever felt real fear.  At that moment my mother appeared at the back door and pulled me right out of the car.  She then threw a bottle of water over the burning button.  I remember bursting into tears as soon as she turned back to me, and the look on her face as it became clear what had almost happened.

After scolding me for not staying in the back seat no more was said on the matter, but for years after, anytime I went to any family members house all matches and lighters were put well out of reach, and I never again asked for turbo-charged travel.

C McC (Maghaberry)