"Makes sense. We have the same thing in our job. You travel around the country with the same drivers and teams for half the year, you get to know each other." Of course some of her competitors she knew better than others, but there wasn't one that Shelby didn't know by name and hadn't at least introduced herself to. She had made a point of being something of an ambassador for the sport and trying to make everyone feel welcome. Now that she was in her 30s, she was one of the elder statesmen (woman?) in the league and took that pretty seriously.

She shoved her hands in her pockets. "I still don't like surprises," she muttered. "I'm assuming there's a reason we're all here at the same time, but usually when new information is dropped on me, it's never good."