Intro:
The October 23rd OSKCS race would be the final race of the 2022 season. Senna would be going into the weekend in third place but under threat from fourth, only a handful of points separated them. The forecast showed a dry Sunday but the days leading up to and following the race had us drenched with downpours. If we were going to race in the dry, it would be something short of a miracle. The track configuration would be the long, old track in the clockwise direction.
Saturday Practice:
Saturday morning we woke up to expected showers. As I was hooked up to the trailer, the rains were not going to let up and with the weather improving later in the day we opted not to go to the track early and practice. The main reason for this is we didn’t want to take the time to change tires, change the chassis setup and adjust the carburetor, only to change them all back the next day. Along with that, Senna has little experience with driving in the rain, and the probability of an off and damaging the kart was high. I didn’t want to risk the time and the potential of damage going into the last race. If we had more time between events, I think that practicing in the rain is a “must” and a skill that needs to be perfected. The risk versus reward was too great and that’s why decided not to head to the track early to practice.
This also meant that Senna was able to participate in a soccer game with his club team, PDX United. Ironically, they would also be going against a team that is sponsored by Directors Mortgage. PDX United didn’t do well, but Senna played very well. They lost that game but we were still positive that wouldn’t reflect on his racing. After the game, we returned home and worked on getting to the track. On the way to the track, we got word that the track was drying out and people were starting to practice. So we pushed to get there as soon as possible. We arrived and unpacked. However, we were only able to get one practice session in and Senna soon discovered that all of the grip had washed away from the previous days of rain. Senna’s confidence was shaken and it showed as his times were some three seconds off of the leaders. Both of us were shocked but also knew we had some work to do and that he could get back into the mix. We just had to put in the effort to make that happen.
Unfortunately, that would be his only practice session as that was the last one of the day.
We packed up for the day and I decided to change out the gear to be ready for tomorrow’s practices and races. I hadn’t changed out the gear from the last race and it was too low of a gear to be competitive. During the process of changing out the gear (normally a 5-minute job), I noticed that the chain was not aligned properly. So I loosened the carrier and then “SNAP!” I broke the bolt inside the carrier. Heartbroken, I struggled to get it pulled out. With the help of a fellow racer, Peter Grant, we found a way to drill and unscrew the buried bolt. I had extra bolts and was able to get it secured but it delayed us by an hour to get home.
Sunday Practice:
The entire family woke up and got ready to go to the track. Our goal was to get there as early as possible to make sure that the kart and equipment would be ready to go by the driver’s meeting. A special thanks to my wife, Meg, for helping and getting all of us squared away and making sure we were ready to go on time. Colin, Senna’s younger brother, asked if Senna was going to be racing in the dark because he was not used to going to races that early in the morning. Getting to the track, I noticed a couple of seat bolts missing under the seat, so I replaced those as well as checked on a few other items. I filled up the kart with fuel to make sure we were within the weight specifications.
After the driver’s meeting and National Anthem, we had to get ready right away, as we were the second group to hit the track for the first practice. Senna went out and was still visibly slower than the front runners. Looking at the times, he was about 2.4 seconds off the fast lap times. Fortunately for me, Senna started to explain to me what problem he was having issues with the kart and on what corners. Unfortunately for us, Gary Baldes was at the Formula 1 race in Austin and not available to assist us. Fortunately, he was on messenger and we were able to communicate the changes we needed to make to the kart to help stabilize the kart on exit. With a short time to make some decisions. I decided to widen the front by 5mm, but not as wide as people had suggested. I knew that widening the front would give more front-end grip and potentially cause more rear-end sliding, however, we needed to try something and it was still early in the day to revert the changes. After the second practice, he felt better about the change. We also upped the tire pressures from 12-psi to 14-psi. The change would help get the tires up to temperature faster, especially since the track was cold and still rubbering in. Senna ended the second session with a time of 47.4… Still 2.1 seconds off of the leaders. At the end of the session, Senna’s kart weight came in at 328 lbs.
Sunday Qualifying:
The day was getting warmer by the time we got to qualifying. We decided not to make any changes and see how things played out. Senna was confident in the kart’s setup but just needed to gain confidence in the track’s grip and himself. The session went well and he improved by over a second! His qualifying time put him in fourth place with a 46.348. Still 0.9 seconds off of the leaders. We knew that if Senna could get into the 45-second lap times, then he would be competitive with the front and “in the mix.” Coming off the track, I could see the smile through his helmet and knew that things would get better. His weight coming off the track was 326 lbs.
Sunday Heat 1:
After qualifying, was lunch, and to make it fun, the organization decided to let the kids roam the paddock in Halloween costumes to collect candy from all the teams. During that time, Danny Hill came over to help set up the valve spacing for Senna’s engine and also go over the carburetor setup. We cleaned the bowl and set the float height to 22mm. Then we cleaned the jet to remove any restrictions. After the carburetor setup, we moved to the valves and set them left side to 4mm and the right side to 2mm. Both were set at zero and this could be one of the many engine issues we had from the previous races. Even though our boys are competitors on the track, I cannot thank Danny for helping Senna with the kart and engine setups throughout the season.
Senna started in the fourth position on the grid. The kart was ready and Senna just needed to be confident with his kart. Throughout the season, Senna has had amazing starts and the start of heat one was no different. He immediately moved from the fourth position to third place by turn one. He would stick with the front runners for the majority of the race but in the closing laps, he got passed and retained fourth until the finish. However, the third-place driver and Senna were able to work together and catch the two front runners. They were so busy battling and slowing each other down that they were caught. Senna found speed though and had the second fastest time, only to lose out to the guy who passed him for third place. Senna’s time was 45.807 but more important than that, by the finish he was 0.442 seconds off from the win. That’s correct, the difference between first and fourth by the end of the race was less than half a second. We were finally in the mix and racing for a potential podium! Senna’s weight coming off the track was 325 lbs.
Sunday Heat 2:
Heat two was a different kind of beast. There were a lot of wrongs that took place that resulted in a limited-time run. The racers lined up in the grid as they were to have lined up on the track. However, during the warm-up laps, two drivers spun off the track and desperately tried to get going before the start of the race. This put the two drivers that were in front of Senna at the very back of the grid. What they should have done and what they did, doesn’t matter at this point. Senna originally started in fourth place with first and second positions, self-regulated to the back of the grid. As the green flag went up, the driver in the third position (first kart racer on the grid at this point), jumped the start before the green flag dropped. As everyone started, the Junior 2 group, stopped and the senior class behind them came up quickly. Fortunately; there were no accidents or injuries but lots of drivers drove off the track to avoid collisions. The part that they should have done was drive even after the green flags drop and then let the penalties deal with it. Unfortunately, this was the perfect opportunity for Senna to take the heat win but it wasn’t to be. The organizers decided to re-grid and restart the race. As so much time had passed, the opportunity to do a full race subsided and therefore, was a limited-timed race. What normally would be a 15-minute race turned into an 8-minute race.
After the reorganization of the grid and a proper start, Senna jumped from fourth place to first place by turn one. Unfortunately, Senna’s direct competitors also had a great start and by the end of the first lap, Cameron Hill was on his tail. The two of them battled it out as Senna defended his position and in the opening laps, the gap between the two would ebb and flow. With about three laps to go, Cameron made a dive into turn-one, forcing Senna wide and forfeiting the position. This would hold station till the end of the shortened race with only 1.355 seconds off the front. Senna ended the session with a final weight of 323 lbs.
After the race, Cameron informed Senna that he had not seen anyone brake that late into turn-one and found that to be the challenge in battling Senna. He was unsure that he could pull off such a pass. I had been telling Senna to be braking later as I thought he was braking too early. It sure is difficult to see everything from the sidelines. I guess I was wrong but I still feel he could brake later. Only more practice will tell.
Sunday Finale:
This was it, the final race of the day and the final race of the season. The results of this race would determine if he would retain 3rd in the championship or if he would get regulated to 4th. The grid position would be the same where Senna would start in the fourth position for the final time of the season. As they were sent out for the warmup lap, kart number 7, would pull off with a rear bumper issue again and be done for the day. This improved Senna’s chances of getting on the podium but nothing was set in stone till the end of the race. They gridded up for the start and the green flag dropped. Senna immediately moved into second place and was fighting for the lead by turn one. Eventually, he would hold that position while Cameron and Senna would pull away from the field. After about two laps of Senna and Cameron battling, Bruno from Brazil would make his way to catch Senna and pass him at turn-one. Bruno would eventually catch Cameron and a tight battle between the two ensued. Senna’s goal at that point was to try and catch or be close enough to pounce when one or both of them made a mistake. Unfortunately, neither would make a mistake and the gap would remain around 1.466 seconds at the finish between winning and Senna’s third place. Smiles were all around and seeing Senna smiling through his helmet was well worth the event. Senna’s final weight would be 321 lbs.
Conclusion:
Seeing Senna’s smile coming off the scales and the exciting stories between all the racers are what these race weekends are about. Yes, we have fun and we continue to learn new things with every race but in the end, smiling and sharing stories with your fellow competitors is where we want to be. After passing tech, we held third place on the podium for the day. To lose the third place, Senna needed to not get on the podium or be more than two places off of the fourth place. As it stands, at the time of writing this, he would have retained third place.
The picture above is how the podium looked with their final positions of the day. However, the picture below is an indication of how they felt about the day and the season. They are all competitors but more importantly, they are all friends off the track. They have such high respect for one another and that is something earned on the track. I’m very proud of Senna in his rookie year and how he was able to work through some tough challenges, to come out with personal victories.
Note to sponsors:
I’ve said this so many times but it’s never enough. Our sponsors are what makes this team so successful. Senna puts in a lot of effort to do better but he has a lot more to learn too. He’s not perfect, and that’s okay. Winning is special but taking the lessons from the day and learning how to be better is equally important. He wants to win but we also want to win fairly and ethically. Your sponsorship of Senna is a contributing factor to his success and therefore, we cannot thank you enough. We are always looking for more sponsors though. Please contact me at info@racingforbeginners.com to see what we can do for each other.
Supporters:
- Gary Baldes – Overall karting experience, video, and data analysis
- Scappoose Outfitters – Apparel
- Christina Venturini Photography and Web Designs
- Dalton Egger – Pat’s Acres Racing Complex
- Sykart Indoor Racing (Tigard)