by Stephan de Pénasse

When I was growing up in beautiful Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, the "bug" for racing was inherent at a very early age. The first vehicle I owned was a ’68 VW Beetle (Brazil is Beetle country!). I immediately lowered the rear suspension "to the ground" (to prevent the wheels from "clapping hands"), and installed a set of the then-very-popular Pirelli Cinturatos and a pair of front Chevy Suburban (or Brazilian equivalent) shocks in the rear of the bug. To save the tires, we would practice in the rain at odd hours of the night. The racetrack in Rio was under renovation and we raced at the famous Interlagos circuit in São Paulo. Since it always rains in São Paulo, our racing team from Rio (composed of some nine VW Beetles, all with stock 1500cc engines) did well in those events. I knew that driving fast in the rain would someday pay off.

Stephan with his friend, the late, great Ayrton Senna

From Rio, I moved to Montreal to study, and during this racing hiatus (other than driving in winter conditions to "keep in shape") I was trying to figure out how in the world Ayrton Senna could drive so fast in the rain. The answer: drive as if it were a dry track, and imagine your steering is as light as a feather, so be very gentle with your movements to keep the car completely in balance. Also: be part of the car; do not fight it.

The August 14 COMSCC trial event at NHIS in Loudon took place under heavy rain. My SSB class (all stock) 1973 Alfa GTV-2000 was equipped with Yokohama A032Rs, which are good intermediate tires and well suitable for the rain.

During practice, I twice spun in Turn 3 (talk about consistency!). In conversation with Eliot Shanabrook, we concluded that a) I had new brake pads and was locking the rear wheel, and b) I was getting into the turn too soon while still braking, thus causing the car to spin. Teamwork and camaraderie are things I very much appreciate, and I have noticed that they are VERY apparent in our AONE Club.

The second practice session was better (no spins!) and the track got a little dryer, but the forecast called for buckets of rain. Eliot’s tires were too slick for the rain, but he managed to get a few quick laps in this dryer session in his ST-3 class Alfa GTV. In the end, he opted not to run the trials due to heavy rain.

More rain at the Time Trials: My competitors were a VW GTI and a Mazda Miata in the SSB class. Four cars went onto the track in separate instances and twice I experienced a "catch" (the situation when you catch the car in front of you during the time trials), and you can opt to pit for a re-run or gamble on taking whatever time you managed to register. Since my first catch was the VW GTI, I felt confident to take the re-run.

On my second try, I experienced another "catch", this time a Mustang (poor horsy, could not manage anything in the rain…), so I pitted again for another re-run. COM officials decided I would be the very last car on track, this time all alone. More rain; I almost regretted not taking the earlier time (which was unknown to me but thought to be good enough, since I had caught my rival).

What impressed me the most was that my time was better than many other recent-model cars that come equipped which various traction and suspension devices (Porsche Carrera 4, BMWs) and the little old Alfa was faster. If I am bragging, I am doing so for the Alfa – I felt more like a passenger and let the car do the work.

The good news is that I am still a rookie in this club. My instructor recommended that I get licensed. This is only my second COM event…

I dedicate this win to my lovely wife Wendy, who finally gave me "permission" to race again since my 1994 kart racing accident. I’d be sure not to disappoint her.