Amanda Kangai joined the Extreme E Championship Team as a Student Ambassador in Season 2. This season, as one of the Racing for All Initiative candidates, Amanda joined the Veloce Racing Extreme E team as a Junior Engineer. We recently caught up with Amanda to hear about her experience with Extreme E, here is what she shared with us.
As an engineering student at the University of Cambridge, one of the most prestigious universities in the UK and the world, it seems like Amanda should be able to choose whatever job she fancies in the engineering world. However, there are also doors Amanda wasn’t sure were open for her, for example the door to motorsport engineering. “I was always interested in engineering, and I was having fun watching motorsport. But I didn’t always see a future of for me in motorsport. I wasn’t 100% sure that it was for me. It’s definitely a hard industry to crack. My classmates are so interested in it, but I wasn’t sure there was space for me in it.”
The first opportunity related to motorsport presented itself to Amanda in the form of the Student Ambassador for Extreme E. It wasn’t an engineering job, but it opened up the motorsport world to Amanda.“I was registered to McLaren’s interest program. I got an email from them about the Student Ambassador program. It was two or three days before the deadline. But it sounded so interesting! So I applied, and I got the role!”
As the Student Ambassador, Amanda had the opportunity to interact with the teams. From this role which is not directly linked to motorsport engineering, through the nice environment of Extreme E, Amanda got a real shot at the technical side of motorsport. “I started off doing paddock tours. It was nice to be around all the action and the engineering side of it. I was able to talk to team principles and the crew. It was great being exposed to the environment, and all the teams are mixed together. I met someone from a team, in a really casual way in the dining area. I also worked with her during Uruguay Natural Energy X Prix. I connected with her on Linkedin as well and it led to my opportunity with Veloce Racing.”
Being a Junior Engineer on the Veloce Racing Extreme E team is Amanda’s first motorsport experience in trackside action. She has mostly been shadowing the head engineer. Because of the limited number of crew member allowed trackside, Amanda was able to get involved in a lot of the actions. “I’m an extra engineer allowed on site. I’m helping out with strategy, with the on-boards. I even helped out in the command center at one point, having the headphones on, talking to the drivers, helping the lead engineer. ”
Feeling the sensation of being on track and helping out, it just made me want to also be on track in the future as well. It really helped me want to do motorsport.
Without much experience prior to jumping into Extreme E, the work with Veloce gave Amanda a great opportunity to apply what she learned at school and fully immerse herself in the hectic race weekend. “Because it’s electric cars, there are some principles I learned in the university that are very helpful to know. One of the strategy is around assigning electricity distribution between the front and the back. Listening to the head engineer discussing it helps me understand what I learned already. It also goes beyond just engineering. It’s about dealing with problems that are coming at you fast. I’m collecting data of the other cars we are racing as fast as I can and reporting it to my head engineer, so we can compare strategies of the teams. When you are in the command center, you have to be 100% alive. Because the head engineer is talking to the drivers, and if I make a mistake, it could potentially affect our game plan. One of the main things I learned is to always be very calm under pressure, and be analytical. Everyone wants to get P1, but that doesn’t happen all the time, we come back the next day and be better.”
Even for only the first couple of days with the team, you already feel the atmosphere and the enthusiasm when you’re bonding. You really do feel the highs and the lows of motorsport because you’re putting your energy into it.
Motorsport isn’t just about driving a car in circles, it’s also about a team of people working together for the same goal. Veloce Racing has been a great place for Amanda to feel the team spirit of motorsport and of Extreme E. “The team has really taken good care of me. I like the sense of community in our team. Our drivers are so engaged in the team’s work. They come and talk to the crew, say Hi to everyone, do fist bumps. It’s a great way to start and end the day in a positive attitude. The drivers also work well together as a union. It’s also interesting hearing them talk. They are not engineers, but they also talk engineering-esque language.”
Having her first experience on track, Amanda is naturally attracted to it. But since she has specialized in Aerospace Engineering, she is also open to other types of work in motorsport engineering. “I’m very open to dealing with cars and different parts of the cars. I’m also interested in being in the factory and doing strategy stuff. I jumped the gun a little bit going straight into traveling trackside. It’s also great. There is a different dimension to it as well. You actually get to know about the country, especially with Extreme E’s Legacy Program. Having the time to relax in another country after the race is a great experience, it makes everything worth it.”
As usual, we asked Amanda to give some advice for young kids who would like to be in motorsport engineering. Here is what she said. “Motorsport is a good industry. It has a lot of things that you can take from it, and there are also a lot of things you can give back to it. There are programs like FIA Girls on Track for young people to get to know motorsport. Depending on your age, getting some work experience can be helpful. Get in touch with your local karting clubs and formula clubs. There are different types of racing out there, make sure you explore some different types, make sure you can have fun in this difficult industry. Once you break into it, it’s a great time.”
Currently Amanda is finishing her bachelor’s degree, and she will also take on a master’s program later this year. Besides her study, she is also looking for internship opportunities. We wish her all the best of luck in her future study and career, hopefully we will see her again trackside next year!
Paddock Sorority 
Leave a comment