LAKE FOREST, CA (October 31, 2013) - When a season ends with a DNF, especially in a big money race that had a win well within reach, it's hard to put the year into perspective by the time the haulers are packed up. Carl Renezeder had a fantastic 2013 Lucas Oil off Road Racing Series season, wrapping up another Pro-4 Championship with one race to go, accumulating ten wins along the way, and setting a consecutive win record of nine-in-a-row in one division. That's a lot to be proud of, but letting a couple races slip away in the closing weekend made it hard to focus on those accomplishments. Luckily, over the years of racing and winning , Renezeder has found a way to be humble in both success and defeat, and this weekend was no different when he searched for perspective on Sunday night.
"At the end of the day, I'm a lucky guy that gets to drive these amazing trucks several times a year, enjoying my passion for off-road racing alongside my family and friends," reflected Renezeder. "And when all is said and done, we're just racing trucks, entertaining fans, indulging our competitive spirit. When I climbed out of my broken pink truck this afternoon, I realized that all of these parts can be replaced and the truck will be back to competitive in no time. There are people out there fighting breast cancer, many of them, I call friends, who don't have the luxury of that peace of mind. Suddenly, it was easy to find perspective."
In the competitive realm of things this weekend, even with a second-place finish to close out the Pro-4 division, the team's results werern't stellar. But they looked outside themselves and used their racing platform to not only bring early detection and research for breast cancer to the forefront, but also honor their family and friends who are fighting the good fight with the disease right now. "I'm extremely proud of this team's effort this year," continued Renezeder. "to close it out with a message of support was a powerful way to put an exclamation point on the season."
And with the final rounds of 2013 in the history books, Renezeder is now a nine-time national champion with 114 career short-course wins. More importantly, he's a guy with character, compassion and humility - three traits that far outweigh the stats of a record book - and it's moments like "painting the team pink" that will make this season a memorable one.
