Screen to Speed: Emma Galasso debuts as new Host!

Crew Chief Brad: [00:00:00] Welcome to Screen to Speed powered by Ennit Esports. In this podcast, we dive into the journeys of remarkable individuals, making waves in sim racing, and bridging the virtual with the real. From the thrill of digital circuits to the roar of real life racetracks, we explore the passion, Dedication and innovation that drives the world of motorsports.

We’ll hear from athletes, creators, and pioneers sharing their stories, insights, and the powerful ways sim racing is connecting communities and creating pathways into motorsports. So buckle up, Screen to Speed starts now.

Emma Galasso: Hey everybody! Welcome to InnoTalks. I’m Emma Glassa. This is my first time hosting InnoTalks. I was a guest twice. Um, and I have Axe here with me. It’s going to be a great [00:01:00] talk, but please bear with me as this is my first one. So, we’re going to see how this goes. Um, alright, so. Uh, Axe, talk a little bit about, um, you know, kind of your journey in sim racing so we can get an idea.

Of who you are, um, what you bring to Inox, what you do in your day to day, and also being that we’re both in the us, um, what’s your experience been in the us?

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): Yeah, so my first experience with eSports and racing in general was when my dad, when I used to play grants remote two on the PS two at school. Um, I would just do that ’cause I didn’t really have many friends in school, so it was something I could do on my own.

I just kind of would just sit down and I would just set the fastest lap every single time. And then, I think like 2011, when the PS3 came out, my dad bought Gran Turismo, uh, 5. Because that track had [00:02:00] the top gear circuit on it. And at the time, I was really into top gear, top gear and that sort of thing. Um, because I just I love the way that they presented the show.

It was just so visually stunning. Um, yeah. And then since then I’ve been playing more like lots and lots of grinds, Gran Turismo, and it’s kind of the way I kind of, when I come home from school, it’s kind of the way I relax a little bit. Um, sim racing has kind of been a bit of a escape for me from some of the bullying that I’ve kind of faced, uh, in the real world.

And it kind of gave me something to kind of work towards in that sort of thing.

Emma Galasso: Well, I totally can understand how that can kind of help you as an escape kind of thing. I remember when I was in middle school and high school, I mean, for me, it was playing Pokemon. People did not think that Pokemon was cool back in those days.

But, you know, when you practice things like that or do things that really [00:03:00] Excite you and are really cool. Um, in your opinion, sometimes, you know, Now Pokemon is really cool and everyone’s Everyone’s all about it. And you’ve had all this time to kind of catch up. So thanks, thanks for sharing that. Um, I did have a question for, so for Gran Turismo, were you using controller or did you have a wheel?

Yeah.

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): Yeah. So I started out on controller, uh, with the PS2 and the PS3. Um, and then like through the PS4 when I eventually upgraded to the PS4, uh, I raised on controller and actually recently this year, 2023 is when I got my first wheel. Uh, it’s a Logitech G29, pretty basic. Um, I got it on sale through B& H for 250.

Emma Galasso: Um, and

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): I, at the time, I had a kitchen table back there, uh, which I hooked the wheel up to the table, and I had the pedals on the floor. But the problem was I was using this chair, and so every time I’d hit the, I’d hit the brake, my chair would slide out. And so that was, uh, [00:04:00] I had to do a lot of, uh, gear rigging with it.

But, yeah, that’s kind of how I kind of got more serious with it.

Emma Galasso: Nice. Yeah, I started with a G29 as well. Um, I was lucky enough to be gifted my current setup as a Fanatec setup. Otherwise, I would still be using a G29. I really feel like it’s, it’s underrated. Um, I know a bunch of people who are super fast just using a G29, but totally get the, uh, chair situation.

I kind of had the opposite problem. I, I bought, like, a stand on Amazon to hold my wheel, and every time I, Pushed on the wheel because I apparently pushed on the wheel it knocked the whole thing forward

Oh, no,

Emma Galasso: we had a a good time with that So you do are you’re still on the ps4 now, or do you do any PC? I

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): just upgraded to a ps5 this year and my dad actually custom built me a sim rig Awesome.

Oh, yeah, he built it out of PVC piping. My dad used to be a carpenter [00:05:00] And he’s a firefighter, so he’s pretty handy. Uh, so he literally custom built it to my size. So he has, I put a, he put a jeg seat in there, um, a wooden base plate for the wheels, for the wheel and the pedals. So it’s really steady, and it’s nice because I can just recline my seat back when I’m playing other games, and it’s like I’m laying down.

Emma Galasso: Awesome. That’s super nice. It’s really nice. Sometimes I sit in my, my Uh,

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): stand by.

Emma Galasso: Oh, yeah.

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): Mom, I’m on the, I’m doing the internet. I’m doing the interview. Go.

Emma Galasso: Sorry, that’s my mom. It’s all good, hey mom. I was doing a live stream for, I did the Ferrari Esports Challenge this year, and my dad, I told my dad, I was like, Please dad, don’t walk behind me while I’m in the middle of my race, and Jesse walked behind me in the But it’s all part of the fun.

That’s what, you know, stream reads all about. Um, okay. So on the PS5 now, that’s pretty cool. I actually, I still only have a PS4, but mine is basically a Netflix machine at this point. [00:06:00] Sorry to PlayStation. Um, so let’s talk about, have you done any competitions, um, either through in it or screen to screen that you’d like to talk about?

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): Yeah. My first like really big one was the winter was the winter cup. Um, which I didn’t place very well because my 1st time doing that, but the spring cup is where I kind of picked up where I kind of picked up momentum and I finished 10th. So, that was. That was kind of like my first big kind of entrance into large scale sim racing.

So can you tell us

Emma Galasso: really quick what game that was on and what car you drove, just so people have like an idea? Yeah,

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): so that was the, that was in Gran Turismo 7, and I was driving a Porsche 911 RSR, which is kind of my go to car. Nice. Um, all my cars look exactly the, look pretty much the same. They all have a purple livery on them.

Nice. Um,

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): yeah, it was kind of my first time really, [00:07:00] Like really thinking through Like kind of what my identity is for my cars and stuff.

Emma Galasso: Awesome Yeah, livery design is one of my favorite things about sim racing. Um Are all your liveries just that same purple or is there anything you’ve custom designed like artwork wise?

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): Uh, yeah, so what i’d like to do is I like to play a lot with like the fair carbon look too Um a lot of times I like to put a lot of um film making related stuff on there. So like different brands My, kind of my signature is every car has the color bar somewhere on the car and the PBS logo because I currently work for PBS, PBS Milwaukee, um, so it’s kind of like a little nod to like film and also kind of my station and stuff like that.

Emma Galasso: Could you explain to people who might not know what a color bar is, what that is and what the significance is?

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): Yeah, so a car, a color bars is like if you ever seen like comedy and they cut to. It’s basically like, [00:08:00] it basically looks like a bunch of colorful lines on the screen. Uh, that’s called a color bar, and it usually has what’s called tone.

And it’s that really annoying high pitched, like, screech. Um, and so I put that on there because it’s kind of, it’s kind of a joke, um, where it’s like, uh, speeding, where you’d say speeding if you’re rolling tape or something like that. Uh, so it’s kind of like a play on words a little bit.

Emma Galasso: Nice. Yeah, they still use, um, so for anyone watching who might not know.

Um, both of us have worked in the film industry. I don’t work in the film industry anymore, but they still say speeding every time they’re about to start a take when they’re rolling sound. So that’s a really clever, uh, thing. So yeah, and I’m honestly, uh, as you can see behind me, I’m, I’m a Portia fan. I also work for them, so it’s pretty, it’s pretty cool to see those scars in real life.

But if you’ve seen, um, There’s Purple Sky Metallic is a color on Porsche’s, um, particularly the Taycan Turbo [00:09:00] GT, and Purple Sky Metallic is pretty cool if you haven’t seen that car before. Um, okay, so the Spring Cup, you said Spring Cup and Winter Cup was your first, or was the That

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): was my, those, the winter was my first and the spring was my second.

Emma Galasso: Okay. Do you have a memorable race from either season that really stuck out to you?

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): Yeah. Oh my God. Uh, Suzuka in the rain, man. That was the, I think that was in the winter. I’m not sure, but it was either winter or spring. And that was a crazy race because I was driving the Porsche 911, which of course is rear wheel drive rear engine.

So I was. just fighting that car through the corners. And this was before I had my actual rig. So I was in this chair and I was just trying to opposite lock this car through 130R because all of a sudden, of course, telephony physics, uh, decided it’s time to go drifting. And so I slid that through the corner, but I somehow [00:10:00] saved it just, just in time to get behind fifth place.

And so that was a really memorable race. And also of course, um, of course, uh, Of course, Red Bull Ring in the rain as well. Um, they really like rain races during the split. I

Emma Galasso: was gonna say, there’s a lot of rain. I don’t think I’ve ever Well, I have done a couple of rain races in iRacing, but I don’t think I’ve ever done it in Gran Turismo before.

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): Yeah, it’s pretty crazy in Gran Turismo, because especially at the time I was using a PS4, and the weather system between PS4 and PS5 is pretty different. So, like, the conditions for the rain when I was practicing were way different than the actual race. And so I was like, okay, I got this in practice and then the race started and everything I had in my brain melted.

Emma Galasso: Yeah, I would say I did the Global Esports Games Qualifier in ACC within it. And I had kind of the same thing. I’ve been practicing at CODA. [00:11:00] And I was, I felt like, you know, really, really good and then qualifying, I was three seconds off the pace that I’d done, and I even tried to replicate the weather conditions and everything and it just didn’t, didn’t bode well for me, so I totally understand that.

Um, so let’s talk about what your goals are for the future in sim racing. Is it driving? Is it making liveries? Is it both of them? Videography? What is it?

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): Yeah, so, uh, for those who don’t know, I am currently studying broadcasting at a local tech college and, um, my plan is I want to somehow combine driving with videography.

So I’m thinking like I’ll do races and then on the side, I’ll work as like a camera operator or something like that. Because I love anytime I can get behind the wheel is awesome for me. Larry Chen is a big inspiration for me, uh, because he does both driving and also photography and videography as well.

So [00:12:00] anything that involves, like, driving and filming at the same time is really cool. I thought about maybe becoming, like, um, a technocrane driver. So if you’ve ever seen behind the scenes films, it’s a car and then it has, like, a big arm on the end of it with a camera on it. Um, I thought about getting training with that.

Eventually, um, but yeah, currently I’m kind of trying to figure out kind of which direction I want to go, whether narrative or broadcast. But yeah, that’s kind of what I was thinking about doing in the future.

Emma Galasso: Awesome. That’s super cool. Yeah, Technocrane operators have a very interesting job. Actually, um, the movie that just came out, oh my gosh, I should know.

Oh, Den of Thieves. Um, Den of Thieves actually has a, the first all electric car chase scene that was filmed. They outfitted some Porsches with, uh, cranes and shot as like the drivers were going through the actual kind [00:13:00] of chase. Um, it’s a cool thing because it’s so innovative. All of that stuff is custom built and you really just have to know your rig and help build it.

So there’s a lot of creativity in that role, even from kind of an engineering perspective and stuff like that. Um, so yeah, talk to us a little bit about what you currently do in broadcasting and, um, like what your kind of day to day looks like in that.

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): Yeah, so I’m currently in a broadcasting engineering program at college.

So my day to day is, uh, so usually, uh, Wednesdays and Thursdays, Mondays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays. Um, I mean, Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, I have what’s called workshops. So, my college is partnered up with the local TV station in my, in my city. And so what I do is I go in and they rotate me through different positions.

So, like, for example, one day I’ll be running a teleprompter. The next day I’ll be [00:14:00] running a camera. The next day I’ll be like a floor assistant. And then the third day I’ll be working as like a, a switcher or a CG operator. Um, and then I have my normal classes, which are lecture based. And lab based, uh, so I get hands on experience with cameras, um, lighting, audio equipment, etc.

Um, and then I go home and sleep.

Emma Galasso: Nice. Yeah, that sounds like the typical film life. You work, then you’re home and sleep. Um, but you have lectures in there too, and it’s definitely, uh

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): Yeah, it’s a really cool program because, um, it’s It’s very designed to get people like hands on and get you jobs and stuff like that.

And I recently learned that one of my professors was a camera operator at a local racetrack. So I’m hopefully going to talk to him about that.

Emma Galasso: Yeah, that’s definitely the way to go. I mean, they always talk about film being a networking game, but honestly, so is motorsports. [00:15:00] Um, a lot of opportunities happen just because you happen to meet someone at the right time and the right place and some really cool things can happen.

Um, so speaking of motor sport, have you ever been to any races in the U. S. or abroad? Tell us about that.

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): Yeah, so I, like, a thing that kind of attrition to me my dad had is we always go to the fall and spring vintage races up at Road America, which for those who don’t know is a road circuit in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin.

And so me and my dad, we always try to go up there at least once or twice a year. Um, I usually bring up my camera with me and I bring like, my dad usually brings like some snacks or whatever to eat and we just drive around the, we just drive around and we just, I like to take photos. Um, that’s good practice for me.

And my first like overseas race I ever went to was the Le Mans 24 hours in France. Yeah, it was a special gift [00:16:00] that mom gave me. Uh, And we went there and we visited a friend and then we went to Le Mans 24 hours and that was, that was a crazy experience because the place where we stayed was right by Mulsanne Street.

Wow.

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): And so, like, as I went to sleep, I just would just hear the cars racing by me and it was, it was so cool. And, uh, I really hope I can go back there again.

Emma Galasso: Yeah, I honestly, my

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): actual proper gear.

Emma Galasso: Yeah, I was gonna say I don’t actually know of anyone who’s, who’s actually been to that race in person. So could just see it.

That’s a really, a really cool race to have gone to. Um, and I, if you like hearing cars when you go to sleep, I also recommend going to Daytona 24. It’s a lot of

fun.

Emma Galasso: Definitely, uh, sorry, Daytona, but it’s not as cool as Le Mans, that’s kind of the OG, um, wow, that’s awesome. And so, I have a couple friends who like to photograph cars, and when you’re at the racetrack, it is a lot more difficult [00:17:00] than people make it out to be to photograph those cars, and even taking videos, um, Is that something that you’ve just had to learn through trial and error?

Is there any resources you’ve used to learn how to photograph cars and stuff like that?

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): Yeah. So a lot of it is kind of a mixture of trial and error. And also, um, I like to use Gran Turismo to practice because I can kind of go between cameras on the track and like, I can like say like, Oh, I want this track side camera.

Uh, and so I could literally just practice the shutter speed and the aperture, uh, and just kind of figure that out. And I usually will, like, write it down on my phone. And then when I go up to, like, a circuit where I’ve got to run America, I will just plug that into my camera and then see if it actually works or not.

Um, and the thing is, I am not, like, an official press person. So I don’t have credentials to get to, like, the best spots on track. But the nice thing, though, is, uh, Run [00:18:00] America is You can get really, really close to the circuit and get really clean pictures. Um, you can go like right up to the fence almost.

And I’ve gotten some really, really cool shots of like this mini Cooper driving over the curb. And you can see it’s little tiny wheels lifting up. Awesome. Um, yeah, it’s, it’s definitely, I would say it’s definitely trial and error and also just kind of looking things up and. Kind of asking questions on forums and just practicing.

Emma Galasso: Wow. That’s awesome. Yeah. I, uh, and definitely not a photographer, but when the few times that I’ve, I’ve wanted to try to get into it, all that stuff kind of, I’m like, well, I don’t even know how to look at this and think about aperture and shutter speed and stuff like that. So I, that’s really cool to hear how dedicated you are to that.

That’s awesome. Um, let’s see. Okay. So you would like to drive, but also take Photos as well and do videography at motors in motorsports and stuff like [00:19:00] that. Have you ever worked with, um, any groups like SCCA or, or smaller groups that might, you know, kind of give you a press pass for their like smaller days to start with, or how, how do you want to kind of get into that?

What’s your, what’s your plan? If you had, if you could plan it out perfectly, how would you do it?

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): Yeah. If I could plan it out perfectly, what I would do is I would try to contact, um. The SCCA at Road America, or I would try to contact, um, people who race at Milwaukee Miles, since it’s closer to home, uh, since I don’t currently have a driver’s license, um, which does make things a little bit tricky, but what I would do is I would try to find, uh, I try to get, like, a press pass through that.

So I can go up to Road America and try to photograph some of the racers there. And I would actually specifically try to, um, photograph the female drivers and try to highlight them a little bit more. Um, because a lot of times, like, like the problem is with like female drivers [00:20:00] is we just don’t get as much press as our male counterparts.

That’s just kind of the nature of how it is right now. And if we do get press is mostly just kind of a, like, an op ed or like a, like, kind of a filler piece. So my goal is to eventually try to talk to the or, um, get my portfolio together, talk to them, and then try to kind of work out a negotiation where I can.

Um, talk to individual female drivers and try to photograph them and maybe help them with, um, help them with their like media and stuff like that.

Emma Galasso: Awesome. That’s super cool. Do you notice, like when you’re there watching people drive, do you happen to notice kind of roughly how many women are there? Um, have you noticed any growth or anything like that?

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): Yeah, I have definitely noticed a growth. Um, again, it is in an area that is. It’s like how much I think I should say I said I should say it’s more of like a traditional [00:21:00] crowd there for racing so there isn’t really much female representation, but I have noticed a growth in female drivers over the years, and it’s really cool because I kind of perk up when I hear a female name over the PA system and I’m like, Hey, dad, there’s a female right there’s a female driver in this race or my dad, like tells me and it’s like that’s really cool because then I’m like, I’m just like trying to watch for their car and stuff like that.

And, uh, I remember there was this one time I saw this driver, um, she had a pink helmet and a mohawk, like a mohawk blue to it. And, uh, I just, I thought that was so cool because they weren’t afraid to show their femininity or like, you know, how they identify and stuff like that.

Emma Galasso: Yeah, that’s super cool. I was just at, uh, Daytona for work and it was really cool to see, like, in the MX5 races, they had multiple women drivers.

And. They also had a, I believe for the MX5 Cup, there is a prize specifically for female drivers, which I think is a [00:22:00] great way to help encourage more women in the sport because, like he said, You know, it’s still a man’s world, unfortunately, and that also means the funding tends to go to men. Um, so having programs like that can be really helpful in getting people the money they need to run these cars because it certainly isn’t cheap.

Um, yeah, so it’s really cool to, to see how the sport is growing. Because honestly, I mean, I haven’t, I guess haven’t been paying too much attention, but this year I noticed. Multiple female drivers in a lot of classes, and then of course the Iron Games were driving, um, a Porsche this time, and it was super cool to see.

They had a pop up actually in the Daytona fan zone that had, um, it was like almost sold out by Sunday, but they had like hoodies and shirts and Um, everyone could write on postcards, like, their dreams, because their slogan is driven by dreams, so. Yeah, I love that. It’s really cool. Yeah, and I have to say, like, when I [00:23:00] first saw the, the pink car, I, I will admit that I rolled my eyes, because I was like, do we really have to make this into, like, uh, uh, girls are pink, whatever.

But then I heard some of the drivers talking about how they purposely did that so that you knew that there was women in the car, not so much about it being, like, a pink Barbie thing, and. Since then I’m like, oh, yeah, that’s, but I’m with you. I’m, I’m a purple card person. Yeah,

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): for me, like, my color scheme, um, is actually the colors of the androgyny flag as I’m an androgynous person, which is gray, which is usually gray, blue, pink, and purple.

Um, because purple, if you think of color theory, purple is pink and blue combined.

Yeah, so

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): when you combine pink and purple, you get pink and blue, you get purple, which is. Kind of the combination of mask and femininity. So that’s often why I have my cars purple because I you know as a [00:24:00] Non binary person. I I don’t really identify with either side, but I do identify more as far as women So that’s kind of why that’s kind of the kind of like little secret behind why my cars are purple.

Emma Galasso: Awesome I love hearing that. I love when people have a story behind You know, the car they drive, the colors they choose, uh, because it is something. I mean, when we’re, when we’re at home sitting at our rig, driving for hours on end, you kind of want to put yourself into that. So, we find different ways to do that, whether it’s, I mean, I throw liveries together all the time just because I love to draw and put stuff in there, and iRacing with Trading Paints and ACC and this other course, it’ll let you customize it so much that I really get a lot of joy out of doing that.

I also think it’s a really good community building thing. Um, I’m actually in a racing league in Isoto Corsa. We also do iRacing races, but we have a livery contest every season. And it’s really cool to see all the creative things that people come up [00:25:00] with. Um, speaking of that, have you ever raced any leagues besides like, screen to speed and stuff, or has it just been that?

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): Um, well I recently joined Transmission Motorsport. Um, around the same time that I did the spring series and I am hoping to do some of the charity races that they have. Um, I did the race for mental health. Uh, I did the race for, um, breast cancer awareness, which was held by Sophie. Um, and I raced for, um, transmission motorsport in that one.

And I’m hoping to do some of their league races in transmission motorsports. Um, I’m just trying to find the time to do it. But I’m currently in their development series, which is kind of designed to get less experienced drivers kind of up to the level that some of the other drivers are in there and kind of get them more experience on track.

So that’s kind of another.

Emma Galasso: Yeah, did you go into that a little bit because I feel like a lot of people when they [00:26:00] start sim racing, like I did the same thing I started just hot lapping all the time. And it wasn’t until I joined my league and was on track with real people that I actually had a relationship with that I started really paying attention to racecraft.

Um, so go into that a little bit about the development series and how has that helped you? Like, have you noticed growth in your own driving since you started?

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): Yeah, I really have actually, because it’s really nice because it’s like, generally when you go into an online race, it’s kind of like the Hunger Games a little bit.

Um, everybody, the first laugh is just they kind of hate you. Yeah. Uh, and you kind of, you’re kind of always on the defense, you’re kind of always on the defensive. Um, and so you don’t really get a chance to really learn how to, you’re kind of, you’re so focused on not wrecking that you aren’t really thinking about your lines, your cornering, your overtakes, like that sort of thing.

So it’s, for me, it’s really helped a lot, um, knowing [00:27:00] people I can trust to teach me how to overtake some, to teach how, teach me how to overtake safely. How to break into that corner. How to use this.

Emma Galasso: Yeah. How are they doing that? How are you learning? Are you, are you just on track with them in their own voice chat or how does that work?

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): Yeah. So what we do is we have, we usually will have the, um, like the pros they’re usually on a, um, softer, they’re usually on a, um, harder tire compound and the beginners are on a softer tire compound. So they handicap the more experienced drivers, uh, so that the less experienced drivers can have more experience.

In a car that handles a little bit faster and so they’ll go over which chat and we’ll kind of we’ll do drills So like we’ll do a good overtaking drill where they’ll say like, okay for two laps I want you to drive next to the person next to the car next to you and I want you to keep a one second gap between you two and It’s really nice cuz Tasha [00:28:00] She’s my mentor.

She uh, she’ll like give me some really funny little pointers and stuff. Like let’s just see if mr. Berry Mr. Barry the barricade will want to kiss you over here. And she’ll say, uh, and like, she’ll say like, okay, this corner, I want you to go through like this and she’ll, me and her will go slowly through the corner.

I’ll follow her in the next lap. She’ll follow me. So it’s. It’s kind of like a lot of like drills and stuff like that that really help out.

Emma Galasso: Awesome. So when you first started, when you made that choice to join that development program, was that really intimidating? Were you kind of scared to do that? Or were you just ready to go in?

Can you take us through that process when you decided to join?

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): Yeah, I already knew them for a while. So I was kind of like, oh, this is just a cool thing to help me kind of get more experience and not feel so anxious on track. Um, that was kind of my thought process because I was like, this can really, really help me improve.

And I already knew everybody in there, so it was kind of like, kind of just a [00:29:00] kind of chill time to hang out with friends as well. So yeah, I use, I use the simracing and like the simracing discord a lot as kind of socialization.

Emma Galasso: Yeah, I would agree with that. I, my league, um, you know, there’s probably about 15 of us that are really super active, and we get people, up to 30 people in our races and stuff.

I am the only girl in my league, but at the same time, The guys in my league are just awesome people. Um, we meet up in real life, but also monday nights Um, though i’ve been bad and I haven’t been able to make races lately Uh, we just all hang out. We’re having a good time We’re racing hard, but it’s it’s a casual league and it’s all about fun And um, I always tell people who are just starting in sim racing, you know really think about like It’s a game, but it’s a kind of non, it’s like, to me it’s a, it’s not just a game because you’re really building skills that are applicable to real life, but at the same time, like, you don’t need to be terrified of, I was terrified to join my first [00:30:00] race.

It was so intimidating to me, I was so scared of like, being the only girl in there and stuff like that. Um, did you have any experiences like that? And I mean, I guess Gran Turismo might be a little bit different because I don’t think they have voice chat. Do they? And yeah, they

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): don’t have voice chat, but yeah, I’ve had a lot.

I’ve had a lot of experiences with drivers who aren’t the cleanest. Um, as I said, I often put political stuff on, like, I often put a lot of fried things on my car. So I have been, I have been a target of, um, harassment. Like I have been called. I have been called things in the chat on the side, and I’ve also been targeted during races.

Usually, it’s being cut off, or rear ended, or either planted into having another meeting with Mr. Barry. Um, but yeah, a lot of it has been mostly chat and on, like, on track actions and stuff like that. From other [00:31:00] people. Man,

Emma Galasso: that’s super frustrating. I’ve been lucky, I guess, in that sense, because I, I always say that I’m like, because I found my league and my league is just full of like, you know, normal people who aren’t going to do stuff like that.

And we do have people from the LBGTQ a community in our league. And so it’s always something where any kind of intolerance is not accepted. Um, but of course, when you’re in public races, it’s not always like that. I have. Even iRacing, when you’re, when your full name is out there, which I don’t particularly like, but, um, you, I don’t think that I’ve, maybe, I don’t have my voice chat on for iRacing, but, specifically, so I don’t have to hear that kind of stuff, but, yeah, I don’t think, I can’t think of a time where I’ve been directly targeted that I knew I was being targeted, because I was a woman or anything like that, um, but yeah, it’s just unfortunate that people are like that.

I will say that, like, I, I’ve been pleasantly surprised by at [00:32:00] least the sim racing community and iRacing and Assetto Corsa that I haven’t seen as much harassment as I expected to, um, coming from Call of Duty where every single game is just terrible. Yeah. Um, I was very pleasantly surprised. Uh, speaking of, do you, what other things do you do outside of sim racing?

You don’t, like video games or anything like that? We talked about film a little bit, but anything else that you do that has had like a weird correlation to sim racing, or not at all?

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): Yeah, so usually, like, I do play some FPS games, but I do love Assassin’s Creed. That’s like one of my other favorite games.

I love the representation in it. And, like, I am a big fan of, like, the Labrys, which is kind of why my name is Axe. Um, the Labrys is a, uh, the double headed battle axe, and it symbolizes strength and unity in the lesbian community. And there’s an Assassin’s Creed game, Assassin’s Creed Odyssey, where you’re able to have that, [00:33:00] that axe.

So, yeah, I play a lot of role playing games. I recently got into D& D, um, and D& D has been really, really awesome in kind of helping me tell stories and stuff like that.

Emma Galasso: Yeah, that’s super cool. That’s so funny because I, so Assassin’s Creed was also a big game for me, um, that weirdly connects to sim racing because when I played Assassin’s Creed, I played the first one when it came out, but Assassin’s Creed 2 was my big favorite game and it inspired me to start learning Italian.

Um, and since then I’ve just been studying Italian, also because I’m half Italian, but I just remember I was so motivated to try to learn what they were saying and I would play Assassin’s Creed in Italian to try to understand it. Um, and I’m not really good at D& D. For me, speaking verbally and telling stories is more difficult to me than just writing them down, but I have a lot of respect for people who do D& D because [00:34:00] The amount of organization you have to do that, I was never very good at it.

I was a seven foot tall elephant man when I was playing D& D. I’m

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): a rogue elf.

Emma Galasso: Nice. Yeah, I’m

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): a rogue elf, yeah.

Emma Galasso: Um, yeah, but it’s so cool how you can, especially in this day and age, where we can do stuff like this. Like, obviously we’re not Even in the same time zone, but we’re both here on this stream talking to each other and streaming out to other people.

It’s something super cool and like my whole D& D crew, um, was from college and we, and we would always play on, over Zoom during COVID and It would be for hours at a time, so it’s a really cool thing to just be able to connect with people and do stuff like that. Um, alright, so let’s move on to something that I think that people don’t talk about too much with simracing, but is important.

When you start sim racing, do you feel that you kind of just [00:35:00] approach the track and you’re just driving it a lot and that’s how you get better? Or are you the kind of person who’s looking at, you know, the data and getting really granular with like tires and figuring everything out in real life and kind of applying it to the game?

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): So I’m kind of like a mixture. So I use the app on my phone, um, which is like a digital dashboard. Um, so I have the tire temperatures up. And a lot of times I kind of just drive by feel like I like, I usually like to drive the track a couple laps, usually 5 or 6. And so I drive around the track and I don’t want to overdrive it because then I kind of feel tired and then I forget things.

So, usually I do 5 or 6 laps. I screenshot my fastest lap. I save the lap time for my fastest lap and I’ll screenshot, like, the data. And I usually will screenshot the dashboard on my phone as well to kind of keep track of the tire temperatures. Um, I have [00:36:00] a disability called dyscalculia, which does make doing calculations and like time based measurements and stuff like that very difficult for me.

So, usually when I have to evaluate my fit stuff, I actually do it by feel. So, like, if I feel like the car is loose, um, and I look at the tire temperatures, or I look at the gauge on the side. I can kind of predict when I’m going to pit, or it’s the same thing with the fuel. Like, if I start to kind of feel the car, you know, not giving me what I need, that’s usually when I, that’s usually when I pit or whatever, or I just kind of go by feel a lot of times I have to, a lot of times I just kind of use my gut.

Emma Galasso: Awesome. Yeah, I think that’s a really good, I mean, it’s kind of an innate skill, but if you don’t have it, you can definitely tell. When you don’t know how to understand the car. Um, bad things happen. So it’s really cool that you’re able to kind of get that feel. And I think it’s something, again, really cool about sim racing that we know, we can feel as the car is changing even though it’s [00:37:00] not a car in real life.

Um, so kind of going back to that, when you’re doing stuff by feel and, you know, kind of trying to put it all together. What’s a moment in sim racing that It was like your Hall of Fame moment, so to speak, so far in your career.

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): Well, a couple weeks ago, I got my first podium finish. Um, I finished second in the many, in the, uh, Nation Series.

Um, that was at, uh, Sardena Circuit. And I was in second place and it, it felt unreal because I started in third. And then lap nine, I, I got spun out. And so I was like, I was like, no, no, no. And then I, uh, I managed to climb back up to second place and like, like my heart was just like, it was insane. I was just sitting there like, I’m just sitting in my living room.

My heart is going like 125 beats per minute. My Apple watch was telling me that [00:38:00] you’ve been sitting for, you have been sitting for 10 minutes and your heart rate is 120. What is going on? Yeah. And like, I remember screaming like, I want, I got second place. And then mom came in and she gave me a hug and I like just started crying and it was so silly.

I was like, this is really silly because I’m just sitting here in my living room and I feel like I just ran a marathon.

Emma Galasso: I mean, I don’t think that’s silly at all. It’s, it’s such a rewarding thing. Cause I mean in my league, I started in last place every single race I was last. And then the one time that I wasn’t last and came in mid pack, like, I almost cried.

And then when I got my first win in iRacing, it was, it was that kind of moment. I was so nervous and all this stuff and then you finally pull it off and it just is an amazing feeling. And I feel like that’s another thing. How cool is that that we get to just be in our house and do this thing and get so much accomplishment from it?

Because you, [00:39:00] like, what, just what you’re telling me about how much you are thankful Taking notes of things, um, even figuring out stuff for your camera on your sim, and then taking it out in real life. Like, there’s a lot of time that goes into that, and it’s, it’s a reward that you for sure earn, so that’s super, super cool to hear.

Um, so in your future in sim racing, what, what do you hope to accomplish and do? We kind of touched about that in your, um, outside of sim racing career, but what would you like to do? Overall, um,

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): well, eventually I want to upgrade my, I kind of want to upgrade my rig a little bit and I’m hoping to get my streaming channel set up.

I just got a capture card, um, a couple months ago. I’m currently working out how I’m going to hook it up to my laptop and everything, but I’m hoping to start a Twitch channel with a friend. Also, um, and I’m thinking about doing kind of like a fun kind of game show type thing where my friend. Asks me random questions while I’m [00:40:00] driving.

Nice. And if I get them wrong, I have to like, I have to do, I have to pick a punishment out of my helmet. Um, so like driving blindfolded or something like that. And I’m hoping to do more charity races. Uh, hopefully I’m actually hoping to pair up with, uh, a local, with my local LGBTQ plus community or my local church who is a trans affirming.

I’m hoping to do a. a charity drive where I can donate, um, clothing and things like that for what they need.

Emma Galasso: Awesome. That’s a great goal. I love both of those. Um, so we kind of touched on this already, but as you’re prepping to do more charity races, for example, um, What are things that you, like, how do you, first of all, I guess let’s go into how do you find those races in your community?

And how are you able to find races to participate in?

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): Um, usually, usually, um, [00:41:00] I usually have like the discord notifications for my, for my channel for the, um, for like transmission and I have the discord channel for in it. And so I usually, whenever something comes up like, uh, like a new race series, I usually will kind of look at that, check the dates, see if I could do it.

Um, that sort of thing. And I usually, like, I kind of look on the internet and stuff like that, but I don’t really trust that kind of stuff. Cause I’m not going to join a random discord if, you know, if it’s weird and creepy, um, but generally I try to just look it up and see if there’s anything available that’s free to enter, which I kind of just sticking with my two leagues for now.

Um, just cause I’m not really ready to do iRacing or Assetto Corsa yet. Um, I kind of want to get my bearings with with Gran Turismo first before I kind of venture into that. But yeah,

Emma Galasso: awesome. Yeah, I think that’s another thing that’s, um, you know, a little bit different about sim racing [00:42:00] is, yeah, you can just join those public races.

But like you said, everyone’s just trying to run into each other and nobody’s. You know, being particularly nice, whereas when you find a, a league or a race that’s hosted by an actual eSports team or something, you can at least hope that people know what they’re doing when they drive. Not always true, but uh, you know, you can try.

Yeah.

Emma Galasso: Um, so let’s think about like, have, have there been any moments, like I think back to, I was racing, I was trying to learn Spa and instead of Horse Competizione, I was in a GT3 And I worked so, so, so hard to get 26 seconds as my lap time, and I was like, This is the time! It’s the best time ever! And then, a year later, I came back and set a 2.

20, just kind of messing around. Have there been any moments like that for you, where you’ve revisited an old track and car, that you’ve really been able to see improvement that maybe you didn’t notice? [00:43:00]

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): Yeah, yeah, I actually, um, it’s kind of funny because it’s like, I’ll try really, really hard to set a really good qualifying time, and then I’m like, I’m working at it, I’m working at it, I’m working at it, I don’t get it, and then during the race, I’m in like, place, and then I manage to beat it, and I’m like, well, that would have been useful twenty minutes ago.

Emma Galasso: Yeah, I

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): don’t. Now we can start it back here.

Emma Galasso: Yeah, I feel like that always happens to me too. I think part of it is like, When you’re on track with other people you’re so, I, at least I am, I’m way more locked in because I’m trying to get ahead of them that I can just, you know, follow what they’re doing and set faster times, but totally get that.

Um, and kind of in that same vein, have you noticed anything about your driving style or anything that has changed for you? I know I look at my old laps and I definitely wasn’t ever using all of the track. I was probably giving like three feet of space on either end of the track and then Now I’m giving a couple centimeters.

Has [00:44:00] there been anything you notice in your style that’s changed?

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): Yeah, I, I used to be very, very, very cautious, um, with other drivers. And because of, because of like the nature of Gran Turismo, um, if you get, like, if somebody bumps into you, there’s like a 85 percent chance that that penalty that they were supposed to incur would transfer over to you.

So you kind of have to be really defensive. But since I’ve joined these leagues, I’ve kind of become less of a cautious driver, and I’ve kind of become more of a balanced driver. Um, where I kind of, I won’t let people get past me, but I will drive very clean. Like, there’s a lot of times where I will, like, if somebody is coming up behind me, I know that they’re trying to, they’re trying to pass me.

So what I like to do is I often, like, I kind of mirror them a little bit. Like I kind of get a feel of [00:45:00] how they’re, how they’re driving. I actually let them pass me first. And so I can watch how they’re, how they’re interacting with another driver. And then I kind of wait for them to kind of get a little too cocky with the other drivers.

And I kind of waited out. I’m kind of like the vulture

a little bit

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): where like, I kind of wait for other people to kind of mess up and I kind of capitalize on other people’s mistakes because I’m. Again, I’m, I’m kind of the cautious person who’s kind of evaluating the situation. And then I kind of go for it and stuff.

Emma Galasso: I think that’s a totally valid strategy. I do that unintentionally sometimes. I used to be the driver that never fought anybody because I was always convinced that everyone was way faster than me so I would just kind of let them by. Um, but sometimes I would let them by and then, like you said, watch them and see where, whether a little slower or wait for them to just make a mistake and then capitalize on it.

Because sometimes it’s really [00:46:00] not worth of, you know, going at it for three laps when something like that could happen to either of you. And I know whenever I’m under pressure, I’m better at being under pressure now. But before, if you were behind me, I was just going to spit myself out this for just for, um, so would you say, cause it sounds to me like you’ve gained a lot of confidence as a driver.

Would you agree with that?

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): Yeah.

Emma Galasso: Awesome. Yeah. I would definitely agree

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): with that. Like before, before I was like, I was kind of like, I had, like you said, I was very convinced that. Like I had the kind of the imposter syndrome where I was like, I’m not the fastest driver here I should just let them have their race Um, or I just didn’t want to make anybody upset which would then trigger like a hate comment in the chat And so I kind of did it as a kind of self protection a little bit Um, but now i’ve kind of i’ve kind of gotten sick of it Honestly, i’ve kind of gotten sick of kind of gotten sick of being pushed around and so i’ve kind of become the pusher a little bit [00:47:00] like Like now, when somebody is trying to get past me, I kind of break a little bit and I kind of dodge and weave and I’ve kind of become more of the kind of become more of the aggressor.

Um, but again, I try to keep it clean because, you know. You get that clean race bonus in Gran Turismo.

Emma Galasso: Nice. Yeah, iRacing 2 really punches you if you go off track at all, so that’s never fun.

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): Yeah, you get a point, you get a point zero, you get like a point five hundred per, uh, point five hundred millisecond penalty if you go off track in Gran Turismo.

Oh,

Emma Galasso: yeah, I forgot about that. That’s, I would And it adds up if

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): you do it again, and it goes up to one second.

Emma Galasso: Oh my gosh, that, I would be in trouble if that was me. But yeah, that’s really interesting because Yeah, I feel like when you start getting comfortable in the car, you really, I mean, it’s just like what drivers talk about all the time.

Like when you know that car, like the back of your hand, you can do stuff like that because you know exactly the limit and stuff like that. So super cool. Yeah. [00:48:00]

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): Last race, I was driving again, the GT three RSR, and I knew that I can go up, I could go through your row, uh, rogue without lifting and other people couldn’t.

And so, even in the rain, I was able to go through Ouroog without lifting. Man, it’s terrifying, but it was so cool. Oh yeah,

Emma Galasso: that’s a scary one. I just, I remember I was doing that, and I sat of course in the Ferrari 296, and it was, uh Crazy. I was always like, I don’t know if I’m going to make it. I’m just going to, you know, put my pedal to the metal and hope that it works out.

So, sometimes it’s what you got to do. But yeah, there is definitely a lot of confidence that comes with that. And that’s kind of what, what that seat time is all about. I always tell people I’m like, look, I didn’t believe it either when I started, but you really do need the seat time and you just got to, just got to be in there and do it.

And eventually, whether you realize it or not, you’re getting better every single time that you really race. Um, all right, so it [00:49:00] looks like we are kind of approaching our end time here. Is there anything that you wanted to, um, discuss about, uh, either in it or the mission of women in esports and, um, anything that you would like to talk about?

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): Uh, yeah, mostly just kind of, I kind of wish there were more organizations in my city, uh, and in like the United States in general for esports racing. Especially for women. Um, because I’ve been looking around and there just really isn’t anything for women. Yeah. Um, in the United States, there’s a ton of stuff in UK.

I’ve noticed, but there’s not really much here in the States. And so I would personally love to start something or find something, uh, with women in the United States, like, just so we can have accessibility for that. Because, Go to Beadaholique. com for all of your Especially if you’re a woman living in a much metropolitan area.

They’re just really using anything really to find. So I’m really glad that, you know, it exists because if I didn’t find it, I probably would [00:50:00] not be able to do what I’m doing right now. So I think I, uh, I’m so glad that you guys exist. And I hope more people join up for the United States. You know, kind of try to branch out and get this mission moving in the United States as well.

Emma Galasso: Yeah, I totally agree with that. Um, same here. I really, all of my, well, my league is actually primarily in the U. S. and Canada, which is, I was very surprised to see. Um, because I really thought that U. S. was only going to be like NASCAR and stuff like that. So, I’ve been pleasantly surprised by that. But all of, a lot of the eSports, uh, specific people that are really like into the eSports aspect of it.

are not in the U. S., and I’m really hoping that, like you said, we can kind of get the movement going in the United States, because they’re, like, what you’re saying, when you live in a big city or something, it’s way easier to just have a rig than it is to, to go on track. Um, I will say that since I’ve been, um, involved within it, and if you have LinkedIn, I highly recommend, like, following, [00:51:00] Stephanie, following in it, because A lot of stuff is actually, I find it through LinkedIn, oddly enough.

Not even through Instagram or stuff like that. But, um, there’s, there are organizations out there for women. Um, maybe not necessarily for sim racing, but motorsports in general. Um, someone that I work with actually organized on track days for women. Of course, you have to own your own car to take it to the track, which isn’t really accessible.

But still, those kind of events. You really only know about it if you know somebody, because they don’t have, you know, all this money to put into marketing. But, um, I think that the rise of, like, IMSA’s growing in popularity, obviously, for me, the one’s taking a big, um, boost of growth in the U. S. Uh, so I think that things are coming, but it’s kind of up to us a little bit to help spread the message, so.

Yeah, definitely agree, I’m super grateful for organizations like this that really exist just to, um, kind of help women especially in that spotlight for [00:52:00] esports, but then in the U. S. as a whole to make it more of a, more of a popular thing. Um, so thank you so much for, for joining us this evening on this, uh,

Maddie O’Connell (Axe): It’s been a pleasure.

Emma Galasso: Yeah. Um, for anyone who’s not watching live, it is late here in the U. S., so. Um, I had a great time talking and, um, thank you so much. Thanks to everyone tuning in today. Uh, again, this is my, my first stream, so hopefully it didn’t go super crazy. Thank you, Axe, for being, uh My guinea pig so to speak. Um, I think this has been a great conversation and um, I really look forward to talking on the discord and hanging out more.

So thank you very much everybody and we’ll catch you next time.

Crew Chief Brad: Innate esports focuses on sim racing events and digital tournaments. They bring esports content [00:53:00] to fans and sponsorship opportunities to brands while maximizing audience reach across multiple sports industries and platforms. eSports is a woman-led company where diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility is in their DNA and their platform aims to combat bullying and cheating to help make the eSports world as safe and fair as possible.

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