SAE CLUB
ACA DEMI CA LLY P RE PARE D
SAE CLUB PLACES STUDENTS BEHIND THE WHEEL
K
atie Mast (’21) had no experience with cars when she joined the Society of Automotive Engineers student club as a freshman at California Baptist University. By her senior year, she was the club president and the design lead for driver controls.
“I helped on all the machines, working on building components. My leadership skills have developed. It’s like running a business,” Mast said. “Everything is very challenging. That’s why SAE is so valuable because everything is a learning experience.”
Not only did Mast grow in her ability, but so did the SAE club as it competed in the Formula SAE Validation Event. In their first competition in 2017, the Lancers placed 67th. In the following years, they placed 44th and 31st. In June 2021, at the competition in Las Vegas, the team placed fourth overall. The Lancers placed ahead of all the California schools in the competition as well as others such as Purdue University, University of Nebraska–Lincoln and Iowa State University.
“We are ecstatic about the results of the competition,” Mast said. “It was an amazing week for the team as we have been able to witness the culmination of two years of hard work pay off. The team left even more excited about the development of Lancer 5.” With temperatures reaching 115 degrees at the competition, the schedule was adjusted to an earlier start time of 5:30 a.m. During the endurance event,
20 | ROUNDTA BL E MAGA ZI N E