Carlos Fernandes is one of the guys in the racing paddock that everyone smiles about when hearing his name.

In the spring of 2000, I skipped a day of school to watch the Indy Racing League test at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway (sorry, Mom!).  At the time, I was 17, and I snuck into the infield and made myself at home in pitlane.

One of the people I quickly noticed was a short dude with a shiny bald head working for Kelley Racing.  His unique look and personality definitely stood out.

Three years later, I was an intern at Kelley Racing working the Indianapolis 500, where I officially became a co-worker with Carlos for the first time.  Our paths would cross again at Panther Racing, between 2004 and 2005, and again at Sam Schmidt Motorsports in 2010.

It has been a privilege to work with Carlos on various teams, but more importantly, it’s been awesome just getting to know such an awesome dude.  He graciously took the time to chat on camera with me and told me about his upbringing in Macau (just across from Hong Kong), the love of racing at an early age, and how lucky he has been throughout his racing career.

Check out the video above to get to know Carlos, and leave us a comment with your thoughts.

Also, who would you like to see interviewed?