This article first appeared in the June, 2016 edition of SportsCar Magazine. SCCA members can read the current and past editions of SportCar digitally here after logging into their account; To become an SCCA member and get SportsCar mailed to your home address monthly in addition to the digital editions, click here.
Eric Prill
SCCA Vice President and COO
Kansas Region
SCCA Member since 1985
“It’s difficult to pinpoint when my SCCA life began. My parents, Paul and Pat, were members, avid autocrossers, workers, racers, and Region leaders before I was even born. I took my first victory lap at Waterford Hills in utero, in the Lotus that would later become ‘mine.’ My toddler years were spent in the Waterford Hills sandbox, just like fellow Eric(k)s Foss and Skirmants.
Spending my formative years in northeast Ohio, most of my friends were into boats, and weekends were spent on Lake Erie. For me, it was the family racecar and the racetracks of the Central Division. My dad was in motorsports brand advertising, which helped fuel his passion and exposed the family to all aspects of the sport. I served as his apprentice in the garage, learning every nut and bolt on that Lotus, which I really considered a sibling.
For the Prills, SCCA has always been an extended family. My sister Tracey and I learned Timing and Scoring from ‘Auntie Connie’ at Nelson Ledges, and I received a National T&S license when I was 12. Many of those relationships from my childhood carry through to today.
When SCCA created a new PR position back in 1996, I made the pilgrimage to SCCA mecca in Denver. While working in Pro Racing, I met fellow staffer Robin Mackay, and together, we made the move to Kansas in 2002. We were engaged during a World Challenge weekend in 2003, and married on an off weekend in 2004, by the World Challenge Chaplain.
Our son, Maxton, became a member Feb. 14, 2011 – about three hours after he was born.
For me, SCCA is not just a job. It’s not just a place to race. It’s not just friends and family. It’s all of those things, and more.”
