While it’s not an SCCA® event, you wouldn’t know it by the entry list. From the number of Club members who entered this year’s Tire Rack One Lap of America to the fact that an SCCA member was part of the overall winning team, this year’s One Lap was one to remember. And now you can experience it, too, thanks to a series of videos featuring the Club Spec Mustang assembled by SCCA’s own Senior Director of Rally/Solo and Experiential Programs Heyward Wagner — another SCCA member who participated in the event.
Before we get to the Club Spec Mustang videos, let’s peek at the competition. Of the 20 winning entrants spanning the event’s 10 classes, 14 were current or recent members of the Sports Car Club of America. Of those, the team that took the SGT1 BB class (and overall) win included West Texas Region member, National Championship Runoffs® podium finisher, and multi-time Solo® National Champion Dave Ogburn III. Another of SCCA’s heavy hitters came in the SGT2 BB class, where the winning team included Central Florida Region member Randy Pobst, who is also a multi-time winner of professional racing series, the Runoffs, and the Solo National Championships, as well as an SCCA Hall of Fame member.
Step beyond those top spots and you’ll find many more SCCA members, including the likes of David Marcus, Julian Garfield, Tom O’Gorman, Salil Shukla, Chris Mayfield, DJ Alessandrini, Brian Peters, John Hogan, Andy Hollis, Tom Suddard, and more, along with Wagner and his co-driver Eric Sienkiewicz. Wagner and Sienkiewicz represented the bulk of the 77 entrants in One Lap — a couple friends looking for a good time. But for them, it was also the ultimate torture test for a car and class SCCA launched in 2023.
“When SCCA launched Club Spec last year, we said NC Miatas and S197 Mustangs built to this ruleset would be great at everything — and we wanted to prove it,” said Wagner. “Eric and I entered One Lap to put the Club Spec Mustang to the test. The fact that we completed a 4,000-mile trek across the country in roughly one week, hitting six tracks, two skid pads, and an autocross along the way, with the car never so much as having an issue, is a testament to the do-all-the-things Club Spec philosophy.”
Wagner created eight videos that logged his and Eric’s adventures from One Lap’s kickoff at Tire Rack’s headquarters in South Bend, IN, out to Colorado, back through Kentucky, then returning to Tire Rack, all in eight days.
Unless you’re participating at SCCA® events in an EV or a diesel, chances are extraordinarily strong that gasoline is a staple of your motorsport weekends. Luckily, the topic of fuel is a simple one — fill up your fuel tank and go, right? If only! Beyond knowing which octane and composition of fuel is right for your specific vehicle, fuel storage is also a consideration, as is fuel age and more. Since fuel can be a make or (quite literally) break topic, it doesn’t take SCCA members long to go from the superficial subject of topping up, to a deep dive into that combustible liquid we all rely on. Luckily, help is easy to find.
Being the official fuel of SCCA since 2001, Sunoco is a trusted partner of SCCA and its members. Meanwhile, being into all things amateur motorsports, Grassroots Motorsports (GRM) is also a trusted partner of weekend warriors. Combine the two and you’ve got a winning blend of priceless fuel information.
“Properly storing that fuel, assuming that it’s not used right away, can lengthen its shelf life,” the GRM article reads. “The Sunoco Race Fuels website offers some handy storage tips: Keep the containers full, tightly sealed, and away from daylight and major temperature swings.”
“We don’t have much concern because the fuels are so stable,” Zachary J. Santner, Sunoco’s Senior Specialist of Quality, explained to GRM’s editors.
Sunoco Race Fuels stored correctly in sealed containers in cool, dry locations can be good for at least two years. Even better, Santner adds that storing fuel correctly is relatively easy. “In the real world, your garage or shed is fine,” he told GRM.
How can Santner be so sure? Because Sunoco puts stored fuels to the test in extreme conditions. In the article, GRM explained that Sunoco places fuel containers unsheltered in the Pennsylvania elements for two years, checking the fuel’s viability during that time. “We get all the seasons,” Santner explained.
Being racers, some of SCCA’s staff have participated in less-than-ideal fuel storage practices over the years, so we couldn’t help but contacting Santner for ourselves, hoping he could set us straight on fuel storage container types, along with why it’s important to store fuel in a full container.
“Gasoline must be stored in a container that provides an airtight seal,” he explained to us. “Many containers can do this, but steel containers are often best because they are sturdy and can maintain the airtight seal even as pressure builds up during the warmest part of the day. If those vapors causing pressure escape, the remaining fuel starts to change specifications and can reduce throttle response and ease of starting. For long-term storage, something like a steel drum or pail is best, but for a weekend at the track, the plastics do pretty well.”
As for keeping fuel containers full during storage: “This is key because the liquid reduces head space above the fuel, and it’s especially necessary when fuel is stored in a vehicle because they don’t have an air-tight seal,” he added. “As daily temperatures cycle up and down, the fuel volume expands and contracts. This breathing cycle can be minimized by having less head space for the incoming humid air to fill.”
There’s an epic RallyCross road trip in the making, if you’re daring enough to take the plunge. Yes, these 2024 National-level RallyCross events taking place in California, Oklahoma, Alabama, and West Virginia from May 31 through Sept. 1 can be entered individually, but wouldn’t it be awesome to hit two, three, or even all four while prepping for the 2024 RallyCross National Championship that takes place this October in Hollytree, AL? And if you manage to win one of the classes at any of the RallyCross National Tours, it’ll put you in the running for this year’s TripleCross Award.
Following a two-year hiatus, the RallyCross National Tour is back, and with it comes the return of the famed TripleCross Award, which is earned by drivers who win a Regional RallyCross, a RallyCross National Tour, and a RallyCross National Championship title all in the same class during the same year. Some big names in the sport have won this one, and you could be next.
Want to know more about the RallyCross National Tour? We have the details — plus a link to register for the first two events.
May 31-June 2: Pacific Challenge
Taking place May 31-June 2, 2024, in Fresno, CA, the first event of the RallyCross National Tour quadruplet is hosted by San Francisco Region, and it’s coming up fast. Dubbed the SCCA RallyCross Pacific Challenge and chaired by Sanjay Singh, this three-day event takes place at the Fresno Fairgrounds, which is smack-dab in between Sacramento and Los Angeles.
Friday involves load-in, tech, and course walking, and an informal dinner at Mitsui Buffet, with Saturday’s driver’s meeting taking place at 8:50 a.m., followed by the first car on course at 9:15 a.m. Sunday’s action begins a bit earlier, with cars prepped to rock at 8:45 a.m.
Event registration is $165 for the National Tour weekend, or $100 for drivers looking to compete on Saturday only (note: non-SCCA members will have to purchase a weekend membership).
The event’s entry cap is 80 cars, so register now before it’s too late.
The SCCA RallyCross Father’s Day Out Challenge takes place just two weeks after the Pacific Challenge, on June 14-16, 2024.
Located in the quaint 500-person town of Billings, OK, it’s a relaxing 1,500-mile jaunt east from Fresno for RallyCrossers looking to compete in both the Pacific Challenge and the Father’s Day Out Challenge — barely a day’s drive! For those in Oklahoma City or Tulsa, meanwhile, it’s a hop, skip, and jump that’ll take you less than an hour and a half to traverse.
Hosted by NEOklahoma Region, chaired by Bob Seelig, and taking place at Billy Bob’s Farm, this event is set to be a fantastic weekend in the dirt for everyone to enjoy.
Registration for this two-day event is $80, plus $15 for non-SCCA members. Considering that will get you wheel time on three large, flowing courses over two days, this event is a downright steal.
Two months after the Billings round comes the Southern Sweet Tea Classic. The third stop on the RallyCross National Tour, this event takes place at HollyTree Offroad Park in Hollytree, AL, just outside of Huntsville.
Hosted by Tennessee Valley Region, which is the same group of RallyCrossers hosting the 2024 RallyCross National Championship (and at the same location), and chaired by Leon Drake and Tom Harrington, this is a can’t-miss event if you’re serious about claiming a National Championship title in Hollytree, AL, this October.
Aug. 30-Sept. 1: Southern West Virginia
The final stop on the 2024 RallyCross National Tour is hosted by Southern West Virginia Region and chaired by Steve Parsons. Taking place at Jackson County Junior Fairgrounds in Cottageville, W VA, this is the last chance for RallyCrossers to get National-level wheel time before the Oct. 18-20, 2024, RallyCross National Championship.
Sign Me Up!
Registration is already open for Rounds 1 and 2 of the RallyCross National Tour, with registration links for the third and fourth rounds coming soon. For that, keep an eye on scca.com/rallycross as well as SCCA’s RallyCross Facebook page.
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