Cinco a ir: El ProSolo de Mineral Wells, Tejas!

May 3-4th, 2014

Sure, Texas declared it's independence from Mexico some 30 yrs before the Battle of Puebla, but Cinco de Mayo is a celebration in the SouthWest Division. Factor in the SCCA ProSolo Series is stopping in Mineral Wells, Texas on May 3rd and 4th and we'll call it "Un Fiesta de Autocross". Here are cinco reasons to throw down your pesos and head to Mineral Wells:

Uno: Everything is mas grande in Texas. The Mineral Wells airport used to be a training base for helicopter pilots and 1540 ft X 1080 ft. of aged asphalt awaits soloists. With all that space, attendees can look forward to a pair of technically challenging courses from designer Jerrett Jan. If history is any indicator, expect big sweeping turns with tight transitional elements that require looking ahead and punish overdriving.

Vivek Goel in his BS NSX on a Jerrett Jan 2013 course here:

Dos: Toreros Profesionales. Brad and Jennifer Maxcy are in charge of the Solo National Championships for a reason. Brad's grabbing the horns as the Event Chair for this one and with Texas Region's usual cast of volunteers, everyone will be ready for the fiestas quickly.

Tres: Hospitalidad de Sudoeste. Friday night, Vorshlag Motorsports is sponsoring and you can be FAIR-ly certain the grill-master isn't leaving until everyone is well fed. Saturday night, the Mineral Wells Chamber of Commerce is catering Texas style BBQ, you know the beef with "other" BBQ is that they don't have enough of it. 'Course, you're going to need something to wash it down and local craft brewery Rahr & Sons is providing the beer both nights!

Cuatro: Profit! Call it a hidden gem, because the Mineral Wells Tour sees lower attendance than the other coasts. Given that several multi-time jacket winners use this site for testing, this is a great opportunity to tune a car and collect some valuable points in preparation for the ProSolo Finale.

Five: Tiempo Bueno. The Mineral Wells Pro Solo is 3 weeks later this year so bring sunscreen, shorts, and a windbreaker. Mineral Wells is at the cusp of the desert so it's likely to be clear and bright with high temps near 80F all day long, but at duck the temps are likely to dip towards a low around 60F. The airport is on top of a hill with minimal protection from the winds, and they can be relentless.

Finally, Texas Region recently lost Tommy Saunders whose outspoken personality rivals any Texas tall tale. The difference is that Saunders's Stories are all true. He was a huge part of the Texas Region and the SWDivision, so one can expect the Tommy tall-tales to stretch long after the sun has set.

See y'all there!