The first day of competition has come to a close at the 50th running of the Tire Rack SCCA® Solo® National Championships. However, nothing’s been decided as of yet for the first group of drivers competing Sept. 5-8, 2023, at Lincoln Airpark in Nebraska’s capital city.
Challengers swap courses Wednesday to face entirely new layouts. One thing’s for sure, however: by Wednesday evening the first set of 2023 Solo Nats Champions will be known.
Catch up on the day’s action through @SoloMatters and @sccaofficial, SCCA’s online social media pages. Take a look at The Racing Network YouTube page, too, for Solo Nats slice-of-life stories uncovered by Brian Bielanski through special “Inside the SCCA Presented by Mazda Motorsports” pieces.
The Solo Nationals Morning Show – a daily video presentation where hosts interview special guests and keep everyone up to speed on happenings prior to cars leaving the start line – will also broadcast Wednesday morning starting around 7:15 a.m. Central Time on Facebook’s @SoloMatters.
Some East Course Action
With 79 drivers entered, D Street was always going to be a class to watch this year at Solo Nats. Ken Roller, driving a 2022 Subaru BRZ, led the field Tuesday. He has a 0.416sec advantage on Alex Muresan, in a 2019 Honda Civic R, and only 0.357sec further back in third is Garrett Cogburn in a 2021 Honda Civic.
D Street Ladies is producing a great race, too, as Stephanie Reynoso leads after day one by 0.294sec over Annie Gill, with both women piloting Honda Civic Type R cars.
Justin Peachey, in a 2007 Chevrolet Corvette Z06, leads the 35-entrant CAM-S field by 0.705sec over Jeremy Foley in 2008 Chevrolet Z06. In third, and only 0.191sec behind Foley, is a 2017 Chevrolet Corvette driven by Mike Johnson.
With a healthy 45 entrants, Street Touring® Sport (STS) is putting on a show as Riley Heaton currently leads Eric Stoltz by 0.521sec, and Andrew Salazar is an additional 0.338sec behind in third. The top five STS drivers Tuesday were all in Mazda Miatas. Adam Barber, in sixth with a 1988 Honda CRX Si, is the first non-Miata driver in the mix.
B Street brought the fun as David Marcus leads the 34-driver field in a 2021 Toyota Supra. However, Chad Englert is only 0.042sec behind in a 2015 Aston Martin V8 Vantage, and Brandon Porambo sits third by 0.329sec in a 2006 Porsche Cayman S.
Then there is Super Street, which brought Tuesday to a close on the East Course with Jason Bucki and his 2022 Porsche GT4 exactly 0.235sec quicker than a 2018 Porsche GT3 wheeled by James Yom. An additional 0.389sec back in third, driving another 2018 Porsche GT3, is Monty Pack.
West Course Action, Too
The battle in C Street Ladies is shaping up to be a good one as only 0.624sec separates leader Casey Coughlin from Langlee King in second. Mary Lou Holmes is in the hunt, too, as she’s only 0.147sec behind King, with all three women driving Mazda Miatas in the 10-contestant class.
Four decades separate the 2007 Honda Civic Si driven by Jessica Yeung in F Street Prepared from the 1977 Volkswagen Rabbit wielded by Brittany Edwards in the same class. However, Yeung’s lead is only 0.346sec over Edwards after Tuesday, and Edwards’ co-driver, Ginette Jordan, is a scant 0.068sec further back in third.
The contest in Street Touring® Hatch is even closer with 0.063sec being the difference between leader Michael Waich, in a 2016 Volkswagen GTR, and a 2016 Volkswagen GTI driven by Andrew Nienhuis. And only 0.064sec further back in third is Joel Zeller in a 2022 Honda Civic Si. In fact, the top nine runners in the 28-contestant class are within one second of Waich.
Xtreme Street, with 11 entrants, is currently led by Ryan Miles in a 2010 Porsche GT3. Eric Sutton, in a 2002 Porsche Turbo, is only 0.126sec behind. Another 0.091sec back in third is Miles’ co-driver, Daniel Shea.
Tyler Kvetko, in a 2018 Honda Civic, leads G Street by 0.125sec over Chris Yoder in a 2017 Honda Civic Si. Third in the 28-entrant class is Ron Williams with a 2019 Honda Civic Si only 0.051sec behind Yoder.
Sixty-six drivers posted times Tuesday in the huge Solo Spec Coupe class. Peter Schnore leads there by 0.434sec over Mason Herrick, and another 0.004sec behind is William Bostic, with the top three in Scion FR-S machines.
Combined, Solo Spec Coupe (SSC) and Solo Spec Coupe Ladies (SSCL) brought a bunch of folks to the party. And why not, as Falken Tire, the specified tire provider for SSC and SSCL, makes things interesting with a contingency program that pays a healthy sum to the top 15 finishing positions.
Outside of SSC/SSCL, Solo Nationals runners on Falkens in certain other eligible classes will earn $250 for a first-place finish, $150 for a second-place finish, and $100 for coming home third.
Much thanks to Falken Tire for supporting SCCA Solo drivers, and for keeping things interesting at the 50th running of the Solo National Championships.
Don’t Forget the Points
Solo Nats is where drivers earn Championships across a multitude of car classes each year. Win at Solo Nats, you’re the National Champion for that class. But the Tire Rack SCCA Solo National Tour, which visits destinations across the country throughout the year, also has a Solo National Tour Points Championship.
Competitors score points within a specific class during each Solo National Tour event, with the opportunity to also earn points this week at Solo Nats in Nebraska. Points at Solo National Tour events were awarded on a performance-based scale using a specific formula. The points formula is: 100 - (900 x ((Entrant’s Time - Class Winning Time) / (Class Winning Time)).
An individual’s three best-scoring performances in the same class during the year count toward the season total. Participation in the same class at Solo Nats is required in order to qualify for the season-long points title. To resolve a points tie, finishing positions this week at Solo Nats decide the winner.
Click here to learn more about the scoring system and check out current class leaders.
Follow Along On Wednesday
Wednesday’s a big one at the 50th running of the Tire Rack SCCA Solo National Championships because that’s when the first set of winners emerge. Follow the excitement online at sololive.scca.com where you’ll find live timing/scoring, as well as audio coverage from each run group throughout the day.
Frequent updates can be found at the @SoloMatters and @sccaofficial social media pages, too; and check back with SCCA.com for additional stories and updates from one of the biggest events SCCA conducts each year.
If you’re at Solo Nationals, be sure to tag your social media posts with #SoloNatsHasStarted and #funwithcars so others can enjoy the event from afar.
Photo: Riley Heaton led the opening day in Street Touring® Sport
Photo by Rupert Berrington
