The 2023 Sports Car Club of America® calendar is coming to a close, yet things are already ramping up for 2024 and the Club’s 80th anniversary. But before Club members entirely shift their attention to holiday celebrations, SCCA® President and CEO Mike Cobb offered a yearend recap Wednesday evening, Dec. 13, of the Club’s activities during a membership address that took place online.
Members who missed the 60-minute videoconference can access the full presentation through their Member Account Portal (MAP) at my.scca.com by clicking My Learning > Member Content > Annual Meetings and Updates – or by clicking here.
High Marks for Championships
To help with the ongoing goal to be the preferred motorsports community in the U.S. – built on fun, shared passion, and access to an exhilarating motorsports experience – SCCA surveys championship participants to gauge their satisfaction with various events. During his presentation, Cobb revealed the satisfaction numbers for 2023 are high.
Of the 275 Tire Rack SCCA ProSolo® Finale entrants, 93 percent said they would likely refer others to join in the fun. Of the nearly 1,300 drivers who took part in the 50th running of the Tire Rack SCCA® Solo® National Championships, 94 percent responded that they’d likely refer others to the event.
The National Championship Runoffs at VIRginia International Raceway hosted hundreds of SCCA members in October. There were more than 445 entries, plus nearly 370 volunteers who came out to make the event a success. Responses on the post-event survey to all involved produced an 81 percent overall experience score.
The 2023 championship season continued through October with the 17th running of the SCCA® RallyCross® National Championship, which took place at Heartland Motorsports Park in Kansas. More than 80 entries were seen there, and nine champions were crowned. The event was well received, with 89 percent of participants saying they would refer others to come play in the dirt at RallyCross Nats. Cobb also noted that the 2024 RallyCross Nationals will be held at Hollytree, AL, located a little east of Huntsville.
October’s Tire Rack SCCA Time Trials Nationals Powered by Hagerty saw the fastest ever lap recorded at NCM Motorsports Park in Kentucky. Eighteen class winners were crowned, and a total of nine new class lap records were set. Time Trials Nationals is always a good time, so it’s no surprise the event earned a 93 percent “likely to refer” rating.
And we can’t forget about the 2023 United States RoadRally Challenge®(USRRC), which was a contest that featured three intense National RoadRallies consisting of the 50th Anniversary Little Appalachian National Course Rally, the Up the Creek National Course Rally, and the Jersey Devil National Touring Rally.
“There were about 10 teams that competed in the entire weekend event, which covered about 500 miles across three days,” Cobb noted. “Our very own Chris Robbins, SCCA Director of Region Development, traveled to Philadelphia to support the ’23 USRRC. He had a blast and is planning to compete in RoadRallies in the future. Chris was so motivated, in fact, that he volunteered to be the staff liaison to RoadRally going forward.”
While not a championship activity, SCCA Track Night in America® Driven by Tire Rack had an amazing season with more than 145 events conducted over the calendar year, involving around 9,000 entrants.
“There are some headwinds with regard to escalating event operations costs, and the loss of more than a couple of tracks,” Cobb said. “But Track Night is rolling into its 10th season … and we’re excited about it. If we aggregate the number of events they’ve had over the previous nine years, it comes to more than 1,100 events. And if we aggregate the number of entries the program has had in the same time period, I believe that number is over 70,000 entries.”
Active Members
As of Dec. 13, 2023, the Club has 50,031 annual members, and there are 20,650 weekend memberships for the year. Late in November, around 500 SCCA members were in Nevada to help with the Formula 1 Las Vegas Grand Prix. And of that cadre, roughly 100 had gone through the online SCCA Academy Corner Marshal/Flagging & Communications training module.
For 2023, SCCA Academy received more than 750 orders for online training across 15 different courses. The coursework has been completed more than 600 times, and 180 of those completed courses pertaining to Corner Marshal/Flagging & Communication training. Another 300 sessions were completed in the Solo & RoadRally Safety Steward training module.
Up next for SCCA Academy is a Drivers’ School module, which is being beta tested right now. Stay tuned for more to come in 2024.
“It’s great to see SCCA Academy being put to good use,” Cobb said. “We’re getting new members by leveraging that tool.”
More Ways to Learn
Cobb also noted that the learning continues Jan. 18-26, 2024, with the SCCA National Convention taking place online. The National Convention is completely free to attend, and it’s where you’ll learn about every program type the SCCA offers, along with tips and tricks for success in your Region and Division. From event organization to registration, insurance, and more, the SCCA National Convention is the place to go if you want to grow your knowledge base and garner the tools needed to help your Region thrive.
Register now for the 2024 National Convention by clicking here.
The SCCA National Convention isn’t the only convention taking place in 2024. There are currently six Divisional Conventions to attend, many of which are in-person gatherings.
- Southeast Division: Feb. 3-4, 2024, in St. Simons Island, GA – Register here
- Northeast Division: Feb. 9-11, 2024, in Scranton, PA – Register here
- Rocky Mountain Division: Feb. 17, 2024, virtual – Register here
- Midwest Division: Feb. 24-25, 2024, in Topeka, KS – Register here
- Great Lakes Division: March 2, 2024 in Ft. Wayne, IN – Register here
- Central Division: March 16, 2024, in Oak Creek, WI – Register here
Much more was addressed during Cobb’s video presentation. SCCA members should watch the full video, which is accessible through their SCCA Member Access Portal.
