The Hoosier Racing Tire SCCA® Super Tour is about to head to a track with plenty of history: VIRginia International Raceway. The 3.27-mile track in Alton, VA, crowned SCCA National Champions at the SCCA Runoffs® in 2019, ’22, and ’23, and is a popular layout for racers hoping to test their mettle in a variety of conditions.
Truth be known, VIR is popular beyond the SCCA. Through the years, the facility has hosted auto races of all types, rock festivals, and is one of the first tracks everyone drives on iRacing. Livestock loves it, too – for most of the 1980s and ’90s, it was home to literal cows.
But on April 5-7, 2024, none of that matters – only what is on the track in each of the eight race groups at the fifth stop on this year’s Hoosier Super Tour is what counts. And there’s no excuse for missing it, because even if you aren’t on site, there’s live video coverage available online for taking in all of qualifying and the races.
Spring Breakers
It’s spring break time, and there’s only one place a high school senior wants to be – VIR.
Ok, maybe that’s not true for everyone, but it is true for reigning Jim Fitzgerald Rookie of the Year Morgan Burkhard. The third-generation racer, pulling double duty this season in his Spec Racer Ford Gen3 at SCCA events and his TCR car in IMSA’s Michelin Pilot Challenge, will be back at VIR for the Super Tour weekend.
Burkhard has a pair of runner-up finishes in this season’s Super Tour – one at Sebring and one at Road Atlanta. The first of those came behind Brian Schofield, the second behind Bobby Sak – and Schofield, at least, is on the VIR entry list.
The 18-year-old earned his lone Super Tour win at VIR a year ago, along with the Tire Rack pole at the Runoffs, so it’s safe to say he’s got a shot at the win. We’re not betting against him.
Madness, Pride, and Frustration
The last Spec Miata race that was run at VIR was a mixture of disbelief and pure awesomeness as Nick Bruni and Preston Pardus crossed the stripe at the Runoffs in a dead heat to become the Club’s first co-National Champions. But only one of them is coming back for more at this year’s Super Tour.
Bruni is on the entry list, and while Pardus still reserves the right to show up, he’s been plenty busy. Less than two weeks ago at Circuit of the Americas, Pardus put his NASCAR Xfinity Series Chevrolet P10 in the practice. Unfortunately, he had an axle snap on the way out for qualifying that ended his weekend before it really got started.
It's a Lambo, Bro!
Michael McAleenan has quite the streak going in Hoosier Super Tour action – he’s won the five straight Super Tour GT-1 races that he’s entered in his Lamborghini Huracan GT3, with one at Sebring, followed by sweeps at NOLA and Road Atlanta.
It’s impressive for two reasons, the first being that the FIA GT-3 car, while wickedly quick in both speed and handling, is a likely underdog to SCCA’s GT-1 machinery. But the second reason might be the best of all: McAleenan is from Tacoma, WA – he traditionally races on the West Coast, but for the past two seasons has branched out from home with Scotty B. White and others to experience more racing.
Ironically, the one Super Tour that he’s missed this year has been the West Coast event at Buttonwillow Raceway Park.
Are these stories about what’s set to unfold on April 5-7, 2024, at the VIR Hoosier Super Tour intriguing? If you’re a driver or want to volunteer, there’s still time to join in.
Watch From Home
The entry list is packed with talent, meaning the Hoosier Super Tour weekend at VIR is one you won’t want to miss, but if you can’t make it to the track for the Hoosier Super Tour weekend at VIR, there are options. Like, for instance, you can catch all of the action at home, or anywhere you can find an internet connection.
Subscribe to SCCA’s YouTube channel and ring the bell icon for notifications, and when the free live stream for qualifying and the race are up, a notification will pop up.
You can also catch the action on SCCA.com and SCCA’s Road Racing Facebook page.
Don’t know when to tune in? For that, there’s the event schedule.
Photo by Jay Bonvouloir
