It’s the first of four days of competition at the 51st Tire Rack SCCA® Solo® National Championships. Horses are already racing around the two trails, with riders looking to lasso coveted Championship jackets Sept. 3-6, 2024, at Lincoln Airpark in Nebraska’s capital city.
Did we say horses? We meant cars. And did we say trails? We meant autocross courses. Gotta love this year’s Wild Wild West event theme!
Dang near 1,300 of the roughest, toughest, car-control hombres from around North America will traverse the two different Solo Nats paths over four days. The first set of National Champions will be decided from 52 eligible car classes competing Tuesday and Wednesday.
There are plenty of ways to keep track of everything going on at Solo Nats. Online at sololive.scca.com is where you’ll find live timing/scoring, as well as audio coverage during each day. Also monitor the Tire Rack SCCA National Solo and SCCA Official Facebook pages on social media for updates and photos. And don’t forget to check back to SCCA.com for additional stories and updates from one of the biggest events SCCA conducts each year.
Monday Night’s Chuckwagon Challenge
There was one heck of a shindig Monday night all up and down Solo Town Main Street at Lincoln Airpark. Once the dinner triangle rang, lots of folks adorned in western attire rustled up vittles like a hungry herd grazing through an overgrown pasture.
That chow-down, called the Chuckwagon Challenge, was made possible thanks to the partners at Visit Lincoln and the Lincoln Chamber of Commerce. The end result was free food whipped up by crafty cooks – and there were lots more than just beans.
For instance, the San Francisco Region/Canada contingent offered up charcuterie consisting of salami, olives, apricots, cheeses, and Ghirardelli chocolate. To help wash that down was a selection of California wines from Sonoma and Napa.
Of course, there was no shortage of barbequed meats on hand. The Rust Belt Super Region delivered hickory-smoked pork loin and beef birria, plus roasted black beans and corn for good measure. The Road Trip Racing Team kept stride with pork butt, coleslaw, pinto beans, and homemade pickles – all of which could be enjoyed in the on-site wading pool.
Eastern Tennessee added to the sweet-smelling paddock with smoked brisket and ribs, as well as green beans and delicious potatoes. Then as a perfect union of all things BBQ, Southeast Division prepped lots of Brunswick stew, then topped things off with banana pudding.
For a change of pace, JXB Performance/“Chiwaukee” Region churned out brats and cheese curds; and the Saginaw Valley Region/2-Stroke Paddock had Coney Island hotdogs on hand.
A wide selection of region-specific beverages was available as well. There were plenty of great craft beers from around the country, plus non-alcoholic goodies such as Faygo and Vernors out of Michigan.
Before the food stampede began, flat footers rambled into TREC Tavern for an annual Solo Town Hall. That closed with a giant “yeehaw!” for those in the crowd making their first appearance at Solo Nats. Also recognized were members of the Solo Nats Golden Circle, which is made up of those who have attended all 51 Solo Nats. Last but not least, Solo Nats Silver Circle members were also acknowledged for taking part in at least 25 Solo Nats.
Another can’t miss hootenanny goes down at 5:45 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 4, within the TREC Tavern during the annual Tire Rack Solo Awards Celebration. More free grub will be doled out, as well as copious amounts of fun.
Weather Forecast and Watching
Like camps, forts, and dusty settlements across the old West, Solo Town is equally subject to Mother Nature’s whims. It can be doggone windy at times, have some high-water moments, then the whole cotton-pickin’ place gets hotter than the barrel of a quickdraw’s Smith & Wesson pistol. (Yup, we’re lovin’ this Wild West theme.)
This year, however, the weather situation seems to sit downright OK for all four days. Temperatures will top out in the upper 80-degree range for the most part, which even the orneriest of mules won’t balk at. The evenings? Well, they’ll bottom out in the upper 50s, a situation to make any hairy prairie dog chirp out “yahoo!”
Chances of rain are pretty slim except for Thursday, but change can blow through Solo Town quicker than a gold-laden stagecoach outrunning outlaws. Follow all the Solo Nats trail riders in real time at sololive.scca.com. There’s audio coverage there, too, during each day. Also monitor the Tire Rack SCCA National Solo and SCCA Official Facebook pages on social media for updates and photos.
If you’re hankerin’ for even more coverage, check out the Solo Nationals Morning Show, a daily video broadcast archived at the SCCA Official Facebook page.
Photo: The Solo Town Main Street scene Monday night during the Chuckwagon Challenge.
Photo by Philip Royle
