(By Jim Weidenbaum, a member of the SCCA Foundation Board of Directors)

Tire Rack Street Survival (TRSS) has proven to be a truly life-saving program for young drivers, yet it also serves as an outstanding way to connect SCCA® to the larger community. Anyone volunteering at – let alone organizing – a TRSS event understands how many people from both the SCCA and the broader community come together to make these young driver learning events successful.

As Regions gain experience running TRSS events, they gain momentum. From the early days of hosting a TRSS event, where Regions often struggle to build awareness, sign up students, or get instructors, Regions have seen those early events building to successful future events. After hosting only a few TRSS events, Regions discover they need to pull together a core team to find ways to scale events to host more students, rethinking course layouts to run more efficiently, and create a buzz among all SCCA programs to recruit more instructors. The point is this: Tire Rack Street Survival is about community, it’s about “givers gain,” and it’s about paying it forward.

Many SCCA racers instruct at Track Days or SCCA Drivers’ Schools. While there’s much gratification seeing an adult student gain competency behind the wheel, applying those same instructor skills with a young driver can provide life-saving skills development. When an SCCA Region unites behind a TRSS event, it builds connection and community among its road racers, autocrossers, and often RallyCrossers. TRSS events often pull in BMW CCA and PCA instructors – a great source for future SCCA members. Reaching out to high school administrators, police departments, and local news outlets demonstrates SCCA leadership within the greater community.

It is no coincidence that some of the SCCA Foundation’s most generous donors became aware of the SCCA Foundation through TRSS or, if previously aware of the SCCA Foundation, they find TRSS as a key program they can lock into as being worthy of their donation.

While it’s not necessary to pull out all the stops in advertising and organizing a TRSS event, when a Region gets momentum behind their program, the amount of community collaboration can mushroom.

The SCCA Foundation provides support for Regions engaging in hosting TRSS programs by providing easy to follow, step-by-step instructions on organizing, marketing, and hosting these events, and Street Survival Coordinator Melanie Murray is there to assist along the way.

Contact Melanie Murray by clicking here.

Find Out More

For more information on SCCA Foundation and Tire Rack Street Survival, head to sccafoundation.org/teen

Donations made to the SCCA Foundation can be earmarked for general purposes or to support a specific program, such as Tire Rack Street Survival. Whether a $10 check, a Qualified Charitable Distribution from a retirement account, or a legacy gift as part of estate planning, your financial support to SCCA Foundation makes a difference.

Sample Checklist

What follows is a sample checklist used by Oregon Region when this article author was event chair for TRSS events. These are broken down into four categories: SCCA; TV, Radio, and Print Media; Community Outreach; and Track/Facility.

SCCA

• Autocross/RallyCross community design driving exercises to fit paddock space
• Secure Event registration/registrar from Road Racing
• Make requests on Region website/newsletter for airbag donations needed for student demonstration (identify volunteers to run demo and bring sufficient wire and power for demo)
• Contact soft-drink companies or race teams to arrange for tractor trailer donation used in blind spot demonstration
• Lunch logistics (order/pick-up)
• Course set-up and tear-down
• Depending on size of the event, create method to divide students into A/B groups, with clear identification on cars for paddock purposes
• Order supplies for students, including certificate template; shirts for instructors
• Reserve autocross/RallyCross cones, cones, and more cones … arrange for reliable individual to deliver cones to site early morning on day of event
• Confirm Solo Safety Steward for event
• Classroom instructor/CDI; review material and timing
• Instructors from Road Racing, autocross, RallyCross, from SCCA/BMW Car Club of America/Porsche Club of America
• Tech inspectors, ideally have off-site pre-meeting
• Classroom set-up and tear-down
• Get wrist waiver bands, minor waiver forms, and tech stickers
• Borrow pop-up tent for initial venue sign-in waivers

TV, Radio, and Print Media

• Written notes with phone follow-up to on-air personalities to drive public awareness
• Event announcements and articles sent to local SCCA, BMW CCA, PCA Regions/chapters
• Participate in on-air interviews before and following event

Community Outreach

• Written notes to:
  • Local and state police community affair officers
  • Area Fire Department community affairs officers
  • Area high school principals
  • High school PTO
  • Multiple emails to confirmed students and parents (2 pre-event; 1 post-event)
  • Confirm student has been accepted into the event
  • Reminder of TRSS event in 3-4 weeks, with links to download minor waiver
  • Reminder of TRSS event the coming weekend, with links to download minor waivers
• Emails to 10 to 30 waitlisted students and their parents
  • Phone calls to fill last minute cancellations

Track/Facility

• Contract spring and fall event dates (try to avoid school vacations, road race weekends, Divisional autocross events, proms, and Day Light Saving Time shifts)
• Arrange Region checks for venue deposit and final payment
• Order lunch in advance (check with venue for ability to bring in outside food and beverages)
• Arrange water truck (donation) or confirm availability of water outlet, fire hoses, and temporary drain blocker
• Costco run for water and snacks
• Pick-up and return keys to gate and classroom
• Arrange and pay for security guard at track/facility
• Coordinate with HPDE/drag racers on shared gate access
• Contact weekend on-site staff at track

Photo by Matt Sheets