The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame has a yearly ceremony to honor the best in its biz. Wednesday evening, Sept. 3, 2025, in Lincoln, NE, SCCA’s Solo program did the same, further keeping with the rock ‘n’ roll theme of this year’s 52nd Tire Rack SCCA® Solo® National Championships.
The Tire Rack Event Center (TREC) VIP Backstage Tent at Lincoln Airpark hummed with excitement during the annual Tire Rack Solo Awards Celebration. The party opened with free beverages and a dinner featuring an amazing variety of eats. There were grilled burgers, pork loin, pizza, lasagna, baked beans, mac ‘n’ cheese, rice, potato salad, and a green salad.
After dinner it was time to laud the newly minted Solo Nats winners from the Tuesday/Wednesday run groups. The gathering then learned who was selected to receive some of the Solo program’s highest honors.
And the Winners are…
The Heart of Solo Award was given out last night for only the second time. It recognizes those from the Solo community who have had a profound impact on their class, Region, and Solo community. They will have created a welcoming environment for all and lived SCCA’s core values of excellence, service, passion, team, experience, and stewardship. The recipient for 2025 was Brad Smith of SCCA’s Kansas City Region.
Smith is known for being friendly, supportive, super helpful, and just plain fun to be around. As a car owner, he is obsessed with making the car better for himself and teammates. Active within the Solo community at every level, Smith has served on advisory committees and Solo Events Board (SEB). He’s happy to lend a hand to anyone in need, and sometimes even gets upset if he can’t help a fellow competitor. Added all together, the facets noted above make him the absolute correct person to receive the Heart of Solo Award.
Also named last night was the 2025 Driver of Eminence. That honor goes to Solo competitors who consistently demonstrated excellence behind the wheel, and an exemplary degree of sportsmanship, dedication, and unselfishness. The winner is selected by the SEB from nominations submitted by the membership at large. The award last night went to Billy Davis of SCCA’s New England Region.
Prior to this year’s event, Davis had attended Solo Nats 15 times and left without a trophy only once, which was his rookie year. He has eight National Championships, six overall wins in ProSolo, and earned a Solo Triad Award. He’s viewed as a valued friend, coach, and is active on an advisory committee. All this and more is why he was named the Driver of Eminence.
“Thank you,” was about all Davis could muster for his acceptance speech. “It’s just amazing to be recognized for this and to get this chance.”
That brings us to the Solo Cup Award. Presented annually since 1978, this honor goes to SCCA members who have made an outstanding contribution to the Solo events program. Winners are selected by the SEB from nominations submitted by the membership at large. The 2025 recipient is Jeff Cox of SCCA’s Eastern Tennessee Region.
As an event organizer, it is well established that he is the first man on site and the last man out. He has chaired several Solo Nats over the years, and runs one of the best Solo programs out of the Southeast. He shows up early, stays late, and works on every detail of an event. His effort often astounds others, which is why he was awarded the Solo Cup Award.
Earlier in the week, during Monday night’s Welcome Party, two additional special awards were presented. One was the Johnson Spirit of the Sport Award recognizing members of the Solo community who bring the spirit of fun to their fellow participants, as symbolized by the message engraved on the perpetual award that states, "Johnson Spirit of the Sport Award, presented annually by the Royal Order of the Sheep to a member of the flock that upholds the spirited virtues of Fun, Camaraderie and Tomfoolery.”
This award, selected annually by the previous three winners, is named in honor of the inaugural recipient: Exalted Grand Shepherd, Roger E. Johnson. The winner in 2025 was the F Bomb Troop consisting of SCCA North Carolina Region members Jennifer Bedell, David Spratte, Chris Peterson. A fixture in SCCA’s Solo community for 15 years, the trio often conducts game nights at Solo events, and is known for spraying others with water or champagne during celebratory moments. They also work hard to find seats for others wanting to participate at Solo events.
Bedell spoke on behalf of F Bomb Troop and said, “We’re just out here trying to have the best time we can, and trying to make sure everyone else has an enjoyable time. Racing is supposed to be fun, and autocross is silly. There’s no reason we should be taking this seriously. You’re standing in a parking lot. If you’re not having a great time cracking jokes and laughing, then you’re doing it wrong.”
The other annual honor announced Monday was the Dick Berger Perseverance Award recognizing someone who is undaunted by limited success over many National Championship events, but keeps coming back to enjoy the camaraderie, community, and hopes for a trophy in competition. Mark Valera, of SCCA’s Philadelphia Region, won the award this year during his 18th trip to Solo Nats. An invaluable Solo Nats Chief Steward, Valera had never finished better than seventh. Unfortunately, his trophy-less streak on course continued this year, but at least he walks away with some hardware in the form of the Dick Berger Perseverance Award.
Second Verse…
While the opening set of 2025 Solo Nats winners has been feted, a second set of competitors are all tuned up and already dancing across the two main stages (aka: the East Course and West Course) at Lincoln Airpark. Those Soloists are looking to Break On Through to the Other Side as far as locking down a trophy from the next set to be handed out late Friday afternoon.
You don’t want to miss a moment of this show, so tune in online to sololive.scca.com. That’s where you can jam out with live timing/scoring, as well as audio coverage each day. Don’t forget to monitor the Tire Rack SCCA National Solo and SCCA Official Facebook pages, too, for updates and photos over the next two days of #funwithcars.
For more ‘notes’ from Solo Nats, check out the Solo Nationals Morning Show. It’s a daily video broadcast at the SCCA Official Facebook page that starts about an hour before cars head out on course. That’s where you’ll find knowledgeable hosts interviewing special guests that bring everyone up to speed on the experience.
Need even more Solo tunes? Brian Bielanski has that covered with special Inside the SCCA segments posting to The Racing Network YouTube page. He’s talking with participants and offers slice-of-life stories from the paddock.
Photo: Clockwise from left - Solo Cup winner Jeff Cox; Spirit of the Sport winners Jennifer Bedell, Chris Peterson, David Spratte (not pictured); Heart of Solo winner Brad Smith; Driver of Eminence Billy Davis; and Dick Berger Perseverance Award winner Mark Valera.
Photos by Philip Royle
