Open Registration is about to begin for the Sept. 7-11, 2026, Tire Rack SCCA Solo National Championships, which means three things. One, you’re about to be reminded of what “Open Registration” means. Two, you’re about to be reminded of all the other dates that are important when it comes to attending the winner-take-all National Championship event in Lincoln, NE. And three, you’re about to be reminded that the theme for this year’s “Super Solo Nationals” is video games, which we’ll do through a series of gaming references that are so thought out you’d think they were built by a redstone engineer.
That Minecraft reference too recent for ya? Then maybe the gaming references will be coming at you faster than Sonic’s Power Sneakers, or as randomly as Roger Wilco being an unwitting space janitor. Or perhaps the references will be as brutal as Sub-Zero’s Spine Rip or as impossible as getting…anywhere…in Dragon’s Lair.
In short, the theme of the 2026 Solo National Championships is video games, both old and new, and if you dress the part at the Solo Nats, you’ll certainly power up the fun.
Open Registration Goes Online June 8
Tier 1 registration began on June 1, which means ever since then, SCCA has been stacking quarters in preparation for when Open Registration gets to hit the start button on June 8.
(Think you qualify for Tier 1? Then check out this article before Open Registration begins.)
For most of those competing at the Tire Rack SCCA Solo National Championships, Open Registration is where they fall – that’s because Open Registration is for everyone, including those who had qualified for Tier 1, then waited too long to register, whiffing the jump.
Open Registration begins at 3 p.m. Central Time on Monday, June 8, which means it’s also a bit of a rush, and not the fun kind like in Rush 2049.
Actually, SCCA has worked hard to take the speedrun element out of event registration by boosting the event’s entry cap. Like last year, the entry cap will be 700 drivers max for Tuesday/Wednesday and another 700 max for Thursday/Friday. In 2025, that meant everyone who wanted to enter, did enter, as fewer than 1,400 people turned a wheel at the event. Operational excellence shined as bright as Link’s master sword last year, and we’re planning to keep that game going.
Another reason to register as early as possible is because on July 29, the Solo Nats entry fee will jump from $224 to $325. That’s no Mario Super Jump, but it’s still enough that you’ll want to keep your finger on the controller and be ready to register when the time comes.
Test-n-Tune Game is Already On
Registration for the Test-n-Tune opened on June 1. The price to play on the Solo Nats Test-n-Tune course is $50, with a portion of the proceeds going to support Tire Rack Street Survival Schools via SCCA Foundation. That $50 gets you a one hour time slot and four runs.
Drivers can purchase more than one one-hour time slot, but a single vehicle may not be entered more than once within the same hour, which means if a car’s “player 1” and “player 2” are both looking for their own Test-n-Tune runs, they’ll have to register for two time slots.
Deadlines to Watch
There are secrets to every video game, but you needn’t subscribe to Nintendo Power magazine and rely on tips from Howard Phillips for the Solo Nats, because we’ve got you covered with this deadline cheat sheet:
Furthermore, this year, golf cart rentals will be handled via a registration link appearing soon at scca.com/solonats. More information will appear on SCCA's website and SCCA's National Solo Facebook page when it comes available.
More Info
There’s more to this game, and for that, there’s the Sept. 7-11, 2026, Tire Rack SCCA Solo National Championships homepage. There, you’ll find all of this information and more.
Photos by Will Huxtable and Philip Royle
