The Aug. 1-2, 2026, Tire Rack SCCA® Finger Lakes Solo® National Tour at the Seneca Army Depot in Romulous, NY, was the final stop on the “Road to Lincoln” before the masses descend on the Tire Rack SCCA Solo National Championships in just a few weeks.
The 260 entries were hosted by SCCA’s Finger Lakes Region, led by event chairs Mark Kruegar and Scott Moller. The welcome party was a hit – few leftovers remained when the crowd cleared. The courses were also popular, with Ken Houseal designing a pair of courses with different characteristics. Case in point, Sunday’s brisk and fun course made getting clean runs a welcome challenge.
The threat of inclement weather also played a part in the weekend. The radar on Sunday meant several competitors showed up to grid with rain tires ready to swap, but the runs stayed dry all day long.
Stay Classy, Finger Lakes
Class competition was stiff, as to be expected in a 260-car National field.
F Street saw Chad Englert’s Camaro stay 0.317sec ahead of Sam Strano’s Mustang, boosted by Englert’s quick run on Saturday. Strano’s time on Sunday closed the gap, but a clean run by Englert on his final dash of the weekend secured his victory.
Matthew English went to bed on Saturday sitting third in C Street Touring®, but came ready to drive on Sunday. His final run of the weekend launched him past leader Wotjek Hajduczek and co-driver Ken Roller to leap to the top of the standings and take a 0.131sec win in the class.
The concept behind the Club Spec classes is that the competition comes down to the drivers, keeping class competition close – so give Club Spec Mustang a check in Finger Lakes. When the burnout smoke settled, it was Jim Perrin just 0.060sec in front of Chip Manuel, and only a half second ahead of Mark Krueger in third.
Audra Paradie was queen of the Ladies Street Tire Bump class, with her E Street Prepared Mazda Miata just 0.211sec ahead of Emily Whitaker’s D Street Toyota GR86. It was a short jump to Amy Houseal’s Subaru, just 0.129sec behind Whitaker in third.
For pure close competition, though, the honor goes to B Street. Will Koscielny was flat-out fast on Sunday, putting his Honda Civic Type R just 0.002sec in front of DJ Alessandrini and the Supra he was driving.
Experience is not always a marker of success, proven this week in G Street. Alex Smyntek took home the second-place trophy in the class despite competing with only a learner’s permit in hand. Unfortunately for Alex, the class winner this week was his father, Joseph Smyntek, proving that age and experience really does beat youth and exuberance.
Check out the event results for all the action.
Lincoln or Bust
Things are getting serious, because at this point, if you want to compete in a National Solo event, you’re headed to Nebraska.
Up first is the regular season Tire Rack SCCA Lincoln ProSolo, taking place Aug. 7-9. That is followed by the Tire Rack SCCA ProSolo Championship Finale in Lincoln on Sept. 4-6. From there, it’s time to battle for those coveted jackets at the Tire Rack SCCA Solo National Championships, taking place Sept. 7-11.
Not registered for Solo Nationals yet? Good news! There’s still time! And if you’ve never been to the Solo Nats before, this is the perfect year to sign up – here’s why.
There’s no better way to reconnect with old friends and make new friends and memories than a week of autocross, but don’t wait if you want in.
Photos by Alan Claffie
