SCCA: Why are the Tire Rack SCCA Solo National Championships in a time of growth?

The November 2016 issue of SportsCar magazine, SCCA's official member magazine and sister publication to RACER and RACER.com, recently hit the mailboxes of some 60,000 SCCA members, and included in the magazine is coverage of SCCA's largest championship event, the Tire Rack SCCA Solo National Championships presented by Garmin VIRB.

The Solo Nationals (as some attendees are wont to shorten the name) took place this year from Sept. 6-9, 2016, attracting 1,302 autocross competitors to a massive concrete pad at Lincoln Airpark in Lincoln, Nebraska. And as Philip Royle, the editor of SportsCar magazine, notes in his editorial in the November issue, "That number is absolutely astounding, and one that seems destined to grow in the coming years."

In what some media outlets used to dub "the Olympics of motorsports" (that is, until the Olympics committee put the kibosh on the usage of that kind of a phrase), recent attendance seems to be in a northern trajectory, as Royle covers in SportsCar, noting that attendance has grown by nearly 80 competitors in one year. So what has attributed to the recent success?

"The introduction of true street tires in 'Street' – the category that used to be called 'Stock' – could be the culprit," he points out in the magazine. "While the move from R-compound tires to 200 UTQG rubber and the renaming of the class was controversial at the time, history indicates it to be a positive move. Class participation in Street is up over Stock, and C Street even set record attendance [this year] with 86 competitors, besting the old record set not too long ago in a Street Touring class – yet another indication that non R-compound classes are a boon for Solo."

In his editorial, Royle also theorizes of another potential culprit for the growth of the Solo Nationals. "Also helping participation numbers are the supplemental classes," he posits. "[The SCCA] recently welcomed Classic American Muscle and Street Touring Ponycar [to the Solo Nationals]. Combined, these muscle-car classes brought 66 competitors to Lincoln."

The November 2016 issue of SportsCar magazine contains complete coverage of the Tire Rack SCCA Solo National Championships as well as the Tire Rack SCCA ProSolo Finale, an event that combines autocross and drag racing, which took place just days prior to the Solo Nationals. SCCA members automatically receive a copy of SportsCar. If you're not a member, you can join at www.scca.com and instantly access the digital issue archive.