TOPEKA, Kan. (Dec. 5, 2008) Sports Car Club of America has released dates for the 2009 Tire Rack® SCCA Solo National Tour and Tire Rack SCCA ProSolo National Series. Details have also been revealed regarding the addition of an Eastern and Western States Championship, which will serve as one third of a new Triple Crown award.Seven traditional venues return for the 2009 Tire Rack Tour Schedule, including the South Georgia Motorsports Park, Qualcomm Stadium, Gulf Greyhound Park, McGee Park, Seneca Army Depot, Grissom Aeroplex and Hampton Mills. For the new Eastern and Western States Championship two brand new venues will be used: The Arkansas Aeroplex (formerly Eaker Air Force Base) and Eagle County Airport.Located in Blytheville, Ark., the Arkansas Aeroplex will host the Eastern States Championship event, May 30 31. The Aeroplex offers enough smooth concrete for two courses to be run at the same time and plenty of paddock space. Competitors will also have the option of overnight parking and camping. The Blytheville community is already looking forward to SCCAs arrival. Any time an organization of this size chooses your community, it makes you proud, Blytheville Mayor Barrett Harrison said. But when an organization with the history of the SCCA comes to town, you get very excited. The SCCA has long been made up of men and woman of integrity, who share not only an interest in motorsports, but interest in a hobby they can participate in as a family. The citizens of Blytheville look forward to the families of the SCCA visiting our community and being given the opportunity to watch them compete.For the Western States Championship, having the Eagle County Airport, in Vail Valley, Colo., available August 1 2 is a once in a lifetime opportunity. The airport is will be closed for renovations, allowing SCCA access to perfectly smooth concrete runways and full use of the airport facilities, which provide a fantastic view of the course (not to mention shade and restrooms). The venue may not have even been realized as a potential Tire Rack Tour site without several Tire Rack Street Survival Teen Driving schools being hosted at the airport.The course will be laid out on a 360,000 sq. ft. area of pristine concrete ramp at the Eagle County Regional Airport, Continental Divide Region Regional Executive Arnie Coleman said. The paddock will include plenty of toterhome and trailer parking."The inaugural 2009 Western States Championship will be unique among SCCA National Solo events in that it will held at a true destination resort location. Vail Valley, while being most famous as a winter resort area, has a myriad of summer activities available for vacationers. Rather than arrive and drive you will want to stay and play! Plan to spend some time in 'the Valley partaking of all it has to offer. Eagle County officials, community leaders and businesses are eagerly anticipating hosting SCCA at the first-ever event of its type in the area."SCCA Vice President of Rally, Solo and Special Programs Howard Duncan was enthusiastic about the locations secured for the debut of the Eastern and Western Championships, events which are designed to amplify the buildup to the 2009 Tire Rack SCCA Solo National Championships.The Arkansas Aeroplex is a premier Solo site, Duncan said. It makes the Eastern States Championship the place to be, whether you are headed to Lincoln in September or just want to compete against the best at the best site in the East.The Western States Championship at Vail Valley will be like Soloing in a post card, with a magnificent view of the mountains and running on some of the smoothest concrete in the country - a perfect primer for Lincoln a month later!Also new for 2009 is the introduction of the Triple Crown award, which ties two levels of the Tire Rack National Solo program together with the Tire Rack Divisional Program. To win the Triple Crown, a driver must win the Eastern or Western States Championship, a Tire Rack Divisional Championship and Tire Rack National Championship, all in a single class (minimum class size applies). Anyone who can pull off such a magnanimous feat will be awarded with a trophy, free entry to the following years Tire Rack Nationals, entry into a drawing for a Lifetime SCCA Membership and their name engraved on a perpetual Triple Crown trophy. Additional awards and prizes are still in development.For the second year of the Tire Rack Divisional Championships, all of 2008s participants are returning (Northeast, Southeast, Southwest, NorPac and SoPac). The Great Lakes, Central and Midwest Divisions will be added to the roster for 2009, with the possibility of the Rocky Mountain Division signing on as well.A strong Tire Rack Tour schedule, growing Tire Rack Divisional Championship program and the addition of the Eastern/Western States Championship and Triple Crown are set to make the 2009 SCCA Championship Road to Lincoln one for the record books.Few changes have been made for the 2009 Tire Rack ProSolo National Series schedule of events. Established venues such as El Toro Airfield, FedEx Field, Hampton Mills, and the Toledo Express Airport are prepared to welcome Soloists for another season. New additions to the schedule include a visit to Alameda Point, in Alameda, Calif., and a stop at the Arkansas Aeroplex the weekend following the Tire Rack Tour Eastern States Championship. The Tire Rack ProSolo Series will also make a stop at the Lincoln Airpark, May 2 3, as a teaser to the ProSolo Finale, which takes place Sept. 5 6 in Lincoln.For more information on the 2009 Tire Rack Solo National Tour and Tire Rack ProSolo Series, click the orange Solo tab at the top of the page.2009 Tire Rack SCCA Solo National Tour ScheduleMarch 14 - 15 South Georgia Motorsports ParkCecil, Ga.March 21 - 22* Qualcomm StadiumSan Diego, Calif.April 4 - 5 Gulf Greyhound ParkHouston, TexasMay 16 - 17 McGee ParkFarmington, N.M.May 30 - 31 Arkansas Aeroplex (Eastern States ChampionshipBlytheville, Ark.June 13 - 14 Seneca Army DepotRomulus, N.Y.July 4 - 5 Grissom AeroplexPeru, Ind.July 11 - 12 Hampton MillsPackwood, Wash.Aug. 1 - 2 Eagle Airport (Western States Championship)Vail Valley, Colo.2009 Tire Rack SCCA ProSolo National Series ScheduleMarch 28 - 29 * El Toro AirfieldEl Toro, Calif.April 18 - 19* Alameda PointAlameda, Calif.May 2 - 3 Lincoln AirparkLincoln, Neb.June 6 - 7 Arkansas AerolexBlytheville, Ark.June 20 - 21 FedEx FieldWashington, D.C.July 18 - 19 Hampton MillsPackwood, Wash.July 25 - 26 Toledo Express AirportToledo, OhioSept. 5 - 6 Lincoln AirparkLincoln, Neb.*- TentativeAll dates and venues are subject to change
