Dawn of Day Two -- It’s the second day of competition at the Tire Rack SCCA® Solo® Nationals Championship in Lincoln, Nebraska. Before tonight’s Tire Rack® Awards Ceremony at the Lancaster Events Center, we’ll have identified more than 30 drivers who make up the first batch of 2019 Solo Nationals winners. Follow all the action throughout the day with live timing and audio at http://sololive.scca.com/, or keep track of the competition at the SoloMatters Facebook page. And don’t forget to tune in each morning an hour before competition begins to the Solo Nationals Morning Show at https://www.facebook.com/sccaofficial/. If you miss the live morning broadcast, the show is archived at Facebook for you to go back and watch later. Oh, you’ll also find some event updates available periodically each day at SCCA.com.
Cart Art -- And now we’ll take a moment to talk about carts. No, not racing karts -- although there are lots of those here at Solo Nats and they’re really, really cool. But in this case, we mean golf carts. With Solo Nats eating up nearly 40 acres of space at Lincoln Airpark, golf carts are very helpful in getting around. And each year, many participants take the time to “spruce up” their carts with flags, banners and whatever else they can find.
Perennial cart art whiz Kevin Dietz, a member of SCCA’s Northwest Region and winner of this year’s Tire Rack ProSolo Finale, has outdone himself again in 2019 with a design fitting of the event’s “Game of Cones: After the Flood” theme. His cart is decked out to appear as if it’s a castle with tall, stone ramparts enclosing the entire vehicle. Behind the seats sits a throne made of nine plastic swords, and riding atop the mobile fortress is a smoke-billowing dragon! It’s a hoot to see Dietz rolling through the paddock and grid, and appears quite formidable. But it’s another example of what make the Solo community and Solo Nats so much fun.
SCCA In the Media: Solo Nationals -- On Tuesday, local Lincoln TV station KOLN 10/11 NOW visited Lincoln Airpark to learn more about the Tire Rack SCCA Solo Nationals. Reporter Kamri Sylve took in the spectacle and talked with a few drivers to learn what makes the event so special. In an article that can be read in full here, Sylve notes that “racers travel from as far as Hawaii and Alaska and even some parts of Canada to compete. In this competition, you'll see some people driving everyday cars like Hondas, Mazdas and Cadillacs.” The article also quotes 16-year-old kart competitor Robbie Campbell who said, "My dad raced since I was little, so I was always into it. He didn't make me get into it, but I liked racing my whole life. So, it's fun. It's like you're controlling a roller coaster."
Check out the full video news clip at https://www.1011now.com/content/news/Lincoln-Airpark-hosts-National-Autocross-Competition--559301861.html.
Photo: Kevin Dietz’s rolling golf cart fortress at the 2019 Tire Rack Solo Nationals Championship.
