By Jeff Jacobs and Jim Weidenbaum, SCCA Foundation Board of Directors

Tire Rack Street Survival is one of the leading programs supported by the SCCA Foundation, running second only to the SCCA® Archives in both SCCA Foundation funding and directed membership donations. Launched more than 20 years ago, the Tire Rack Street Survival program has the goal of helping reduce teen driver injuries and deaths experienced on our roads every year. Having personally led nearly two dozen schools, I fully appreciate the hard work and “cat herding” organizational skills required to operate each event, which is matched by the outstanding volunteer SCCA instructors who willingly give up a prime weekend day to strap into the right seat next to a nervous teen driver. It's widely accepted among instructors that teenagers are more receptive to guidance from us than from their own parents.

This program exceeds the standard teen driver education program which typically concentrates more on theoretical learning, computer-based testing, and mastering parallel parking versus hands-on defensive driving experience. The ideal time for teens to practice managing a skid should be in a secure setting under the supervision of a qualified instructor – not driving alone on a rainy night. Tire Rack Street Survival is an outstanding combination of theory and direct application of that learning, as teens use their own cars in real-world emergency driving skills exercises. The students gain situational awareness skills and become more observant of the traffic situations in which they can find themselves. Teens learn to keep their “eyes up” and look far enough ahead to anticipate unwise actions of other drivers. And most crucially, with the guidance of SCCA volunteer driving instructors, they learn how to handle their car in a safe manner when conditions suddenly become dangerous.

Finding venues, organizers, and instructors is never easy; SCCA Regions are fortunate to have the assistance of Tire Rack Street Survival Coordinator Melanie Murray, funded by the SCCA Foundation, running point for SCCA. Thanks to your donations, in 2024, we are setting new records for participation and the number of teens helped by this program. SCCA Regions have already hosted 10 schools this year with 22 more scheduled between now and October. Your donations help us offset the costs of program materials, volunteer shirts and training materials, and other event supplies.

Enthusiasm for the program continues to grow. New sponsors Continental Tire ($750 per school) and Amica Insurance ($100 per school) have stepped up to join FCP Euro ($300 per school), and of course title sponsor TireRack.com, to support this important program. Your donations to the SCCA Foundation make programs like these possible.

Learn more about the Tire Rack Street Survival teen driving school – as well as how you can register your teen to participate in a school – at the Tire Rack Street Survival website. Meanwhile, donations to the SCCA Foundation can be earmarked for the Tire Rack Street Survival teen driving schools via this link.

Photo by Matt Sheets