Word came on March 18, 2015 in what some could have dismissed as just another announcement from the SCCA®: “With an eye on bringing car enthusiasts to the racetrack to drive, shine, and show, meet with car clubs or just hang out, the SCCA’s Track Night in America® driven by Tire Rack opens up 20 tracks across the country once a month, on weeknights, beginning in April.” Little did anyone know at the time just how much the program would truly simplify racetrack access for the masses.
With the calendar now flipped to 2025, this season brings with it a huge reason to celebrate as Track Night’s 10th anniversary year is set to be stellar.
The first (like, first first…as in “first-ever” kind of stuff) Track Night took place at Atlanta Motorsports Park on Tuesday, April 7, 2015. We’ve aligned the stars for the 10th anniversary celebration in 2025, holding an event at Atlanta Motorsports Park on Wednesday, April 16, to celebrate a decade of fun.
For just $170 ($20 less for SCCA members), you can help celebrate this milestone anniversary with us – and for that entry fee, we’ll put you on track for three sessions beginning around 3 p.m. ET.
Register: Track Night Anniversary at AMP
Never been on track before? Track Night has you covered! The program offers Advanced, Intermediate, and Hawk Novice groups with coaches on hand to ensure everyone’s covered. We even have a Track Night Safety Store where you can purchase a helmet that won’t break the bank.
Building Blocks of Success
Track Night in America’s first event wasn’t actually that different from Track Nights held today – the event’s formula is timeless in that it’s designed for you to have fun.
“The goal of Track Night in America was to give everybody the opportunity to get on track in a low-stress environment that offered coaches that didn’t tell you how to go fast – they were there to ensure everyone had a good time,” explains SCCA Vice President of Experiential Programs Heyward Wagner, one of the masterminds behind the Track Night concept.
“Two main roadblocks for most people looking to get on track with their daily street car is time and money,” Wagner says of the concept, “so we took those problems and worked the equation backwards. If people’s weekends are filled with family commitments, let’s open up the weekday for track access, allowing someone to take off early from work one day and spend the evening having fun on a track. For money – well, we run a tight ship at Track Night, and for as little as $170, people can get three on-track sessions. Then we invited SCCA’s partners to reduce that cost more by offering entry discounts for participants using a specific discount code. Beyond that, SCCA members would get an additional discount. Add it all together, and Track Night became an unbeatable deal.”
That first year, Track Night went to 18 tracks. Over the course of the next 10 years, Track Night has seen more than 78,500 entries at 48 tracks.
“Track Night in America is the program that brought motorsports for recreation to the United States,” says multi-time Solo® National Champion, pro racer, and one of the first Track Night coaches Tom O’Gorman. “Prior to Track Night, there were barriers to entry that our motorsports community built without regard to having fun with cars. Track Night became the perfect outlet quickly, might I add, where you could enjoy a part of your day with your car on a racetrack. And most importantly, we didn't ask much of you. We want to say ‘yes’ until we have to say ‘no.’”
One Team, One Experience
The concept of “One Team” was born from Track Night. The idea was if everyone worked together while on track with appropriate spacing between cars and quality point-bys, everyone would leave with a smile.
“The One Team idea was fundamental to the success of the Track Night program, and it ultimately helped reignite SCCA’s Time Trials program,” says SCCA’s Jon Krolewicz, who was involved with Track Night from early on, then was integral in the relaunch of SCCA’s Time Trials program. “Unlike at Track Night where track time is all about enjoying the drive, SCCA Time Trials events introduce the clock, so all drivers consciously working together to the betterment of the entire group’s experience was key. One Team became a topic in every post-session download with the event coaches – it was a key component we borrowed from Track Night.
“While SCCA Time Trials events like the Tire Rack SCCA Time Attack Challenge and Tire Rack SCCA Shootout are timed competitions with a lot on the line, their core is built from the ease-of-access Track Night program,” Krolewicz notes.
Another key component to Track Night that was adopted for Time Trials was nationwide consistency. “We wanted someone in Georgia to enter a Track Night and have the same experience as someone in Oregon,” Wagner says. “That concept meant consistent staff training, as well as implementing a consistent self-tech and repeatable registration process.”
Join the Fun!
Now 11 years in, Track Night is as popular as ever, with a 2025 event schedule to be envied.
If you can’t make it to the April 16, 2025, 10th anniversary Track Night in America driven by Tire Rack event at Atlanta Motorsports Park, there are plenty of others to choose from.
