 A
Letter from the Solo National Championships Chairman:
Greetings fellow Soloists,
It is getting closer to the 2006 Tire Rack SCCA Solo Nationals – which
starting this year will be held at Heartland Park Topeka (HPT) race track. Because
it is a new venue and because it is very different from past Solo Nationals sites,
there seems to be much speculation and many wild claims flying around the internet
and Solo events around the nation. I hope to address some of these speculations
and claims in this letter.
I should probably also mention that Karen Babb and Kevin Youngers, arguably
two of the nation’s best Solo course designers, have been assigned as the
Course Designers for the 2006 Solo Nationals. All of us arrived a day prior to
the 2006 SCCA National Convention to visit the site for mapping and planning purposes.
The following is taken from some excellent correspondence recently received
from Karen Babb, and I wholly agree with her observations and comments:
“I have never seen this good of a blacktop surface anywhere. Very close
to flat, very smooth.
The HPT site is logistically completely different from Forbes, "New-Salina",
or "Old-Salina" in that the courses will in essence be side-by side
with a "buffer zone" between them, making it somewhat conceptually akin
to a typical Pro Solo layout, but rather larger.
Yes, the overall square footage available to each course is not what it was
at Forbes, particularly in comparison to Forbes-North. However, it must be remembered
that only a fraction of the Forbes area was actually usable. Typically layouts
had to tiptoe among the land mines, trying to use the best (or least bad) of the
available surface. Routes were constrained, as were in most cases widths and directions.
The actual usable square footage was probably less than 25% of the total area
at the North end. The need for overlap and separation had to be dealt with as
the surface allowed.
At HPT there are no such issues. No grates, poles, peaks, valleys, holes,
frost heaves, snakes, etc. So the course can be routed wherever it needs to as
the desired elements and separation requirements dictate, not as the surface dictates.
This offers considerable freedom in what elements can be used, how they can be
connected, and how they can be oriented, even within the constraints of needing
the Start and Finish on a particular end of the available area. This type of openness
makes possible the use of a variety of space-saving methods that can if necessary
compensate for a somewhat smaller overall area.
The route length on my 2003 South course was approximately 3650 feet; available
route lengths in preliminary sketches on the left side of the HPT pad have yielded
lengths of 3500-4000 feet. It’s largely a matter of being able to make the
best use of the available space. Many details (e.g. Grid locations and ingress/egress
points) have yet to be finalized, but it looks pretty good at this point.
It should be remembered that a very big complaint year after year from members
at the Town Meeting was about the deteriorating Forbes surface. The move to HPT
was largely driven by this input. It seems counter-productive for members to assume
the worst about getting something they asked for, even before they see the actual
hands-on results of the change.
At this point I'd just ask that people stay tuned and have a little faith
in the event Chairman, the course designers, the Nationals event officials team,
and the National Staff to provide a Solo Nationals that won't beat their car to
death, and will offer improvements they can all appreciate. Yes, it will be different.
No, it won't be perfect. Yes, it will evolve. That's all fine with me.”
– Karen Babb
I would like to add to her comments that holding the Solo Nationals at a purpose
built race facility, instead of a location designed and meant for other uses,
really makes a positive impression. Everything at the site is about racing and
competition. This means that HPT has erected buildings designed solely to function
for the needs of automotive competition. For example, the scales are permanently
mounted and located inside tech/impound building – out of the weather. There
are real toilets (flushies!), a paddock wide public address system, garages for
rent, a registration building/parking lot that is on the way in. There is also
a beautiful track that surrounds the paddock and Solo course area. Who knows –
there may even be cars running the track while we are there! All of this adds
greatly to the overall competitive feeling and gives credibility to what we do.
It only seems fitting that the Solo Nationals be held in a purpose built race
facility instead of a parking lot – a place where the Nation’s best
will compete for a chance to earn their 2006 Solo National Championships.
If I may steal a line from Karen’s correspondence above, I think it is
worth repeating:
“Yes, it will be different. No, it won't be perfect. Yes, it will evolve.
That's all fine with me”
See you at the 2006 Solo Nationals
Roger H. Johnson (Houston, TX)
Solo Nationals Event Chairperson
[ Back to index ]
| 
