Sports Car - January 2018

54 JANUARY 2018 scca.com INSIDE SCCA

olo has two initial categories – one
is “Ladies,” which is self-
explanatory, and then there’s “Open.”
This offers women a pair of options of
where to compete. Many choose the
Ladies classes, but a few opt to
compete with the guys in Open.

Wondering about the motivation for either choice, I checked in with a few of the women who entered Open classes for Solo events during the

2017 season or at the 2017 Tire Rack Solo National Championships. As it turns out, there are many reasons why women choose to run in Open classes, with few women having the same motivation.

Rachel Baker has a couple of National Championship jackets earned in Ladies classes. “There’s just more competition in the Open classes,” she says, pointing out that

CLASS DECISIONS
Some of Solo’s top women autocrossers candidly
discuss their opinions of Ladies vs. Open

WORDS Paul Brown | IMAGES Rupert Berrington

there are simply more entries in Open than in Ladies. “My goal is always to be better, and the way to get there is to run where the best competition is.” She’s competing well in her Cayman, with a close second place at the Toledo ProSolo and a win in a 12-driver B Street class at Oscoda in 2017.

Lisa Valera ran in Ladies classes for years but found that the social aspects of running in the Ladies classes were actually a detriment to her driving. “While no less competitive than Ladies, Open has focused me,” she says about her driving skills.

Running in SSR, as she does, she has found one of the toughest challenges SCCA Solo has to offer.

Shelly Monfort has her own collection of championship jackets and finished a very competitive

DECIDING FACTORS

( TOP) Shelly Monfort ran an Open class at the 2017 Tire Rack Solo National Championships, finishing a close fourth; her reasons for entering Open classes are many. (ABOVE) Rachel Baker has seen success running in Open during the National Solo season, using the class competition to push her skills. (ABOVE, LEF T) Lisa Valera finds Open classes keep her focused on the competition at hand.