Part of what make the sport of Solo so interesting is the people that make up the sport. Two of the people that comprise our community are George and Dee Schweikle. Not only are they genuinely nice people but they are among a select few that comprise the group known as the One Hundred Percenters, that is, they have been to every Solo National Championship event that has ever been held. Take a walk down memory lane…
RR: How long have you been a member of the SCCA?
GS: I joined in 1959, left for two years while in the Army, but rejoined and just received a 45 year membership pin from SCCA. Dee joined the year before we married; 1967, and has been a continuous member since then.
RR: How did you get involved with Solo? How long were you competing before the 1st Solo Nationals?
GS: I bought a 1956 Austin Healey “100″ after college, and transferred work from Michigan to Lexington, KY in 1959, where I entered my first Gymkhana, complete with a navigator and spearing balloons (Honest!). Dee started in 1967 driving her Ford Fairlane convertible (we actually first met at that event; in an IBM plant parking lot).
Our first major out of region event was the CENDIV Divisional Championship at the Defiance Ohio airport in 1971, although Central KY Region had a Divisional Championship event at a local drag strip in 1968.
RR: What do you know about the origins of Solo?
GS: In the days of Gymkhanas, the “Slalom” was one of several events conducted during a day’s activity (like spearing balloons, backing up, blindfolded driving, and other foolishness). I believe the Gymkhana activities generally started after WW2 but the non-slalom events were eventually discarded, and what we now know as Solo remained. The old Sports Car Graphic magazine was the first to publish a proposed set of national rules. The Schlitz Brewing Co. then sponsored 33 different events around the country using these rules, and Vern Jacques of New England Region refined these into the first SCCA rules. The earliest set of SCCA Solo II rules I have is dated 1973 and is 33 single sided typed pages.
RR: Have you always been a member of the Central Kentucky region?
GS: Yes, both of us.
RR: Have you always driven an Alfa?
GS: No. My first two Solo cars were an Austin Healey 100 and 100M. I bought an Alfa Giulietta Veloce Spider in 1962, then two 1966 Alfa Giulia Veloce Spiders. I had the second Giulia when we married, then we drove a Porsche 912 and two Fiat 124’s during several different times when the resident Alfas were under the weather. Our 35 year Nationals participation has been 100% Alfa; a 1971 and 1976 Spider.
RR: Do you or Dee have a National Championship?
GS: Yes. We were the first couple to win the same year; 1978. Dee also won at the first National in 1973 and also in 1981.
RR: How did you get involved with the Solo acquisition committee?
GS: Tasha Goodale mentioned this concept at the 2003 Nationals. I volunteered and was appointed the next year. I served as a member until 2006, and have been chairman since then.
RR: What is involved as a member of the committee?
GS: The title now is Solo Site Advisory Committee, so our title aligns with other advisory committees that support the Solo Events Board. After the committee was first formed (With Raleigh Boreen as chairman), we were allowed to “invent” our role. While there was, and is still, the thought that we would come to a region and find and approve a solo site, this was never intended due to cost and time constraints. We believed that many regions had excellent procedures for finding sites, and our goal was to identify and promote these successful “tools and proceduresâ€? so other regions didn’t have to reinvent the wheel of site acquisition. And, our members contribute in different ways; some of us have done presentations at National and Divisional conventions, and others offer their views and suggestions during our conference calls.
RR: In your view, what are the biggest obstacles the SCCA faces on a regional level in terms of site acquisition?
GS: One, finding local members with the initiative to approach site owners. Two, finding a way to address sound control issues.
RR: What are the strengths of the Solo acquisition committee? Weaknesses?
GS: Strengths: We provide someplace to turn to for those interested in site acquisition, and have gathered some good materials and techniques. Currently, I have corresponded with and sent information to 45 different regions
Weaknesses: We can’t convince individuals and/or regions to share their successes with us – for communication to others. There is no reason for a region or person to have to invent something related to solo sites if that has been identified or used somewhere else.
RR: What are the keys to growing participation at the Solo level?
GS: Well… it’s a difficult balance. Before the weekend membership, if entry was made easy for non-members, they tended to remain non members. Regions need new members for self-perpetuation, and these usually come from a solo program. Regions need to embrace new members, and assure they are allowed to participate in the administration of the region and its programs. Sometimes it’s better for the old experts to step down so the new members can be brought into “active duty”.
RR: As a 100% participant at Nationals. What are some of the constants from year to year? What changes have you seen over the years…good or bad?
GS: The best thing I have seen is establishment of a rational protest procedure, and the elimination of really frivolous protests.
The bad (if you want to call it that) is the advance of “professionalism”, where some participate at a much higher level than the majority of competitors. This is probably a good thing for the sport in an overall perspective.
RR: What other official positions have you held with the SCCA on any level?
GS: George: Regional Executive, Activities chairman, Board member, Solo chairman, Solo Safety Steward instructor, CENDIV Solo Chairman, CENDIV Solo Series Chairman, Solo Site Advisory Committee member, and also Chairman. Dee: Regional Executive, Board member, Activities chairman, Secretary, Treasurer, Editor.
RR: What classes have you competed in?
GS: In current rules: C-Stock, D-Stock, A, C, D-Street prepared. Also the old “Ladies” handicap class and Ladies class “E”
RR: Why do you and Dee love Solo so much?
GS: Obviously we enjoy driving, but we also enjoy the social aspect. This can be lots of    fun if you are camping at an event in a motor home. If an event only consisted of arriving, driving and then leaving, we would probably find something else to occupy our time and money.
RR: What are you and Dee’s favorite moments in Solo?
GS: It has to be Wichita in 1978 where we both won National Championships.
RR: How many National events /Regional events do you plan on attending in 2009?
GS: Not as many as in previous years. We’re hauling our car to the Alfa Romeo Owners Club National Convention in Portland, Oregon and this will also be a 45 day vacation. We will return just in time to run the GLD Divisional at Grissom (assuming I don’t blow up the car running around Portland raceway) and will enter most of our local regional events as well as the 2009 Nationals.
RR: How do you feel about going to Lincoln for Nationals in 2009?
GS: I used to visit Lincoln for business, and we both eagerly anticipate returning for the Solo Nationals.
RR: What are some of the rules that you would change and why?
GS: I would like to see a process where older cars could filter downward in the class structure yet still remain relatively competitive. I believe there may be an untapped    resource of potential entrants with older cars that would actively participate in regional and higher level events. Having said that I reluctantly acknowledge such a scheme would be very hard to implement.
RR: How long do you and Dee plan on competing at Nationals?
GS: A good question; I am emotionally attached to Alfa Romeos, and don’t anticipate changing our brand of Solo car. Alfa Romeos (along with other old cars) are orphan cars in Solo, and are sliding down the competitive slope along with our driving capacities. We will continue for the next few years but, at our age, the end is somewhere in sight.
Photos courtesy of www.gotcone.com and George & Dee Schweikel
For copies of photos email david @ evorticity.com
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