Weather may have delayed the start of the 2026 Sandhills Open Road Challenge (SORC) road race on Saturday morning, Aug. 8, but once the thunderstorm had rolled through, the drivers were ready to roll as well.

Saturday’s road race was the final in a series of events that give participants in the SORC an opportunity to test the ability of their cars. Racing began on Thursday, Aug. 6, with the Loup 2 Loup race between Halsey and Purdum, the most recent addition to the lineup. Then on Friday, the cars made their way to Callaway for the One-Mile Shootout, which is held on the Callaway/Cozad road, followed by a lunch at the Callaway Community Center. It was there that we caught up with Dan and Leah Aksimit of Broomfield, Colorado.

Dan has been running in the SORC for 25 of the event's 27 years, and since 2015, his wife Leah has served as his navigator. This year Leah opted to try her hand in the Shootout with her own car, a 2024 BMW. She turned in a top speed of 129.3 mph and said she was pretty happy with that.

“Usually Leah is my navigator in the Loup 2 Loup, then she races in the SORC,” Dan explained. “I run in the highest class, so she is my navigator at 110 mph. That’s a heck of a ride at 110 mph!”

Leah said that in the SORC races she has competed in the 95, 100, and 105 mph classes as a driver. Keeping the racing a family affair, their son Conner also drives, and this year Leah navigated the Loup 2 Loup for him while Dan ran without a navigator. His car performed well, and Dan is very familiar with the course, which came through in the results as he was the closest to perfect among all speed classes with an average speed of 109.996 mph to win the 110 mph class.

In the SORC race, Dan drove Leah’s BMW in the 95 mph class. In the 115 mph class, Conner drove the 2016 Chevy Corvette Z06 with Leah as his navigator, and finished second with a top speed of 114.977 mph.

“I’ve driven the yellow Corvette in the Shootout, and my son’s Corvette, but this is the first year I’ve driven my car. I don’t usually bring my BMW up because it’s just bone stock,” she explained. “It just has lap belts, so it’s pretty restricted on what classes it can do and can only do the half-mile in the Shootout.”

“But in the Shootout she has driven about 164 mph in the 2016 Corvette,” Dan interjected.

Leah explained what her job as navigator entails. “For us, we have notes that notate every single corner. We have a trip meter that shows us exactly where each corner is; for example, a corner might be 1.6 miles in, so I will say ‘1.6, it’s a right, at 85’. I also tell him if a corner is a loss of vision,” she shared.

Dan explained that some corners might also have dirt or sand along the side, and they don’t know if another car has hit that and

Cont. PAGE 6: SORC kicked sand out into the road. “So we have corners notated that we get sand out sometimes. We’ve had one corner on the Loup 2 Loup where three cars wrecked in the same place one year, so she will say this is that corner with the three wrecks, so we know to pay extra close attention,” said Dan. “Those kinds of details are very important when I am driving in the highest class there is. The slower cars aren’t going as fast, but they don’t handle the corners as well, so it’s good for them to know too.”

Leah explained that the goal of the race is not so much your average speed as it is your perfect time. “So they would say if you do this length of a race with an average of this speed, then this is your perfect time to do it in. So that is really what you’re trying to do,” she said.

The couple said SORC is the only road race they do, and didn’t hesitate when asked what keeps them coming back to Custer County every year. “Seeing everybody, and all the delicious food you guys serve us,” Leah said with a laugh.

“This whole race is just known for the people of Arnold and the surrounding communities, so some of the best parts are just visiting with those people,” Dan added. “Everyone is just so nice. We look forward to visiting with the friends we’ve made.”

While Dan has participated in other road races around the country, he said SORC is the most challenging. “A lot of the other ones are mostly just straightaways, so you just go fast; there aren’t those sharp corners and stuff,” he explained. “I make sure I come back here every year. The people are just different here. It’s just more of a sense of family.”

“You just don’t hear that much in America anymore - people opening their doors to perfect strangers,” Leah added. “It’s very unique and very special what you guys have going on. Your communities should be very proud of what you have created here.”