When it comes to Dirt Midget racing in the United States the granddaddy of events is the annual Chili Bowl Nationals at the Tulsa Expo Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
Pawcatuck driver Jacob Perry had originally planned to head to the event as a crew member for Kenney Johnson Motorsports, but then ended up landing a shot in the driver’s seat.
This week Perry takes RaceDayCT readers along for the full experience in his first foray into driving a Dirt Midget.
Perry will do a daily audio postcard from Tulsa to give a feel for what life is like on and off the track for a 20-year old taking in his first time at the Chili Bowl.
Perry will not only document what life is like trying to make into one of the biggest Dirt Midget races of all, but also everything else that goes into experiencing life as a driver running the Chili Bowl.
Click here to listen or click the postcard below. Access to the audio postcard is available to everyone for free through our RaceDayCT Patreon page.
Thanks to FloRacing we get to view the action at the Chili Bowl Nationals and it’s quite something to say the least. It wouldn’t be much of an exaggeration to say they get more cars then spectators. Not an exaggeration at all that the cars are plastered with nationally prominent companies as sponsors.
Not knowing anything about anything to do with this event and the cars I can still see this has to be a culture shock for Perry. First the location, secondly the venue and thirdly those cars that are a handful to put it mildly. Listening intently to Perry’s take on it all and the blender be finds himself in.
The event huuuuuuuuuuge. I don’t get it at all. Ultra powerful little cars that slip and slide on mostly mud where steering is a hit or miss proposition. How do they steer those things with the brake? I could swear I saw a few doing wheelies coming out of the corners.
Mostly it seems like you wait a lot. Wait for the cars to be pushed to start, wait for them to be pushed when they can’t continue, wait for intermission, wait for them to groom the track. The races exciting bumping,bangin, flipping but at 11 seconds a lap they don’t last very long and for the life of me I can’t figure out who is fast and who’s lucky.
Short, fast, muddy with an exhaust haze present after races. The flag man exposed out on the track protected only by a few bags of what I surely don’t know for the races and nothing when he’s doing the actual flagging. Two comely lasses with ample bosoms in form accenting attire in a pickup truck announcing to the crowd each event with signage not unlike a professional wrestling match. A couple skimpily clad women with wings or something hanging out around the podium for what reason I don’t know. Clearly at the Chili Bowl there is a element of sex in play and I’m wondering why do we never do that here? Put a couple women in the Enfield Family Ford pickup truck at Stafford in attention getting garb and have them waive signs introducing each event. Give it some thought Stafford.
So I’m wondering why any owner would be putting Perry in a car for this extravaganza. Young man seems up for anything but these people have been doing this for most of their lives. It’s a way of life for them and Perry has nothing in his resume like it. Has to be Perry. Enthusiastic, engaging, smart and adventurous. Perhaps sponsorship money as well. Good for him but he’s way over his head down there in my view. His best result is to survive, have some fun and try not to break equipment.
I’m hooked and will try to find Perry tomorrow night although with the volume of racing and the brevity of the races it may be difficult.