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Top Chili Bowl Ride Develops For Spectating Larson
D-Main Finish In Saturday Finale
Tulsa, Oklahoma, January 16 and 17, 2009. As Kyle Larson stood at attention for the National Anthem during the 23rd Annual Lucas Oil Chili Bowl Nationals fourth and final night of preliminary qualifier racing on Friday night, his cell phone rang. The voice on the other end, his good friend Kevin Swindell, told him to get to the Bryan Clauson pit area ASAP. Larson, thinking Swindell just wanted to fool him into heading over to the sprint car simulators for some racing fun, headed down not knowing what to expect.
As he arrived, the reality set in that Larson was being offered one of the elite rides of the nearly 300 cars in the pit area. After hot laps, Penske Racing car chief for Kurt Busch, Corey Tucker, was informed by his scheduled driver, New York dirt modified racer Jerry Higbie, Jr., that the food poisoning he had fought all day was not going to be overcome. So, in a matter of minutes, Larson had joined a respected team of drivers that included NASCAR Nationwide Series participant Clauson, World of Outlaws star Jason Meyers, open wheel standouts Hunter Schuerenberg and Ryan Kaplan, and veteran NASCAR crew chief Billy Wilburn.
With the first heat under way, and Larson scheduled for the fifth heat, activity was understandably hurried to get the driver prepared. The seat for Higbie, Jr., who is nearly twice as big as the 105 pound Larson, was squeezed together, with an additional four inches of padding at the bottom to raise the high school junior to the proper height. Pitted nearby, Chad Boat offered a spare uniform, underwear, and shoes. Clauson provided a head and neck restraint, and Swindell loaned arm restraints. Luckily, Larson purchased a new Simpson helmet earlier in the day.
As the fifth heat cars were rolling down the ramp to the race track, Tucker’s Ryan Newman Foundation, Brown and Miller Racing Solutions, KWIK Car, Lane Automotive, Motorsports Designs, and Bryan Clauson Incorporated sponsored Bullet chassis with Mopar power, joined the procession just in the nick of time. Higbie, Jr., was slated to start sixth, but Chili Bowl officials decided, due to the driver change, that Larson would start from the back row and could not accumulate valuable passing points, only finishing position points.
With no practice time in the car Larson began the eight lap event in seventh. After a couple of laps getting a feel for the car Larson began to battle forward. A last lap pass secured third place for the Elk Grove, California driver. Both crew and driver were certainly encouraged by the performance considering the circumstances.
The lack of the 20 passing points placed Larson eighth, behind the six car inversion, in the second A-main qualifier race that was loaded with talent, including Kasey Kahne, Daryn Pittman, Cory Kruseman, PJ Jones, and Brad Loyet. At one point Larson made a rim riding pass around Kahne to move into fifth. While attempting to pass Pittman for fourth in the next corner Pittman bobbled and shuffled Larson back to eighth. Larson powered back into sixth as the finish.
Lacking the passing points from his heat race Larson was relegated to one of the two B-main events, where he started fourth. After a mid race battle for second over several laps with PJ Jones, Larson moved ahead and closed quickly on race winner Rich Camfield, Jr., prior to the lap 15 checkered flag.
Larson’s improbable run found him starting 19th of 24 cars in the A-main event. As Larson gradually moved forward in the early going, trouble developed in turns one and two as Kruseman spun on lap five, also collecting Bud Kaeding. As Larson scooted by on the inside, Wayne Johnson came by on the outside and hit Kruseman who pushed Kaeding forward into Larson’s clear path. The contact with Kaeding shoved Larson’s right side nerf bar into the right rear tire.
As the other cars were untangled, Larson’s mount sat waiting for a tow to the work area. When the car was finally delivered, less than a lap under yellow flag conditions remained to pry the nerf bar from the tire. Despite a valiant effort by the crew, the race restarted without Larson and he was scored last.
The result placed Larson into one of two D-main events in Saturday’s final day of racing. Needing a top six finish to advance to the C-main Larson started 13th. At the conclusion of the 15 lap event Larson’s Cinderella story came to an end as he missed the transfer by two places, finishing eighth.
Larson, while disappointed that his Chili Bowl was over, was still amazed with his good fortune. “To go from a spectator,” began Larson, “to being in one of the best rides here is unbelievable. It was very unfortunate for Jerry Higbie and I can imagine how he must feel to miss the Chili Bowl after all the preparation that goes into it. But, for me, it was a great opportunity to fill in for him. I can’t thank Corey Tucker, Tim and Bryan Clauson, Kevin Swindell, Chad Boat, Jason Meyers, the crew and everybody who helped, enough. For Corey and the Clausons to offer the ride to me is an honor that I will never forget. Everybody was very helpful in the mad dash to get the car and me ready. The car was a dream to drive and I couldn’t have asked for more.”
Check out www.kylelarsonracing.com for video clips, photos, current news and information.
Chad Boat & Kyle
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