On behalf of ARDC-all of the owners, drivers and fans- our deepest condolences to the entire Buckwalter family on the passing of Gary Buckwalter. He was instrumental in many racing careers and will be missed by all.
Our thoughts and prayers are extended to the Buckwalter family at this time.
The 29th Lucas Oil Chili Bowl is history.
The American Racing Drivers Club (ARDC), the oldest race sanctioning organization in the country, was well represented at the Chili Bowl competition held in Tulsa, OK.
Four drivers with strong ties to ARDC raced in the A Mains on their qualifying nights. Six drivers won qualifying events throughout the week. With a record number of entries reaching well over the three hundred mark this year, qualifying spots were at a premium on every day of the competition.
Both Milford, NJ driver, Nick Wean and Collegeville, PA driver, Alex Bright won their heat races during Tuesday night’s qualifying. Both drivers advanced to the Tuesday night A Main on their passing points, starting 9th and 14th respectively. Wean got caught up in an on track incident and tried to return to the rear of the field after some hasty repairs but his re-entry was blocked by another competitor. Wean finished 21st. Bright rebounded from restarting at the rear of the field to finish twelfth at the checkered flag.
Tyler Brehm, in his second Chili Bowl competition, reached the B Main on Tuesday night. 2014 ARDC Champion, Steven Drevicki raced to a third place finish in the D Main, missing a start in the C Main by just one spot. Ryan Greth was unable to complete the C Main after being involved in a multi-car incident.
Brenden Bright and Shawn Jackson saw competition on Wednesday night. Bright starts out the night with a win in his heat race. Jackson has a rough night, getting caught up in an incident just before the checkered flag in his heat race and then flipping during the running of his qualifier. He will come back and try again on Saturday.
Bright makes the A Main on passing points, starting 16th on the grid. He races home in 11th at the checkered flag after restarting in the rear after the first caution.
Thursday action had PJ Garigulo, Steve Buckwalter, Danny Stratton and Chili Bowl rookie, Tommy Kunsman see qualifying action. Gargiulo and Kunsman both race in the C Mains but neither one is able to advance. Buckwalter and Stratton pick up win in their qualifying heats. Stratton completes qualifying with the most passing points of the night and starts on the pole of the A Main. Buckwalter runs into trouble during his A Main qualifier and is unable to advance.
Stratton leads the first four laps the A Main and finishes sixth at the wave of the checkered.
On the final night of qualifying, Jim Radney and John Heydenreich compete as Curt Michael and Jamie Spears make their first Chili Bowl appearances.
John Heydenreich, the winner of the 1990 Chili Bowl, competed in the Race of Champions event on Tuesday night but was an early retiree after drawing the pole for the start of the twenty lap race.
Curt Michael picks up a win in a C Main and Jamie Spears runs second in his C Main to advance to the B Mains. All four drivers race the B Mains on Friday night but no one is able to move on to the main event of the night.
Saturday is know as Alphabet Soup as the qualifiers run through the alphabet.
Shawn Jackson advances from the M Main to run the L Main. Steven Drevicki races in the L and completes his Chili Bowl competition. Tommy Kunsman’s Chili Bowl experience ends with a run in a K Main. Ryan Greth starts in the K Main and then advances to the J and then the I before his day is complete. PJ Gargiulo races in the J Main with Jim Radney in the H Main. Jamie Spears and Steve Buckwalter race in the I Mains but both are involved in on track incidents and do not advance.
Tyler Brehm and Curt Michael pick up twelfth place finishes in the E Mains. Nick Wean finishes twelfth in his D Main.
After leading all the way to lap ten, Brenden Bright has his Chili Bowl hopes end in the C Main with engine problems. Alex Bright finishes twelfth in the same race after receiving damage in the early laps.
Danny Stratton races in the first B Main and is in a qualifying spot when contact is made and Stratton ends up against the wall and upside down.
Saturday was a rough day for the ARDC competitors but much was accomplished during the week of action. It’s time to start preparing for next year!
Shawn Jackson and Brenden Bright were the ARDC drivers scheduled to qualify during Day 2 of the 2015 Chili Bowl.
Shawn Jackson started 7th in Heat Race #2. Jackson was running fifth and headed to the checkered flag when he was caught up in a multi-car incident coming off of turn four. Brenden Bright started 4th in Heat Race #4 and went on to take the win.
Jackson started from the second position in D Feature 2. Contact with the leader following a restart saw Jackson take a tumble on the homestretch. Shawn was not injured in the incident.
Bright went on to start 6th in Qualifying Race #2 and finished 6th after coming from the rear which gave Bright the final starting spot in the A Main based on passing points.
Bright made a quick trip off the track during the A Main’s first caution and raced to an eleventh place finish after restarting at the rear of the field.
Five ARDC competitors were scheduled to compete on Tuesday in Tulsa – Nick Wean, Ryan Greth, Steven Drevicki, Tyler Brehm and Alex Bright.
Combined, they produced two heat wins as Wean charged to the last lap win in Heat #2 and Bright picked up the win in Heat #5. Brehm advanced to a 4th place finish in Heat #4, followed by Greth in 5th and Drevicki in 7th.
Drevicki missed a transfer spot by just one position in the first D feature while Greth was involved in a multi car incident and did not complete the second C feature.
In second round qualifying, Wean rebounded from an early race spin to finish 5th in race #1 with Brehm finishing 7th in the same event. Bright finished third in the 2nd Qualifier.
Brehm had a strong run in the B Main but missed a transfer spot.
After multiple tangles during the twenty five lap A Main, Alex Bright led the ARDC Tuesday night contingent with a 12th place finish from the back. Nick Wean pitted to make a quick rub rail repair and was ready to rejoin the field but was blocked by another car when the field went back to green. Wean finished 21st.
Area Will Be Well Represented in Tulsa, OK
As final preparations are completed and trailers are being loaded, all eyes turn to Tulsa, OK for what is frequently referred to as ‘the Super Bowl’ of midget racing as the 29th Annual Chili Bowl gets underway on Monday, January 12th in the
The American Racing Drivers Club will be well represented in the 2015 Chili Bowl competition as fifteen drivers with ties to the organization have registered to compete in this year’s event – certainly the largest presence ARDC has ever had in Tulsa. The delegation of ARDC competitors represents a broad cross section of the organization – from rookies to seasoned veterans.
John Heydenreich who hails from Bloomsburg, PA was the winner of the 1990 Chili Bowl and is a former ARDC competitor, ranking ninth on the ARDC All Time Feature Winners List. Heydenreich last competed with ARDC during the 2013 season. While the entries have reached record levels for the 2015 event, Heydenreich maintains that the competition has always been tough in Tulsa. “It’s all about preparation and opportunity,” Heydenreich states. “You’ve got to get your elbows up and be ready to take advantage of whatever opportunities come your way.”
Collegeville, PA driver, Alex Bright knows all about those opportunities. Bright qualified for last year’s Chili Bowl by finishing 3rd in the A Main on his qualifying night while racing for his grandfather, Joe Hemler in his Lightcap Electric #77. Racing the same car that he used in ARDC competition, Bright battled with Christopher Bell and Kevin Swindell right down to the wire in last year’s event to finish fourth. This year, Bright will have a Mike Heffner owned midget at the Chili Bowl, with Sean Michael turning the wrenches. A second Heffner entry will be piloted by 8 time URC Sprint Car Champion, Curt Michael who will make his first Chili Bowl appearance.
The “Royersford Rocket”, Steve Buckwalter has raced in five Chili Bowl main events. Buckwalter’s best finish to date has been a ninth in the Saturday night main event along with a third place finish on his qualifying night.
Now making his home in Berks County, Danny Stratton joined the ranks of ARDC competitors this season as the driver of the Jerry & Karen Steward owned #33. Stratton has raced midgets throughout the country and boasts a fourth place finish in the 2012 Chili Bowl as his best performance to date. Stratton will field a second Andy Bondio entry at this year’s Chili Bowl, joining team mate, Tim McCreadie – the winner of the 2006 event.
2014 ARDC Champion, Reading, PA driver, Steven Drevicki leads a host of ARDC competitors who return to completion in Tulsa this year. Drevicki carries the momentum to Tulsa that took him to the top of the ARDC competitors this season. Drevicki and DeGre Engineering Race Team took everything they learned the season before and rolled it into a championship season. Brenden Bright chased Drevicki throughout the season and travels to Tulsa on the heels of one of his most successful seasons in midget competition after finishing second in points. Milford, NJ driver, Nick Wean returns to Chili Bowl competition this year and looks to improve upon his 11th place finish on his qualifying night. After finishing 8th in points on the ARDC schedule, PJ Gargiulo of Morton, PA heads west and hopes to make his first A Main on his qualifying night. Shawn Jackson of Bear, DE will debut his new Elite Chassis, Esslinger powered #7 in Tulsa this week. Jackson was the first driver from the First State of Delaware to compete at the Chili Bowl. Tyler Brehm returns to compete in a second Steve Buckwalter entry. Brehm raced in Tulsa last year after only taking a few practice laps in a midget before the Chili Bowl. In 2014, Brehm raced the Jim Jackson owned #97 in ARDC competition and his headed to Tulsa with a lot more seat time and experience under his belt.
Drivers, Ryan Greth and Jim Radney, are hoping that they can convert what knowledge they gained while competing in the Tulsa Shootout just ten days before the start of the Chili Bowl as they head to Tulsa with their Hyper Racing midgets for their second Chili Bowl experience.
In addition to Curt Michael who makes his first Chili Bowl appearance, 2014 ARDC rookie, Tommy Kunsman of Northampton, PA will be behind the wheel of a second Rick Wean owned entry. Kunsman has been a spectator in Tulsa for the last eight years and looks forward to seeing the event from the other side of the fence. Jamie Spears of New Holland, PA will also make his Chili Bowl debut. Both rides – Kunsman’s ride in the Wean #78 Spike chassis and Spear’s #74 Stealth – are up for sale and looking for new owners to take possession in Tulsa!
First things first as qualifying gets underway on Tuesday night. Everyone’s goal is to make the A Main on qualifying night. Qualifying takes place Tuesday through Friday with final qualifying all day Saturday before the main event.
Follow all the Chili Bowl news and ARDC results on Facebook. There will be live updates throughout the competition with daily results posted on our web site at www.ardcmidget.com.