This weekend’s $1,200-to-win TN Mini Late Models race is drawing interest from well beyond the Volunteer State, including that of Chase Brunscheen and Kyle Pearson. The two will embark from Iowa to head to Smoky Mountain Speedway in Tennessee for its Saturday, July 8, race.
“It’s about a 12-hour drive,” said Chase’s father, Brian Brunscheen. “It’s to see where we stand. My son’s fast here [in Iowa]. [We’ll] see if we can keep up with the Georgia guys that are going to show up. I know Brad Amerson and Cody Taylor are going to be there, and they’re top, top.”
(For more on Amerson and Taylor, read “Brad Amerson: How He and Friends Haul”.)
Chase Brunscheen, 14, of Dyersville, Iowa, competed in go-karts before entering the mini late model class. He also now races IMCA late models.
Brunscheen will head to Tennessee with Kyle Pearson. Pearson, a former sport compact competitor, said that another factor played into their decision to go on the long road trip.
“The $1,200 [to win] is pretty appetizing,” Pearson, of Maquoketa, Iowa, said. “We only race for $150 [to win] up here, and our specials are only like $250. When that money comes around, that makes it worth the trip.”
The economics of racing mini late models appealed to the Brunscheens.
“It’s more money to race a go-kart on a national level,” said Brian Brunscheen. “I would take one new set for the feature … because if you weren’t on a new set, you were going to lose. I’d take that set and hope they were [chemically] prepped right. If the track changed, we were out to lunch. Guys who could afford it would have four or five [differently prepared] sets for each feature, just in case, and it’s $400 a set.”
Pearson echoes the sentiments of the value found in mini late models.
“The tires will go a whole season,” Pearson said. “The set I got here has 15 to 20 nights on them. We only burn a gallon of fuel. We run 91-octane [pump gasoline], so [the fuel cost is] not too terrible.”
With the value the class provides, the TN Mini Late Models expect to have quite the field. That includes entrants coming from as far as Iowa, such as Chase Brunscheen and Kyle Pearson.
The Outside Groove Executive Editor has covered motorsports since 2000. His many awards include the 2019 Eastern Motorsport Press Association (EMPA) Jim Hunter Writer of the Year and the 2013 Russ Catlin Award for Excellence in Motorsports Journalism.
