Kyle Larson, Logan Seavey, Christopher Bell, and Jim Vanzant are among the 392 entries for the Chili Bowl Nationals. Of those names, who’s the least likely to win the event? Vanzant, probably, and he recognizes that, but that doesn’t stop him from going to the Chili Bowl in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and having fun.
“The Chili Bowl is like nothing else in racing,” said Vanzant, of Prescott, Arizona. “It’s a meeting of the best drivers from many divisions. It’s a chance to get time to visit and chat with other drivers on four of the five days you are not racing.”
For Vanzant, the Chili Bowl is as much a social event as a competition. Don’t mistake Vanzant, though, for just being a fanboy with a race car and helmet, though. He’s a serious racer.
Vanzant won two track championships at Ascot Park and has competed at Pikes Peak. That’s right, Ascot Park, the former speedway outside of Los Angeles that closed in 1990, years before some of the Chili Bowl competitors were even born. Vanzant’s racing career started in 1978.
He’s not the only gray-haired individual in the pits, though. Sammy Swindell has a few years on Vanzant, with Swindell being 69 and Vanzant 65.
“Sammy Swindell … I’ve raced with him in heat races here in midgets and at Vado [Speedway Park], where we both were in winged sprints,” Vanzant said. “He is an experienced, talented driver who is tough to deal with on the racetrack — and he’s still so fast. Age is just a number on your driver’s license. I believe that, and Sammy is proof of that.”
While the A-main may not be on Vanzant’s radar at Tulsa, part of the thrill of the Chili Bowl Nationals stems from just the qualifying procedure, where you have to progress through an alphabet soup of mains to reach the A.
“I get a rush every time I snap myself in,” said Vanzant. “Because of the size and horsepower-to-weight ratio, these cars are quick. I’m not 20 years old anymore, I may have my moments, but I enjoy racing the younger drivers.”
Prior to the Chili Bowl, Jim Vanzant also competed in the Tulsa Shootout.
“I have six cars — midget, winged sprint, wingless sprints — that are a constant battle to maintain,” Vanzant said. “They keep me moving, and in good shape. My wife [Bonnie, pictured] keeps me moving, too. When we are not racing, we’re riding our Harleys. Like they say, ‘Ride ’em hard, put them away wet.’”
Mike Adaskaveg has written hundreds of stories since the website’s inception. This year marks his 54th year of covering auto racing. Adaskaveg got his start working for track photographer Lloyd Burnham at Connecticut’s Stafford Motor Speedway in 1970. Since then, he’s been a columnist, writer, and photographer, in racing and in mainstream media, for several outlets, including the Journal Inquirer, Boston Herald, Stock Car Racing, and Speedway Illustrated. Among Adaskaveg’s many awards are the 1992 Eastern Motorsport Press Association (EMPA) Ace Lane Photographer of the Year and the 2019 National Motorsports Press Association (NMPA) George Cunningham Writer of the Year.
