Chili Bowl Practice & Press Conference Today

The kickoff of the 20^th Anniversary of the O'Reilly Chili Bowl Midget Nationals is just two days as a seemingly endless line of haulers from throughout the nation have been filing into the Tulsa Expo Center throughout the day on Monday. While official racing action for the 270 entries doesn't kick off until Wednesday evening, there will be on-the-track action Tuesday as teams have an opportunity to shake down their entries during a practice session.

The practice session will kick off at 2:00 p.m. and will conclude at approximately 7:00 p.m.

The practice session will immediately follow the O'Reilly Chili Bowl Midget Nationals press conference, which takes place at 1:00 p.m. in the Tulsa Expo cafeteria at the east end of the building.

Fans holding a Wednesday night ticket will be admitted to the practice session free of charge. Otherwise, tickets for the practice session can be purchased for $20. More O'Reilly Chili Bowl information:

What: 20^th Annual O'Reilly Chili Bowl Midget Nationals

Where: Tulsa Expo Raceway - ¼-mile clay oval inside the Tulsa Exposition Center at the Tulsa State Fairgrounds

When: January 11-14, 2006. Wednesday - Creek Nation Casino Qualifying Night; Thursday – Love’s Travel Stops & Country Stores Qualifying Night; Friday – Warren CAT Qualifying Night; Saturday – Features. Hot laps on each qualifying night begin at 5:00 p.m., with racing action going green at 6:15 p.m. Saturday hot laps begin at noon, with Twin "K" Features kicking off the march through the alphabet to Saturday night’s 24-car Championship "A" Feature event.

Past Winners: Sammy Swindell (1998, 1996, 1992 and 1989), Cory Kruseman (2004 and 2000), Dan Boorse (2003 and 1999), Tracy Hines (2005), Tony Stewart (2002), Jay Drake (2001), Billy Boat (1997), Donnie Beechler (1995), Andy Hillenburg (1994), Dave Blaney (1993), Lealand McSpadden (1991), Jon Heydenreich (1990), Scott Hatton (1988), Rich Vogler (1987).

New Award: A new award will be up for grabs this year, as Advantage Trucks & Salvage, Inc., of Lancaster, NY, is offering a $1,000 prize to the Best Appearing car.

Current Entries: 269 entries from 31 different states, surpassing the 2005 Chili Bowl record of 249 competitors. Past winners already entered include Tony Stewart, Sammy Swindell, Cory Kruseman, Dan Boorse, Jay Drake, Scott Hatton and defending race champion Tracy Hines.

Other top drivers already entered include Kasey Kahne, 20-time World of Outlaws champion Steve Kinser, Danny Lasoski, Dave Darland, J.J. Yeley, All-Star champion Chad Kemenah, ASCS champion Gary Wright, USAC/CRA champion Damion Gardner, ARDC Midget champion Ray Bull, USAC and Sprint Bandits TNT champion Levi Jones, USAC Midget champion Josh Wise, Kevin Swindell, Jason Leffler and Late Model aces Tim McCreadie, Bart Hartman and Jeep VanWormer.

Entries represent numerous racing disciplines, including NASCAR, winged and non-wing Sprint Cars, Midgets, Late Models and NHRA drag racing among others. At least 31 different series or track champions are entered, with a Rookie class numbering 72 entries.

Trade Show: Always a popular attraction at the Chili Bowl Midget Nationals is the Trade Show, which is open to the public each day (Wednesday through Saturday) free of charge. All variety of racing products, apparel and more is available with well over 100 different vendors. The Trade Show covers approximately 20,000 square feet.

Preferred Parking: A limited number of Preferred Parking spaces are still available for all four nights of the O'Reilly Chili Bowl Midget Nationals by calling the ticket office at 918-838-3777.

Buffet:  The cafeteria at the east end of the Tulsa Expo Center will offer an all-you-can-eat buffet each day (Wednesday through Saturday) from 12:00 noon to 6:00 p.m. for just $10 per person.

Tickets: Tickets for the 20^th Anniversary of the O’Reilly Chili Bowl Midget Nationals were depleted in mid-October. Pit passes for each night of racing action are available.

Practice Session & Press Conference: A practice session for the 20^th Annual O’Reilly Chili Bowl Midget Nationals will take place on Tuesday from 2:00 p.m. until approximately 7:00 p.m., immediately following the 1:00 p.m. Press Conference in the Tulsa Expo Cafeteria at the east end of the building.

O’Reilly Chili Bowl on the Net: All four nights of racing action will be webcast live at http://www.racinboys.com/. Additional information regarding the O’Reilly Chili Bowl Midget Nationals is available at http://www.chilibowl.com/ or by calling 918-838-3777.

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