Breaking news out of Tulsa, OK, Kyle Larson will be teaming up with KKM to compete in the 2024 Chili Bowl. The last minute combination came to fruition early Tuesday morning after Larson made the phone call to see if Keith had an open car. But wait, isn’t Larson supposed to be running the Wild West Shootout in Vado this week? Yes, but that isn’t stopping him, as he will attempt to race in both on Saturday.
To put it in perspective, Vado, is located in Mountain Standard Time and Tulsa is in Central Standard time. That puts Tulsa ahead of Vado, making the travel for Larson even more complicated.
Last year, the Wild West Shootout A-Main was finished right around 8:30 PM MST (9:30 CST). The 2022 Chili Bowl Nationals A-Main took the green flag around 11:40 PM CST (10:40 MST). That gives Larson only two hours to travel to Tulsa.
In doing some quick research, the closest airport to Vado is El Paso International Airport, which is a 26 mile drive (roughly 40 minutes by car with no traffic) from Vado. Flight time on a private plane should be just over an hour to Tulsa. Tulsa International Airport is only about a 15 minute drive from the Chili Bowl.
Obviously, I do not know the logistics behind Larson’s plans, but regardless of what they are, it is going to be incredibly tight. A caution-filled day at Vado could put Larson’s entire plans in jeopardy. Not to mention, if he doesn’t lock in on Thursday, we likely will not even see him in Tulsa on Saturday. I would love for someone to live stream Larson’s entire day, as the storyline in itself is amazing.
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