As Jade Avedisian rolled her No. 84 midget off the ramp and onto the dirt at Oklahoma’s Tulsa Expo Raceway for hot laps at the Chili Bowl Nationals, she wasn’t quite sure what she was getting into.
Though she’s previously raced on the temporary track inside the SageNet Center during the Tulsa Shootout, it was the 16-year-old’s debut year at the Chili Bowl.
The first thing she felt was a nervous buzz as the tires inched closer the track. The second thing she experienced on her Tuesday preliminary night was a small victory. Avedisian set the quick time during hot laps, boosting her confidence heading into her heat race.
She placed second in her heat, finished in the top three during her qualifier and secured a third-place result in Tuesday’s A feature. With her performance, the Clovis, Calif., native became the highest-finishing female in the event’s history.
“It was definitely a lot of pressure, because I wanted to lock in so bad. Unfortunately, I didn’t lock in, but I wasn’t too mad about finishing on the podium,” Avedisian said. Only the top two finishers in preliminary night features earn a spot in Saturday’s coveted main event.
Reflecting on her preliminary performance, Avedisian pinpoints one moment as the move that potentially cost her a victory.
“When I slid Spencer [Bayston] and Hank [Davis] into turn three, I followed Hank into one, which ended up with me getting tight. I could’ve come out in first going down the back straightaway,” Avedisian recalled. “That one kind of hurt me, because I could’ve had a shot to win.”
Still, she maintained high hopes moving into her assigned B main on Saturday. Her initial goal of making the feature was within reach.
With a front-row start in her B feature, Avedisian skillfully wheeled her Chad Boat Industries midget to a second-place finish on the quarter-mile, becoming the second woman to earn entry into the A feature.
Out of 365 entries, Avedisian was one of 24 drivers with a chance to win the Golden Driller on Saturday.
Kaylee Bryson also secured a spot in the 55-lap feature for a second consecutive year.
Lining up 13th, Avedisian was off to a good start.
“We had a really good run, I felt like,” Avedisian said. “At one point, we were running ninth and looking to past eighth.”
Arguably, it was Chili Bowl luck that struck the 16-year-old on the first restart. The air pressure in her tires dropped — or a bleeder stuck — and it took about five laps for the tires to right themselves.
“By then, I was already in 18th,” Avedisian said. “Knowing I couldn’t get back up there, because of the rubber, it was frustrating. I was just trying to keep my cool, because there were still 35 laps to go.”
Avedisian finished 18th — matching Bryson’s finish from 2022.
“There’s a lot to be proud of, but at the same time, I wish I could’ve finished in the top 10 on Saturday,” Avedisian said. “Looking for more next year.”
The California native did not go home empty handed, however.
Out of 80-plus rookies who made their Chili Bowl debut this year, Avedisian was selected for the rookie-of-the-year award. Notable past recipients include Corey Day (’22), Donny Schatz (’17) and Tyler Courtney (’11). She was also the inaugural recipient of the Fuzzy Hahn Highest Finishing Female award and her preliminary performance earned her the Jason Leffler Elbows Up honor.
Though she’s not sure what’s next in regard to her upcoming season, Avedisian is sure of one thing.
“Whenever you can have a good week or racing, you go into the next weekend with just a little more momentum,” Avedisian said. “I don’t know exactly what I’ll be racing, but I know I’ll have a little bit of momentum on my side.”