Chili Bowl week in 2019 is a moment that Bodine circles as a major turning point in his racing life.
“Two years ago, when I came to the Chili Bowl with CMR, I had a handful of midget races under my belt, but I wasn’t running consistently enough to be noticed like a Sunshine (Tyler Courtney) or a Cannon (McIntosh) would be,” Bodine recalled. “This race is the pinnacle of midget racing and if you want to make the A Main you really have to perform. I finished third on my prelim night that year and that drew a lot of attention. It got me a ride for the next year for a little while (with Petry Motorsports).
“If it wasn’t for that moment, I don’t think I’d be nearly where I am right now,” Bodine added. “That next year, Driven2SaveLives stepped up and took a chance on me … and now for the second year in a row we’re getting a chance to work together and I’m honored to be a part of it with them.”
Bodine is among the young drivers that have come up the ranks that have followed what some call the “Tyler Courtney Template” to success in motorsports.
He worked in the CMR shop prior to getting his first regular driving opportunity, much like Courtney did, and Bodine continued to wrench on the cars even as he ran the full USAC NOS Energy Drink National Midget Series season this past year.
Bodine ranked 10th in USAC points, with one top-five and six top-10 finishes in 27 feature starts, but he estimates those statistics would have been better if not for “a lot of bad luck” during the second half of the year.
As he moves deeper into midgets and sprint cars — both of which Bodine has turned wrenches on in the past — he said his experience working on the CMR crew has made him a better driver.
“I’d say it helps me a lot with feedback,” said Bodine of mechanically understanding the race cars he’s driving. “There are so many adjustments on the car and as a crew chief watching your car, it may be a little difficult to pinpoint where you need to adjust if you haven’t been behind the wheel also to know what it’s doing. Being able to work on the cars the last few years, I know more what things do and am able to incorporate what I feel when I race into my feedback, so I can be a little more specific to Tim … and I do feel like it helps them out a little bit.
“Building the cars I drive has been nice also in that there’s a trust there that you know it’s going to be done right and if it isn’t then it’s on you,” Bodine added. “I’ve helped train the new guys that we take very seriously everything being as perfect as it can be. It’s nice, having that in the back of my head and knowing how nice these pieces are that things shouldn’t break and everything will hold together.
“There’s a lot to look forward to on all fronts and I think this is setting up to be a really rewarding year. I can’t thank Driven2SaveLives and CMR enough for the opportunities they’ve given me and I’m just ready to get started.”
SPEED SPORT’s LIVE From the Chili Bowl coverage is supported by MyRacePass, KICKER, Curb Records and Swann Communications! To find out more about each of our partners and to check out all of SPEED SPORT’s Chili Bowl coverage, visit our Chili Bowl Index Page!