A piece of paper adorned the fencing in the pit area: “'f' word $1.00 fine. Pay the pastor.”
The boldly written message sets the tone for the 39th Chile Bowl Nationals, “Super Bowl of Midget Race.” Born in the US in the 1930s, midget races became global and were tracks on almost every continent.
“We want to invite people who love Jesus and are passionate about Motorsport seriously considering joining our team.”
However, the Chili Bowl is the world's largest midget auto event, just as Brian Halbert put it in his opening speech, “The biggest race in the world in every midget.”
Outside the Tulsa Expo Center, a golden driller protrudes into the air at 76 feet, looming over the recent debris of polar water. However, inside, the air of the fu steaming is electricity.
Kevin Ryan
Over the course of six days, racers and fans are immersed in every twist and turn, every victory and upset. Now, on a frozen January evening, the finalists hurry to write their names in Chili Bowl history.
Of the 392 participants, only 24 participated in the Championship finale, an A-Feature race. Grand Marshall is a NASCAR legend, Jeff Gordon, a former Chilean bowler.
Kevin Ryan
Community and Chaos
Every night, at the Chile Bowl, racers for members of the Christ team make a call. For 55 years, the Phoenix-based ministry served the motorsports community, from the NHRA to dirt track, bringing a spiritual foundation to every corner of the racing world.
Jim Shepherd, RFC pastor with 20 years in ministry and 12 years in Chile Bowl, explained the group's mission. “If we have a motor, we're part of it.”
Kevin Ryan
I spoke to Shepherd before the A-feature in the centre of the pit. He captured the spirit of missionary in simple terms: “If someone has a passion for sports and a passion for Jesus, that's what we're looking for.”
“The neat thing about the racing family is something everyone knows,” he said. “It's a very neat environment for building relationships.”
The pit has a sense of community and chaos. A row of gorgeous trailers and mobile garages line the streets, while drivers and crews cuddle under team banners like Swindell Speed Love and Abacus Race for last-minute adjustments and repairs. Friendship has spread beyond experts and covers fans who have been making this pilgrimage for decades.
It's comfortable to be uncomfortable
Beside Shepherd was Joey Keith, a veteran of the Ministry of Motorsports since 2008 and RFC since 2012. In addition to his pastoral role, Keith manages the central regions of the RFC in the south and west. He told me later via email.
Keith, an appointed pastor who grew up in a Baptist church, believes his grandparents as his spiritual leader. His journey into motorsport began at the age of five and worked with his father, who managed the racetrack in Tulsa, Oklahoma. By the age of 15, Keith was racing himself, but at age 26 he felt a call for God's mission.
Recognizing the gaps in spiritual outreach at local racetracks, he began leading weekly Bible studies and church services during racial seasons. What began as a twin effort grew steadily, and by 2012 Keith had completely moved to ministry and dedicated his life to serving the racing community.
“This ministry isn't always comfortable,” Keith told me. I tell the staff that it's time to be uncomfortable to be comfortable. ”
History is filled with examples of faith that shine in the darkness. For 2,000 years, An estimated 70 million Christians Fear is faced with unwavering beliefs.
Authentic Their understanding of life occurs in the spiritual plain, not in intellectual or physical. And life on Earth, wherever it goes, from the soil, from the dust, into the mud, and back into the ashes.
On the hook
Today's midget cars in Chili Bowl are much safer and more difficult than the cars at the first event in 1987. These small machines are equipped with a four-cylinder engine and are large enough to squeeze out of the roll cage. Even NASCAR once had a midget division.
Compared to a large sprint car with eight cylinders and 800 horsepower, midget cars need to be push-started on a truck or four-wheeled vehicle. This is also why they don't stop moving – it will kill the engine.
“On the hook” is when the car has to tow a ramp into the pit.
Midget car racing isn't just about skill. That's also survival. These cars carry their own risks. Mechanical obstacles and crashes often thin the field before waves of checkered flags. Dropout speed is known as “attenuation.”
Depletion is a brutal reality. As the car spins and is collected in another car's wreck, hope of victory disappears in an instant. Arm restraint keeps the driver safe with rollovers and gains a fence between flying shards and crowds.
Abundant harvest
“We have someone who has been in the ministry since day one, and we have also started a new pastor,” Jim Shepherd shared. He then pointed to a woman nearby. “It was her first event, so the entire spectrum is covered.”
Kevin Ryan
“It's not about a particular denomination, it's about heart and calling,” Shepherd said. The RFC team includes pastors from diverse Christian traditions of Nazareth, Baptists and Catholics, but their mission is the same. It is to train, educate and spread the gospel to the racing community. “The most important part is the Christ-centric aspect.”
Joey Keith repeated this. “We want to invite people who love Jesus and have a passion for motorsports. “We get calls every week asking for the Ministry's support. …I'm more hungry than ever before. .”
As organizations look to the future, RFCs focus on expanding their scope. There's always something to do.
Keith closed the email with a reminder from Luke 10:2. “The harvest is abundant, but there are few workers. Therefore, we pray seriously to the lord of the harvest and send the workers to his harvest.”
His love will last forever
At the heart of the Oklahoma Bible Belt, racers for Christ find the fertile ground of the mission. They can freely share the gospel and openly pray with the racers and their families.
“Here we are very vocal,” Chaprenim Shepherd told me. “I can even say Jesus' name.”
But the paths are not always that smooth. In the northwest, the province faces another reality.
“There is one race group that is not allowed to say the name of Christ,” admitted Shepherd. However, this leads to a resolution similar to Psalm 118 (“stones rejected by the builders became cornerstones”). Shepherd's resolve is unshakable. “The relationships we've built over the years are all worth it.”
Joey Keith reiterated this sentiment, serving every corner of the racing world, “touch every part of the event, praying with the driver, or praying for Chili Bowl staff and safety teams, or praying. Or pray or be present in the pit with family and crew.”
Keith describes the ministry itself as a team and works together for a common purpose. The metaphor is appropriate, reflecting the unity and focus required of faith, and a reminder that belief can thrive in unexpected places, even amongst roaring engines and dirt trucks.
Fight a good fight
Before A-Main, the racer was caught up in four wide salutes to the fans. It's a moment of unity and respect that electrifies the crowd.
Dirt Race is not the end of itself. Its true purpose is not in its results or entertainment value.
This is a path to improvement, a redemption template. In 2 Timothy 4:7, Paul writes, “I fought a good fight, I finished the race, I kept my faith.”
We spoke with Luis Fernando Aragon, a professor at the University of Costa Rica. He forwarded a 9 article series about athletes who profess their Christian faith with evangelical enthusiasm. He argues that most exams in Christian athletes focus on the use of Religion or faith as “inspiration for more competitive and more intense training, inspiration for improving performance: Christian faith as a tool.”
He offers another angle: “Sports as a tool to help us become better Christians.”
In the Chile Bowl people, faith is free. God-given rights, not theoretical concepts, but true.
Within the expo, participants find a sanctuary, surrounded by smells of dirt and oil. Here, external conflicts disappear into the exhaust, resulting in such beautiful beams of light being generated in the air.
My daughter gasped as the car crashed, “So they need to go slowly.”
Light on dirt
The wild final lap of A-Feature lace unfolds and the dirt in the air becomes thicker.
“Your words are lamps to my feet, light to my path,” declares Psalm 119.
At the arena's humming glow, this makes sense. This light shines through every quiet moment of prayer, every race, and every reflection.
Several times throughout the Gospels, Jesus hints at this poem sal. “If your whole body is full of light and there are no dark areas, it will brighten up completely like when a light-bearing lamp gives you light.”
In the Chili Bowl, the truth feels alive. The beams of light thrust into the dusty air, creating an almost sacred sparkle. People pray before race, look up after victory, and trust God's protection.
Flagman waving a white flag. 1 wrap – deep into the metal and light oasis, deep into the exhaust and wet clay and burnt rubber perfume.
