Kody Swanson

Driver of the #19 Team ASE/Oakley/Ed Pink Toyota Midget

Shining star Kody Swanson from Kingsburg, California, is a relatively new face to the talented Nine Racing team, but his first full season in the #19 midget has started out strong, as Kody earned his first USAC National Midget Series triumph in April 2008, winning the 40-lap feature race--and leading all 40 laps--at Southern National Raceway Park in Kenly, North Carolina.

Kody has been around racing his entire life, no doubt influenced by his dad Mike, Madera Speedway track champion in four different divisions. Kody attended his first race when he was just three weeks old, and didn't know anything but racing for a very long time. While he was unable to be in the pit area during races because of California age requirements, he always sat in the stands with his mom Darla to watch, and he went down to the pits afterward. Racing has always been a passion for Kody.

Kody started racing 100cc Yamaha Junior Sprints in 2000, at 12 years old. In 2002, he raced against adults in Stock 600 Mini Sprints. He made his USAC sprint car debut at the famous Turkey Night Grand Prix at Toyota Speedway at Irwindale at the end of 2004, and in 2005, during his first full season in sprint cars, he was USAC Western States Sprint Car Series Champion.

Kody ran his first USAC National Midget Series race at the end of 2006 at the Turkey Night Grand Prix, and, from his success at Turkey Night, caught the eye of car owner Steve Lewis to fill the #19 seat at the Mopar-PRI Sprint & Midget Classic at Orlando SpeedWorld, held in conjunction with the annual PRI Trade Show. He not only thrilled the crowd in the midget, but also drove double duty, scoring a win in the event's sprint car feature. Kody ran a partial schedule in 2007 for Nine Racing, and his first full-time season with the team began in 2008.

Kody describes midgets as one of a kind. They're high horsepower makes them extremely fast, but their short wheel base makes them a real challenge to handle, even on pavement, as they can be twitchy or darty. In one instant, the car might seem to be going in one direction and it can change in a heartbeat. For Kody, this type of racing keeps him on his toes, making midgets a lot of fun to drive.

While Kody doesn't have a favorite track, he does enjoy certain qualities about each track he races on. He's done well at O'Reilly Raceway Park in Indianapolis, and believes that with a little luck, he can have a lot of success there.

Kody's favorite day in racing, so far, occurred at the PRI Trade Show in December 2006. The day stands out for two reasons: 1) it was the first time he won a national event--driving for his family team TK Motorsports in the sprint car; and 2) climbing into the #19 midget, with the challenge after his sprint car win of starting at the back of the midget race for an opportunity to win $50,000.

While he didn't grab the big money, the experience alone was priceless.

Kody attends the Smittcamp Family Honors College, an honors college program at California State University, Fresno. He was given a full-ride scholarship based on academics in high school, which enables him to continue his education and pursue his dreams in racing. He's majoring in mechanical engineering and agriculture business and expects to graduate in the spring of 2010. While Kody does lead a bit of a double life--he flies to the Midwest to drive for Nine Racing, gets back on the plane to head home, and then starts doing homework--the race champ and 4.0 student has the drive to do it all and be successful in everything he does.