For 51 weeks each year, Tyler Carpenter is a typical grassroots racer born and bred in the state of West Virginia. But for one week in December during the Castrol Gateway Dirt Nationals at The Dome at America's Center in St. Louis, Carpenter is a damn legend. 

“People have dreams and dreams come true.  This is a true dream, I’m telling you right now.”

That were the words of Carpenter after winning the Saturday night A-Main at the Gateway Dirt Nationals in December 2019, completing a weekend sweep that saw him win his heat race and his preliminary A-Main in a thriller.  Two years later, he went back-to-back at Gateway and won himself a NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series ride with Niece Motorsports for the 2022 race at Knoxville Raceway.

In a way, Tyler Carpenter is the Castrol Gateway Dirt Nationals.

“There’s nothing else like it, it’s an event all its own.  It’s like the UFC of dirt racing the way I see it, I love everything about it.  It suits me to a T,” said Carpenter.  “I’ve run a lot of little tracks around the house with a lot of character in it; it’s like being home to me.”

The Dome at America’s Center is the ultimate equalizer in dirt racing.  The 1/5th mile takes the race out of the equipment and into the hands of the driver.  That is just part of what makes the Gateway Dirt Nationals one of Carpenter’s favorite races.

“You just throw the biggest parts of your setup sheets in the trash and you run the heck out of your car and hammer down.  It’s more for a guy who likes to get elbows-up and has an aggressive racing style, everything about it suits me.  I like racing hard and battling with guys and seeing metal fly.  I hate having to repair the stuff at the end of the night but it’s the finale of dirt racing for all of us.  If you’ve not been there you’re missing out, I highly recommend going there and checking it out.

“I can go there and run at the tail end of the B-Main and you’ll see me smiling ear-to-ear.”

VIDEO: Tyler Carpenter reacts after winning his second Castrol Gateway Dirt Nationals in 2023.

During the bulk of the race season, “The Kamikaze Kid” is a weekly racer out of West Virginia who competes around his home state plus Ohio and Kentucky.  When he arrives to St. Louis, he becomes the driver to watch and the drivers fans love or hate. 

The Gateway Dirt Nationals provides Carpenter with an opportunity to race for money normally not seen in his region, and he races accordingly.

“The Dome is my chance to do what these guys do all year.  These guys are used to running up front and competing for $50,000 and $100,000 to win races.  I don’t get that opportunity, the biggest races I compete for weekly are for $5,000 to $10,000.  That’s one race that I legitimately have a shot at winning $30,000.  I don’t care who likes it or who doesn’t, at the end of the day I’m giving it all I’ve got.  If it takes some tire smoke or some sheet metal flying, you’ll best believe I’m going to let them have it.”

While he races hard at Gateway, Carpenter expects the favor to be returned to him while on the track this weekend.    

“I expect to get shoulder checked as well.  I go there knowing it’s going to be a rough and rowdy race.  NASCAR guys don’t go into Martinsville thinking they’re going to get out of there scratch-free so I don’t go there thinking I’m going to.  I’m going to get out of there beaten and battered with some patches and hopefully a check.  At the end of the night me and my family are happy and we’re proud all winter long and even if we don’t, we’re still pumped.  Just to have our name amongst everyone else’s who’s somebody in dirt racing is an honor for me.”

The Castrol Gateway Dirt Nationals move to Thursday-Saturday, December 14-16 at The Dome At America’s Center in downtown St. Louis, MO.  The COMP Cams Super Late Models and Summit Racing Equipment Modifieds will battle it out over three days for $30,000 for Late Models and $10,000 to win for Modifieds.

All three days of the Castrol Gateway Dirt Nationals will be streamed live on FloRacing. If you're not a FloRacing subscriber, click here to sign up today.