Interview: Tom Kendall – Part I

Tom Kendall may be best remembered for his dominant 1997 championship season in the SCCA’s Trans-Am series when he set a record with 11 consecutive victories in Jack Roush’s All Sport Ford Mustang on the way to his fourth Trans-Am crown, but he’s much more than that. He began his pro career as a teenager, winning IMSA’s Firehawk and GTU championships before he turned 20. The GTU crown was the first of three straight titles before he moved into Trans-Am, where he took his first championship in his second season. That success helped land a competitive GTP ride in the Riley-built, Chevrolet-powered, Jim Miller-run Intrepid, but a huge crash at Watkins Glen shattered his legs and sidelined him for many months. Although he bounced back to win in sedans, claiming an IMSA GTS title in ’93 and three more Trans-Am crowns in ’95, ’96 and ’97, he never made it back into prototypes or realized his dream of racing single-seaters. He still likes to keep his hand in, but he’s also turned his attentions toward television, serving first as an excellent race analyst before getting his own show. Last year he was inducted into the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America, and these days is preparing to go vintage racing. VR Associate Editor John Zimmermann recently visited with Kendall to discuss his ongoing accomplishments. This is the first of two parts.

How did you first become involved with racing?