Growing up on a farm, he began riding a moped as a child, and competitive speedway at the age of 17.

In British speedway, Kyllingstad would earn "an annual salary far exceeding that of a regular industrial labourer in Norway".

[7] Kyllingstad then rode in the top tier of British Speedway from 1985 until 1988,[8] riding for the King's Lynn Stars,[9] Oxford Cheetahs and Sheffield Tigers.

He was disillusioned with the speedway milieu in England, which he described as "too harsh", claiming that his manager tried to pressure him to continue racing after Kyllingstad crashed and sustained a concussion.

By 1997, he still earned a normal fulltime salary from speedway, combined with working in a paper factory during offseason.