Brothers Turbush battle for super pro truck title
A flagman waves the green flag at Riverhead Raceway. (July 16, 2011) Credit: Daniel Brennan
They may be dueling for a championship, but there's nothing but brotherly love between Chris Turbush and his younger sibling Roger when the two are on the track.
The Turbushes are tied for first in the super pro truck series with 358 points entering Saturday night's penultimate race at Riverhead Raceway. Roger Turbush, who won the 2010 championship, holds the tiebreaker with four wins.
"It's stressful," said Chris Turbush, 36, of Riverhead. "But as long as one of us wins, that's all it comes down to and I'll be happy."
The sons of Riverhead Raceway legend "Dynamite" Dan Turbush, Chris and Roger have been involved in racing "since we were born," as Chris put it. When they weren't watching their father and their uncle, Rusty Turbush, square off at the track, they did what most brothers do: tried to beat each other in basketball, football, and other activities.
"I think following Chris and Patrick and watching them play sports made me become better," said Roger Turbush, 31, of Riverhead. "Of course they had their advantages being older, but I'm starting to come into my own, and it's fun."
That competitive nature exists to this day. The two still playfully try to one-up each other in everything from softball to flag football to bowling.
"Even tying our shoes, we're trying to beat each other," Chris Turbush joked. "That's how we've been all our lives."
On the track, it's a different story. Either brother will gladly take a backseat if it means helping his sibling to a win. "We're like a team," said Chris Turbush, who also serves as Roger's crew chief. "I look out for him out there, and he looks out for me."
That mentality won't change with the championship on the line. Said Roger Turbush: "If it's not me, I'm rooting for my brother."
