Racing Is All In The Family For The Loyets

As Chili Bowl action continues this weekend in Tulsa, fans are reminded how for many racing is a family.

For the Loyet family their racing family includes not only mom, dad, brother and sister, but also their dog, Buddy.

"A lot of these teams here are sponsored by some really big people….but this is a family-run operation," said driver Brad Loyet. "My dad owns all this equipment, my dad drives the rig to the track, my mom takes care of all our flights and travel arrangements, and my sister does all the social networking and marketing needs and of course I get to drive and take care of all the cars."

"We have a competition between Buddy's t-shirts and Brad's t-shirts," said Joe. "Sometimes Buddy outsells Brad."

"We call him our crew chief," said Brad. "He doesn't know a while lot about (cars) but he knows enough to not get run over by them."

Buddy wasn't present at the Chili Bowl qualifying rounds because of the fumes in the building, but if the team makes it to the feature this weekend, he could make a special appearance.

"You never know, he might pop in on Saturday," said Joe.

"For um-teen years I was working seven days a week, 18 hours a day and my wife told me to go out and get a hobby and this is the hobby I got myself into," said Joe Loyet.

"If you win this race it's definitely something you can put on your resume for a very long time," added Brad.

The Chili Bowl qualifying rounds continue through Friday with the feature racing taking place on Saturday at Tulsa's QuikTrip Center.