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to get,” she explained. “So, we just took that
on for them and it was really something Spire
Motorsports Group appreciated, and something
that really connected with our employees.”
The partnership is appreciated on all sides.
“Sherri is the queen of the highway — everything
she touches is gold,” said TJ Puchyr, coowner
of Spire Sports+Entertainment. “She’s
always paying attention to detail. When you’re
around her, you see how she affects her employees
and customers. She just does a great
job.
“She’s doing stuff for us that she doesn’t
need to be doing. She always over-delivers, like
with these two beautiful, brand-new Freightliner
Cascadias,” he continued. “Because of
the sponsorship, it helps with the morale at the
trucking company. It’s something everybody
there can get behind, rally around, galvanize
with each other and have that pride. I think
that’s a pretty powerful thing.”
The Garner-sponsored car — a Next-Gen
Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 1LE — is piloted by
third-generation racer Corey LaJoie, who says
he appreciates the relationship not just because
of the monetary aspect, but also for the
way Garner Trucking conducts its business and
takes care of its employees.
“You try to look for (sponsor) companies
with similar values and ethos as yours — of just
working hard and treating people right,” LaJoie
said. “Garner Trucking, and their whole family,
are the epitome of that. They treat their drivers
great. They are stand-up people.
“It’s been a lot of fun meeting those folks and
going to a couple shows with the family,” he
continued. _Garner is a super tight-knit, familyrun
business. They’ve definitely helped us out
by making our fleet look strong with those two
brand new Freightliners. They make us proud to
roll into the racetrack every week.”
Success on the racetrack has been slow in
coming, but the company is nonetheless maximizing
the benefits of its sponsorship. Tim
Chrulski, COO of Garner Trucking, says the relationship
feels less like a business arrangement
and more like family.
“We had an opportunity to have dinner with
the two (truck) drivers here in Findlay, Ohio, and
it was an absolute pleasure to have dinner with
them. Very much salt of the earth. Very much
like our drivers,” Chrulski said.
“We’re going to work with Spire to get their
truck drivers through the shop here when
they’re at Michigan,” he added. “As much as
our employees like Corey, they actually get starstruck
over the racing team’s truck drivers too.
It’s pretty cool to see that interaction.”
TCA JULY/AUGUST 2023 www.Truckload.org | Truckload Authority 43