Dave Ferroni was the public relations director for the 1980 U.S. Olympic hockey team, so he is familiar with underdog stories and unlikely championships.
Following Lake Placid, Ferroni took a job as the publicist for Brainerd International Raceway. That got him in P.R. for NHRA drag racing teams and then Cup racing in NASCAR. McDonald's was his client for a number of years.
Known to all as "Foof,'' he did the P.R. for Bill Elliott's team. "I did the news release announcing the birth of Bill's son, a baby named Chase,'' Ferroni said.
Chase Elliott is now a 21-year-old of growing popularity in NASCAR's top series, now named the Monster Energy Cup. Elliott did some wiping out with Denny Hamlin in the closing races of the playoffs, eliminating both from reaching the final four that will decide the title Sunday in Homestead, Fla.
Brad Keselowski, Kevin Harvick and Kyle Busch are all former Cup champions. And then there is Ferroni's man, Martin Truex Jr., from Furniture Row Racing.
"Martin's first year with us was 2014, and he led one lap all year,'' Ferroni said. "This year, he has led 2,175 laps, the most in the series.''
Truex has set the pace with seven wins and 25 top-10s. This comes from a racing team based in an obscure warehouse in Denver, while the traditional powerhouse teams reside in emblazoned shops near Charlotte, N.C.
Barney Visser owned Furniture Row, a national chain of furniture stores. He started racing as a hobby at Colorado National Speedway, where Jerry Robertson was a driver. They formed an overmatched team for the secondary Busch Series in 2005.
