Truex's girlfriend passes milestone in cancer recovery - MotorSportsTalk

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Martin Truex Jr. enters this season with a new perspective that has little to do with what happens on the track.

Sherry Pollex, Truex’s longtime girlfriend, tweeted Monday that she had completed a round of chemotherapy as she recovers from her bout with Stage III ovarian cancer. She has a year’s worth of what Truex calls “maintenance” chemotherapy, but those sessions will not be as frequent.

“It’s a huge weight off my shoulders, obviously hers,’’ Truex said Thursday at the NASCAR Sprint Cup media tour. “It will certainly be a lot easier to be at the racetrack and not be worried about her and what’s going on.’’

Pollex had surgery Aug. 15, a week after her diagnosis. Doctors removed her appendix, spleen, ovaries, fallopian tubes and part of her stomach. Truex missed qualifying at Michigan to be with her for that surgery. He didn’t miss a race although car owner Barney Visser said he could if he needed to do so.

I’m just happy to be alive & to be here to make memories w/my loved ones. Life is so precious. Love one another & live life to the fullest!🙏

— Sherry Pollex (@SherryPollex) January 26, 2015

“There were days it sucked to be at the racetrack, especially at the end of the season when she was going through her thing, but there was never a time where I didn’t want to be there or didn’t feel that I should be there,’’ said Truex, who finished 24th in the points with five top-10 finishes in 36 starts. “Honestly, there were times last year when I felt like when Thursday came around it was time to go to the racetrack. I really enjoyed that. I needed that getaway. I needed to get to the racetrack and take out some frustration and get with the guys and be a part of the team even though it wasn’t going good. At times it was therapeutic for me to be there and be doing my thing.’’

With Pollex passing a milestone in her recovery this week, Truex admits he has a new attitude.

“We all get inspired by people at some point, but when you see somebody go through something like that and it’s the person you love more than anyone in the world it takes it to a new level,’’ he said.

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In a continuing effort to help fans keep track of the on track action, SuperMotocross is in the process of developing and implementing leader lights for the unified series.

Currently Supercross (SMX) utilizes stanchions in the infield that are triggered manually by a race official. At least two stanchions are used in each race as a way to draw the eye to the leader, which is especially useful in the tight confines of the stadium series when lapping often begins before the halfway mark in the 22-bike field. This system has been in place for the past two decades.

Later this year, a fully automated system will move to the bike itself to replace the old system. At that point, fans will be able to identify the leader regardless of where he is on track.

The leader lights were tested in the second Anaheim round this year. An example can be seen at the 1:45 mark in the video above on the No. 69 bike.

“What we don’t want to do is move too fast, where it’s confusing to people,” said Mike Muye, senior director of operations for Supercross and SMX in a press release. “We’ve really just focused on the leader at this point with the thought that maybe down the road we’ll introduce others.”

Scheduled to debut with the first SuperMotocross World Championship race at zMax Dragway, located just outside the Charlotte Motor Speedway, a 3D carbon fiber-printed LED light will be affixed to each motorcycle. Ten timing loops positioned around the track will trigger the lights of the leader, which will turn green.

SMX’s partner LiveTime Scoring helped develop and implement the system that has been tested in some form or fashion since 2019.

When the leader lights are successfully deployed, SuperMotocross will explore expanding the system to identify the second- and third-place riders. Depending on need and fan acceptance, more positions could be added.

SuperMotocross is exploring future enhancements, including allowing for live fan interaction with the lights and ways to use the lighting system during the race’s opening ceremony.

Truex’s girlfriend passes milestone in cancer recovery

SuperMotocross set to introduce Leader Lights beginning with the World Championship finals

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