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A former NASCAR Cup Series crew chief has taken center stage for a new documentary. Cole Pearn, who won a championship with Martin Truex Jr., has put his backcountry skiing business on full display.
“The Pit Boss,” a creation of Salomon and the Blank Collective, focuses on Pearn’s life after he walked away from the NASCAR Cup Series. He discusses his major career change that involves running Golden Alpine Holidays and its four lodges situated in the Canadian Rockies, as well as his lifelong love of skiing.
As the documentary shows, Pearn’s life no longer revolves around race cars, pursuing victories, or examining film after wins and losses alike. Instead, he guides self-described “ski bums” around the slopes between the four lodges, cleans outhouses, and chops wood.
“It’s always hard to take a big turn in your life’s path but this one for me was definitely worth it and one I don’t regret,” Pearn said in a statement to Heavy. “It’s been unique to see that highlighted in the documentary and I hope that others resonate with the message of finding the joy in new life experiences.”
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Pearn & Truex Joined Forces for 2 Dozen Wins
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GettyCole Pearn guided Martin Truex Jr. to 24 wins.
Pearn worked with multiple NASCAR teams as an engineer early in his career before making the leap to the pit box. He spent time with JTG Daugherty Racing, Richard Childress Racing, and Furniture Row Racing before ultimately landing a role as Truex’s crew chief for the 2015 season.
Pearn and Truex achieved a considerable amount of success during their time together. They won once during their first season — making Pearn the first Canadian crew chief to win a race — before competing in the championship race. They increased the number to four wins in 2016, but the 2017 season was their best together as they won eight total races and ended the year as champions.
The duo won a combined 11 races in 2018 and 2019, finishing second in the championship standings each year. He and Truex had an opportunity to win their second title together in 2019, but a costly mistake became too much of a hurdle. The pit crew accidentally switched the left and right tires during a Stage 2 pit stop and cost Truex valuable time.
Pearn announced a major change after the title race and confirmed that he would walk away from NASCAR to pursue other opportunities. He didn’t provide details at the time about what the future held. He just simply explained how he wanted to see his kids grow up instead of missing the important moments due to the grind of the NASCAR schedule.
“Everybody that works in the sport understands the grind of what the schedule is, and to do it at the top level, you gotta be all the way in,” Pearn said during a December 2019 appearance on SiriusXM NASCAR Radio. “I was somehow making it work I think with our family before my kids got in school. And then once they’re in school and you’ve got a day off on a Thursday, it doesn’t really matter. You pretty much go all week and you barely see them, and I didn’t want to look back on my life and miss those moments.
“For me to get the opportunity to work in racing has just been a dream come true, and then to have the success we’ve had just blows my mind. I feel like from that standpoint when you achieve more than you’ve ever dreamt, you look at the other things in your life that you’re missing. And yeah, it just felt like it was time.”
Furniture Row Racing Provided Pearn With a Unique Opportunity
As Pearn explained in the documentary, Furniture Row Racing wasn’t exactly the logical spot for him. The team was not the most competitive in the Cup Series considering that it had one win dating back to the 2005 season — Regan Smith in 2011. However, Furniture Row Racing provided Pearn with a unique opportunity.
“So all of the teams — pretty much — in NASCAR are based in North Carolina, and there was one team based in Denver,” Pearn explained in the documentary. “At that point in time when I went to work there, it was not a very good team.”
Pearn explained that he flew out to Denver to meet with Furniture Row Racing, but he did not plan on accepting the job. However, the situation changed after he spent the night in Denver. He went and explored the foothills of the Rockies, ultimately realizing that he could work in racing and still live in the mountains.
This setup worked until the end of the 2018 season. Furniture Row Racing folded, so Truex and Pearn moved over to Joe Gibbs Racing. They spent one final season together and nearly won a second title, but Pearn ultimately moved on with his life and took on a new challenge.
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