“That‘s what makes the world go round. You can buy all the stuff you want but you won‘t be successful without good people. We sat down and figured out how to structure the deal in a way that felt comfortable to both of us. We formed the Murray-Marks team and it has been a hell of a ride. It is so great to have the Murray family invest in my career. They are doing it for the love of racing and I am so appreciative of that.”
Marks had worked with Dennis “Fud” Crist previously, but to round out his new team he turned to veteran crew chief Heath Moyle. Moyle had spent his entire life around the sport. Moyle competed in karts at Selinsgrove Speedway while he was in elementary school, but eventually “the expense got out of hand.” He gave stock cars a try, but in the end decided he would be better served by using his mechanical skills.
Moyle took his first steps on this side of the sport by helping noted 360 sprint car racer Davie Franek. He later hit the road with the World of Outlaws, working with numerous teams including Kasey Kahne Racing.
Moyle won at Williams Grove as car chief for Shane Stewart and also triumphed with Stewart during the 2015 Kings Royal.
Yet, by the time Marks reached out, Moyle had already checked the Outlaw tour off his bucket list. In fact, when he stepped away from a position at Heffner Racing Enterprises, he had different priorities.
For Moyle everything was turned momentarily upside down in a California parking lot. He was directing traffic as rigs were being repositioned when he realized he was about to be crushed between two trailers. He remained conscious while he heard his arm and back break. It was worse than that. He also suffered a ruptured spleen and significant damage to his left hand.
He spent a few days in intensive care, but after his arm was repaired with a titanium plate and other necessary treatment was completed, he was released from the hospital. Amazingly, he spent the next two weeks traveling with his team and doing the best he could to recover in hotel rooms. Finally, he made his way home to Pennsylvania.
Once home he had an additional procedure on his left hand but was not out of the woods. The so-called tendon transfer was completed, but immediately following the intervention any movement in his index finger also triggered his thumb. He was forced to literally retrain himself on how to use this hand. Through it all, he realized that his No. 1 priority now was his health. All he could do was grit his teeth and try to power through it. Moyle will likely face some discomfort for the remainder of his life. But to this day, recovery is a work in progress.
As Moyle pondered his next move, he received a call from Marks.
“We were supposed to work together before, but it never really panned out,” Moyle said. “After I left Heffner, I talked to a few other teams, but I told them if you are going to do the Outlaw tour, I‘m not interested. I‘m just over that part of my life, at least I was at that point, because I was only back from my injuries for two years. I didn‘t know how my body was going to react.
“In my mind I‘m still trying to recover and get built back up,” he added. “Brent was the first to call so I told him I wasn‘t interested in doing the Outlaws. He said we would keep in touch. When he decided on his schedule, we came to an agreement.”
Once the pieces were in place, it didn‘t take long for the new team to gel.
“We‘ve all been friends for years, so everything felt comfortable right from the beginning, “Marks said. “We all work together. I will throw things out there and they listen and then they throw out ideas of their own. This isn‘t a one-man band. It doesn‘t work that way on my team. We‘re pretty structured and I‘m a part of everything that goes on here. I like it that way and the guys like that the driver is super involved. It just works for us.”
Moyle agreed.
“With Brent you could not ask for a more low-key guy,” Moyle said. “Sometimes you have to kick him in the shins to get him to say anything. I have worked with more vocal guys. With Brent we will talk about it and he will walk away. Then he comes back and we will talk about it some more. Everyone here has been on the Outlaw tour. Fud and I have worked together before, so we all know where we need to be.”
Marks has structured the operation out of pragmatism and self-awareness.