CSX, NASCAR’s Regan Smith “Play it Safe”

CSX Transportation has partnered with Furniture Row Racing and the No. 78 Chevrolet Impala driven by Regan Smith in NASCAR’s top-tier Sprint Cup Series as an associate sponsor for the 2012 season. The sponsorship program is built around CSX’s “Play it Safe” highway/railroad grade crossing and pedestrian safety campaign to urge pedestrians and motorists to exercise caution around railroad tracks.

CSX joins Chevrolet and Agro-Culture Liquid Fertilizers in the associate sponsorship role with all three companies complementing the team’s primary sponsors—Furniture Row and Denver Mattress.

“Having a new associate sponsorship arrangement with CSX Transportation along with a renewed agreement with Agro-Culture Liquid Fertilizers and an ongoing relationship with Chevrolet brings a new level of enthusiasm to our race team,” said Joe Garone, general manager of Furniture Row Racing. “The three corporations are leaders in their industry and we are both humbled and proud that they have chosen Furniture Row Racing as a means to enhance their branding and educational initiatives.”

“We are pleased to join with Furniture Row Racing and driver Regan Smith to deliver our important safety message that railroad crossings and tracks can be dangerous if you don’t obey the law,” said Cliff Stayton, Director-Community Affairs and Safety for CSX Transportation. “We are working together to make sure that everyone knows how to play it safe around railroad tracks.”

The Denver-based Furniture Row Racing single-car team and driver Regan Smith enjoyed a breakthrough Sprint Cup season in 2011. Smith and Furniture Row Racing captured their first career NASCAR victory in May 2011, winning the famed Southern 500 at Darlington (S.C.) Raceway. Smith drove his No. 78 Chevrolet to one victory, two top-fives, and five top-10s last season. He scored top-10s in NASCAR’s four biggest races—Daytona 500 (seventh), Southern 500 (first), Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway (eighth), and the Brickyard 400 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway (third). Smith also competes in NASCAR’s Nationwide Series and Camping World Truck Series.

Associate sponsor Agro-Culture Liquid Fertilizers manufactures and markets environmentally friendly liquid fertilizer products. Incorporated in 1983, the St. Johns, Mich.-based agricultural company owns the largest fertilizer research farm in the U.S. dedicated to plant nutrition. The company has partnered with Furniture Row Racing’s Farm American program, an initiative to bring awareness to the importance of keeping America’s food supply produced in the U.S.

Chevrolet is one of the world’s most popular car makes, selling cars and trucks in more than 140 countries and selling more than four million cars and trucks a year. From a competition standpoint in NASCAR, Chevrolet and its iconic bowtie logo have been dominant with nine consecutive manufacturer championships and 35 overall, in additio