Jerry Foster's relationship with the Troutman family stretches back more than 30 years — long before Drake Troutman was born in May 2005.

A longtime resident of Pasadena, Md., Foster raced Dirt Late Models against Drake's grandfather, Dave Troutman, throughout the Mid-Atlantic during the 1990s and early 2000s, frequenting Maryland ovals such as Hagerstown Speedway, Potomac Speedway and Cumberland Speedway.

"Just great people, all of them — grandpop, (Drake's father) D.J. was great. They're all just classy people," Foster said of the Troutmans. "They're at the top of the racing family. Those are people at the top as far as I'm concerned — the Troutmans."

Little did Foster know the relationships he forged more than three decades ago would one day lead him to the driver he's now building a national Dirt Late Model team around.

The 21-year-old Troutman's midseason departure from Team 22 Inc. last week — abandoning his fifth-place standing in the World of Outlaws Late Model Series — and subsequent decision to join Foster's fledgling Late Model operation caught many by surprise. But given the decades-long bond between Foster and the Troutman family, the partnership is anything but unexpected.

Foster had long known of the young Troutman through his relationship with the family. But it wasn't until the two parked beside each other in the pits at Volusia Speedway Park in early 2021 — Foster in his No. 5 modified and Troutman in his family-owned No. 7 — that Foster became convinced who he wanted behind the wheel of his own car.

"Here's a 15-year-old telling me, 'Mr. Jerry, you got to let me come down. I think I can make you better in your mod,' " Foster recalled. "What 15-year-old kid tells me he can make me better? I knew the only thing to make me better was going to be younger because Father Time, you lost that battle."

Only months later, the young Troutman's life changed forever.

Drake's father, D.J., died in August 2021 after complications from Covid-19 and pneumonia, thrusting the teenage driver into an entirely different role.

It had long been Drake's dream to build his own Late Model and modified operation alongside his father, so instead of joining Foster, he spent the next two seasons carrying on the family team — racing both cars while helping care for his mother, Lori.

"I just took a liking to him," Foster said. "When his dad passed away, I think he wanted to do his own deal — but it was a lot for him to take care of his mom, being an adult right away, keep racing and stuff."

Even so, Foster never forgot the conversation the two shared at Volusia.

"I planted a seed in his mind," Foster said. "I said, 'Look, I'd love to have you race for me.' I think he spent a year doing his own deal. We were at PRI, and I don't know if Drake that day was a little frustrated — but he walked over to me and asked if that opportunity was still there. I said, 'I'd love to have you.' " 

That December 2022 conversation at the Performance Racing Industry Trade Show in Indianapolis set the partnership in motion. Troutman climbed aboard Foster's No. 5 modified for the 2023 season, replacing York, Pa., veteran Rick Eckert, while continuing to field his family's Late Model through the 2024 season before joining G.R. Smith's Team 22 Inc. in '25.

"Right out of the box we were winning races," Foster said. "We took him to the next level."

Now, Foster hopes that same partnership can produce similar success in the Dirt Late Model ranks as the pair builds toward launching a full-time national program in 2027.

The results of their modified partnership suggest the potential is there. Together, Troutman and Foster have won two of the discipline's biggest events: the inaugural $100,025 Modified World Championship last May at Mississippi Thunder Speedway in Fountain City, Wis., and the 2024 Gateway Dirt Nationals.

The Late Model program, however, won't hit the ground running.

Foster envisioned Troutman joining the operation after fulfilling his commitment to G.R. Smith's Team 22 Inc. through the remainder of this season. Instead, Troutman's unexpected midseason departure accelerated those plans.

"Honestly, Drake told me that he hadn't committed to anything else other than this season for G.R. and that he was going to finish the season with him," Foster said. "I'm like, 'Hey, man, I can appreciate that.' At the end of the day, all you have is your reputation. He's a good kid. He really is."

Troutman echoed that sentiment, emphasizing Foster never attempted to deliberately lure him away from Smith's team.

"Just to make something very, very clear, he didn't call and beg me to come race for him," Troutman said. "He was like, 'We wanna come try this Late Model, if you wanna come drive it, I'd love to have you. If not, I know you already have a prior commitment. If you wanna keep doing that, I'll find someone else to drive it. But I wanna give the Late Model a whirl.' "

But after consecutive engine failures left Team 22 Inc. facing the prospect of replenishing its inventory ahead of a demanding stretch of 10 races in 18 days on the Outlaws tour, Troutman decided the timing of his departure needed to change.

"This wasn't mutual. But where I feel like the mutual part came into it is, like I said, he doesn't want to go out and spend, hell, I don't know, another $200,000 by the end of the year if I was going to leave — if not more than that," Troutman said. "I get it. For one, I'm not one of them people that like to just blow someone else's money. I try to run everything as if it's my own. Hell, I felt terrible we hurt that many motors. It's kind of an awkward situation."

Troutman had "an opportunity to race a couple cars" last Wednesday at I-94 EMR Speedway in Fergus Falls, Minn., to preserve his fifth-place World of Outlaws points standing, "but what am I going to do Friday and Sunday?"

Without a long-term plan in place, Troutman saw little value in cobbling together one-off rides just to remain on the Outlaws tour.

"It is what it is. We have many more years to run a tour," he added.

Troutman emphasized he hopes fans and onlookers understand the circumstances, saying he's "just asking that people don't blow this thing out of proportion more than what it really is."

Foster, meanwhile, has largely stayed out of the public reaction surrounding Troutman's departure.

"I haven't replied to any of that nonsense. I don't need the drama," Foster said. "I'm sorry people are upset, but it's racing. Driver changes happen. They've happened to me. Actually, it has happened to me."

For Foster, the situation boils down to one simple motive: "All Drake is trying to do is make the right decision for the future."

Though Foster built his longtime businesses — Jerry's Siding & Roofing and Emerald Homes — serving the Baltimore-Washington corridor, he relocated more than two years ago to China Grove, N.C., where he now lives 2 miles from Longhorn Chassis headquarters. 

His 22-acre property will also serve as the operation's home base, with a race shop nearing completion that will house both the Late Model and modified teams. The facility includes a bunkhouse for crew members and is being outfitted with bathrooms and a fully furnished apartment to accommodate the team while on the road.

"I wanted to get ready this year for next year. We weren't really that far along," Foster said. "But now we're trying to advance it and get it done quicker."

Troutman said his entire Team 22 Inc. crew — longtime right-hand man Hunter Cornell, Tom Schramm and Aidan Glass — intends to join him in the new venture.

The tentative debut for Foster and Troutman's venture is Aug. 6-8 at Florence Speedway's North-South 100 in Union, Ky. Beyond that, the team plans to compete at Eldora Speedway's World 100 in September and the World of Outlaws World Finals in November at The Dirt Track at Charlotte in Concord, N.C.

"Really, that's all we got planned for this year," Foster said. "He's going to try and race the  modified a little more because, at the end of the day, we all need a little revenue. To keep him racing the modified makes sense because it'll help pay the guys until next season comes along."

In the meantime, Troutman is expected to race a John Johnson-owned Late Model as a teammate to Colton Flinner of Allison Park, Pa., at a handful of events in Pennsylvania and Ohio. His tentative schedule includes the Jay's Automotive United Late Model Series on July 1 at Michael's Mercer Raceway Park and July 2-4 at The Dirt Track at Genesee, with the possibility of also competing in the World of Outlaws weekend July 11-12 at Sharon Speedway in Hartford, Ohio.

As for 2027, Foster said he's leaning toward following the Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series, though the team's touring plans remain fluid.

Foster, the 1996 Potomac Speedway Late Model champion and a 17-time Late Model winner, said Troutman and his team will ultimately make those kinds of decisions when the time comes. His role, he believes, is to assemble the right people and provide them with the resources to succeed.

After 51 years in business, Foster is confident that approach can translate from the business world to the racetrack.

"I'm good at paying the bills and surrounding myself with the right people," Foster said. "I'm not good at everything. Really, with a race team, it's surrounding yourself with the right people, whether it's crew help or the driver or someone that helps you on the business side — getting contracts together and figuring out the right insurances.

"There's a lot that goes into a team. But surrounding yourself with the right people is really the key thing. And Drake is one of them."