Checkered flag for character extraordinaire Dick Brooks

By DAVID GREEN

Stock car racing fans from the late 1960s and the following decades knew him well, and fans from the 1990s who listened to Motor Racing Network broadcasts of NASCAR races knew by heart his standard introduction to victory lane ceremonies: "There's a bunch of happy people down here."

In contrast to that emotion, there's sadness in the racing world this week. Dick Brooks -- 1969 Grand National rookie of the year, winner of the 1973 Talladega 500, and character extraordinaire -- is gone.

Brooks died Wednesday at his home near Spartanburg, S.C. He was 63. The cause of death was believed to be heart failure.

To begin his stock car racing career, Brooks came from Porterville, Calif., to the city that at the time was the hub of the sport -- Spartanburg, home of championship team owners Bud Moore and Cotton Owens and of one of NASCAR's all-time great drivers, David Pearson. Pearson had won Grand National championships in 1966 and again in '68, and he would win the title again in Brooks' rookie year.

According to legend, when Brooks competed in Speedweeks activities leading up to the 1969 Daytona 500, it was the first time he had ever been present at a NASCAR event. He started 33rd and finished 32nd in the 500, which featured a 50-car field.

Brooks quickly established himself as a plenty capable driver, scoring three top-five and 12 top-10 finishes in 28 races en route to the 1969 rookie title. He claimed his 94th top-10 in 358 career starts by finishing 10th in his final race, the 1985 Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.

He won only once, in the ill-fated Talladega race in the fifth year of his career. The single victory belies his talents, according to Pearson. "He was a lot better driver than he got credit for," Pearson said of Brooks in a story published in the Spartanburg Herald-Journal.

When he first came to NASCAR, Brooks was known by his more formal given name, Richard. Along the way, the name was shortened to Dick. The more informal nickname never would have worked with the regal driver named Petty, but it was just right for Brooks, probably the only radio sportscaster in history whose regular uniform was a pair of blue denim bib overalls.

In addition to helping broadcast races, Brooks became a successful businessman in his adopted hometown. According to the Herald-Journal obituary, he was more than just a local celebrity with a racing connection. The article described him as "a former NASCAR driver, radio correspondent, philanthropist and Upstate businessman" and lauded his charity work.

In recent years, Brooks made the news by surviving first a motorcycle wreck and then a mishap while taxiing in an aircraft on the landing strip on his rural property near the Woodruff community.

Those who never knew of Brooks' exploits as a driver or of his down-home, unpolished style as a broadcaster can never appreciate what the sport has lost. Those who knew him will miss him.

Rest in peace, Dick.