DICK BERGGREN - 05/27/1942
a motorsports announcer and magazine editor from Manchester, Connecticut in the United States. He is commonly seen wearing a trademark flat cap. Berggren began racing in 1967 and won 26 events before his driving career ended in 1981. He raced SuperModifieds, Modifieds, stock cars, and sprint cars. He stopped racing after his race car climbed a dirt bank at Boone Speedway, causing over 200 people to scatter to avoid being hit. Dr. Berggren wrote for local newspapers early in his career. He worked for Stock Car Racing magazine while he taught at Emmanuel College and raced on the weekends. He later became the magazine's editor. After 22 years with the magazine, he left in 1999 to start Speedway Illustrated. Berggren began his announcing career at Arundel Speedway in Maine. He has announced in many genres of
motor sportsover the course of his career. He announced the 1979 Daytona 500 for the Motor Racing Network radio network. He began his television career at NASCAR races in 1981 as a pit road reporter for ESPN. He has announced for NASCAR races at CBS, TBS, and TNN. He has worked the pits for the Xfinity Series, and Craftsman Truck Series (now the Camping World Truck Series), as well as the World of Outlaws sprint cars. Berggren was the lead pit reporter for NASCAR on Fox from 2001-2012. He covered events in NASCAR's Sprint Cup Series from Daytona to Dover. In May 2012, Berggren announced he would retire after Fox's broadcast of the 2012 FedEx 400 at Dover International Speedway. Afterward he commented, "After the Fox portion of the year ends, I've always traveled to local tracks where I still enjoy sitting in the stands with a hot dog in one hand and a beer in the other, watching the local heroes. I can’t get enough of local-level racing so I'll do more of that now." However, Berggren did return to CBS (where he had previously worked until 2000) for a limited schedule of pit reporting ARCA telecasts during the 2014 season. Berggren ended up working the three races for which CBS held the broadcast rights. Berggren was well liked among his peers who lovingly called him "Dr Dirt"; (as in he has been around as long as dirt) and always kidded him on air about being old. Dr. Berggren was inducted into the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame in 2002. He was inducted in the New England Auto Racers Hall of Fame in 2008. Berggren received the 2007 Bobby Isaac Memorial Award for his outstanding contributions to short track racing.
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