Richard Berggren (born May 27, 1942) is a motorsports announcer and magazine editor from
Manchester, Connecticut
Manchester is a town in Hartford County, Connecticut, United States. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the town had a total population of 59,713. The urban center of the town is the Manchester (CDP), Connecticut, Manchester census- ...
in the United States. He is commonly seen wearing a trademark
flat cap
A flat cap is a rounded cap with a small stiff brim in front, originating in Britain and Ireland. The hat is known in Ireland as a paddy cap; in Scotland as a bunnet; in Wales as a Dai cap; and in the United States as an English cap, Irish ca ...
.
Academia
Berggren described himself as "the worst student" in
high school
A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...
.
No college accepted him, so he accepted a job as an office boy at
United Aircraft
The United Aircraft Corporation was an American aircraft manufacturer formed by the break-up of United Aircraft and Transport Corporation in 1934. In 1975, the company became United Technologies.
History
Pre-1930s
1930s
The Air Mail scandal ...
.
He later was accepted at
Quinnipiac College.
Berggren transferred to
Southern Connecticut State University
Southern Connecticut State University (Southern Connecticut, Southern Connecticut State, SCSU, or simply Southern) is a public university in New Haven, Connecticut. Part of the Connecticut State University System, it was founded in 1893 and is ...
, where his girlfriend Kathy was a student.
He graduated with a
bachelor's degree
A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...
in 1965.
Berggren earned a
doctorate
A doctorate (from Latin ''docere'', "to teach"), doctor's degree (from Latin ''doctor'', "teacher"), or doctoral degree is an academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism ''li ...
in
psychology
Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Psychology includes the study of conscious and unconscious phenomena, including feelings and thoughts. It is an academic discipline of immense scope, crossing the boundaries between ...
from
Tufts University
Tufts University is a private research university on the border of Medford and Somerville, Massachusetts. It was founded in 1852 as Tufts College by Christian universalists who sought to provide a nonsectarian institution of higher learning. ...
in 1970. His
dissertation focused on
sleep deprivation.
He was a psychology professor at
Emmanuel College in
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
for nine years.
One day, the only vehicle available in his driveway was his truck, which was still attached to his race trailer. He drove the truck to the college and parked it in the faculty parking lot. The racecar was covered in mud, but his name and sponsor decals were visible. Berggren was called to the university president's office and told to remove it immediately. "I knew right then and there that my academic career and my racing didn't go together anymore," says Berggren. "At the time, my racing was going incredibly well and I needed to do it while I was still young. I felt I could always go back to academia."
Driving career
Berggren began racing in 1967 and won 26 events before his driving career ended in 1981. He raced
SuperModifieds,
Modifieds
Modified stock car racing, also known as modified racing and modified, is a type of auto racing that involves purpose-built cars simultaneously racing against each other on oval tracks. First established in the United States after World War II, ...
,
stock cars
Stock car racing is a form of automobile racing run on oval tracks and road courses measuring approximately . It originally used production-model cars, hence the name "stock car", but is now run using cars specifically built for racing. It ori ...
, and
sprint cars
Sprint may refer to:
Aerospace
*Spring WS202 Sprint, a Canadian aircraft design
*Sprint (missile), an anti-ballistic missile
Automotive and motorcycle
*Alfa Romeo Sprint, automobile produced by Alfa Romeo between 1976 and 1989
* Chevrolet Sprint ...
.
[Dick Berggren, NASCAR on Fox pit reporter]
; February 13, 2007; Fox Sports
Fox Sports is the brand name for a number of sports channels, broadcast divisions, programming, and other media around the world.
The ''Fox Sports'' name has since been used for other sports media assets. These assets are held mainly by the F ...
; Retrieved January 23, 2008 He stopped racing after his racecar climbed a dirt bank at
Boone Speedway, causing over 200 people to scatter to avoid being hit.
"The very thought that I had written so many stories about racing safety, and had the chance to literally kill or maim a lot of people, I think 'til the day I die when I tell that story, it'll be emotional. It was one of the most important moments of my life. I'm just forever thankful that nobody got hurt."
Editing
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
Speedway may refer to:
Racing Race tracks
*Edmonton International Speedway, also known as Speedway Park, a former motor raceway in Edmonton, Alberta
*Indianapolis Motor Speedway, a motor raceway in Speedway, Indiana
Types of races and race cours ...
'' in partnership with the owners of ''
Down East, The Magazine of Maine
''Down East: The Magazine of Maine'' is the principal general interest monthly magazine covering the U.S. state of Maine. Ulrich's Periodical Directory It is based in Rockport, Maine with a second office in Yarmouth, Maine. ''Down East'' was foun ...
''.
The
National Motorsport Press Association
National may refer to:
Common uses
* Nation or country
** Nationality – a ''national'' is a person who is subject to a nation, regardless of whether the person has full rights as a citizen
Places in the United States
* National, Maryland, c ...
named Berggren the 1999 Writer of the Year.
Both magazines cater to
short track motor racing
Oval track racing is a form of closed-circuit motorsport that is contested on an oval-shaped race track. An oval track differs from a road course in that the layout resembles an oval with turns in only one direction, and the direction of traff ...
fans.
Announcing
Berggren began his announcing career at Arundel Speedway in
Maine
Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and ...
. He has announced in many genres of motorsports over the course of his career. He announced the
1979 Daytona 500
The 1979 Daytona 500, the 21st annual event, was the second race of the 1979 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season. It was held on February 18, 1979. Sports pundits consider the 1979 Daytona 500 to be the most important race in stock car history.
Th ...
for the
Motor Racing Network
Motor Racing Network (MRN) is a U.S. radio network that syndicates broadcasts of auto racing events, particularly NASCAR. MRN was founded in 1970 by NASCAR founder Bill France, Sr. and broadcaster Ken Squier, and is a wholly owned subsidiary of ...
radio network.
He began his television career at NASCAR races in 1981 as a pit road reporter for
ESPN
ESPN (originally an initialism for Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by ESPN Inc., owned jointly by The Walt Disney Company (80%) and Hearst Communications (20%). Th ...
.
He has announced for NASCAR races at
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...
,
TBS, and
TNN. He worked the pits for the
Busch Series
The NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) is a stock car racing series organized by NASCAR. It is promoted as NASCAR's second-tier circuit to the organization's top level Cup Series. NXS events are frequently held as a support race on the day prior to a ...
and
Craftsman Truck Series
The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series is a pickup truck racing series owned and operated by the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, and is the only series in NASCAR to race production pickup truck based stock cars. The series is one of th ...
, as well as the
World of Outlaws
The World of Outlaws (often abbreviated WoO) is an American motorsports sanctioning body. The body sanctions two major national touring series. It is best known for sanctioning the World of Outlaws Sprint Car Series and the World of Outlaws Late ...
sprint cars.
He also hosted the
Speed Channel
Speed was an American sports-oriented cable and satellite television network that was owned by the Fox Sports Media Group division of 21st Century Fox. The network was dedicated to motorsports programming, including auto racing, as well as aut ...
show ''
NASCAR Performance
The following is a list of programs formerly broadcast by American and Australian television channel, Speed.
Final programming
Sports programming
Racing series
* AMA GNCC Racing
* AMA Arenacross
* AMA Superbike
* AMA Supercross
*American Le M ...
''.
Berggren was the lead pit reporter for
NASCAR on Fox
''NASCAR on Fox'', also known as ''Fox NASCAR'', is the branding used for broadcasts of NASCAR races produced by Fox Sports and have aired on the Fox television network in the United States since 2001. Speed, a motorsports-focused cable channel ...
from 2001-2012. He covered events in NASCAR's
Sprint Cup Series
The NASCAR Cup Series is the top racing series of the NASCAR, National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR). The series began in 1949 as the Strictly Stock Division, and from 1950 to 1970 it was known as the Grand National Division. ...
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
Dover Motor Speedway (formerly Dover Downs International Speedway and later Dover International Speedway) is a race track in Dover, Delaware. The track has hosted at least one NASCAR Cup Series race each year since 1969, including two per year ...
. 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.
Acting
He appeared as himself in the movie ''
Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby''.
Awards
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 The New England Auto Racers Hall of Fame is a hall of fame for racing-related people in the New England region of the United States. NEAR was established in 1981. The New England Auto Racers Hall of Fame was established in 1998 by the New Englan ...
in 2008. Berggren received the 2007
Bobby Isaac
Robert Vance Isaac (August 1, 1932 – August 14, 1977) was an American stock car racing driver. Isaac made his first NASCAR appearance in 1961, and quickly forged a reputation of one of the toughest competitors of the 1960s and 1970s. He was most ...
Memorial Award for his outstanding contributions to short track racing.
Personal
Born in
Westerly, Rhode Island
Westerly is a town on the southwestern shoreline of Washington County, Rhode Island, first settled by English colonists in 1661 and incorporated as a municipality in 1669. It is a beachfront community on the south shore of the state with a popula ...
, he now lives in
Ipswich, Massachusetts with his wife Kathy.
References
External links
Speedway Illustrated website*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Berggen, Dick
1942 births
American television sports announcers
Living people
Motorsport announcers
People from Ipswich, Massachusetts
Sportspeople from Manchester, Connecticut
People from Westerly, Rhode Island
Racing drivers from Connecticut
Racing drivers from Rhode Island
Sportspeople from Essex County, Massachusetts
Sportspeople from Washington County, Rhode Island
Tufts University School of Arts and Sciences alumni