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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 census, the town had a total population of 59,713. The urban center of the town is the Manchester census-designated place, with a population of 36,379 at the 202 ...
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 cap ...
.


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 second ...
. 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 Quinnipiac University () is a private university in Hamden, Connecticut. The university grants undergraduate, graduate, and professional degrees through its College of Arts and Sciences, School of Business, School of Engineering, School of C ...
. 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 y ...
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 ''l ...
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 Sleep deprivation, also known as sleep insufficiency or sleeplessness, is the condition of not having adequate duration and/or quality of sleep to support decent alertness, performance, and health. It can be either chronic or acute and may vary ...
. 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- most p ...
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 Sprin ...
.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 Fo ...
; Retrieved January 23, 2008
He stopped racing after his racecar climbed a dirt bank at
Boone Speedway Boone Speedway, also known as “Iowa’s Action Track", is a 1/3-mile high-banked dirt oval raceway located in Boone, Iowa. Races are held on Saturday nights sanctioned by the IMCA. Regular events include Modifieds, RaceSaver 305 Sprint Cars, S ...
, 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 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 or ...
'' 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'' 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 fou ...
''. The National Motorsport Press Association 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 traffic ...
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. T ...
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%). The co ...
. 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 Entertainme ...
, 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 t ...
, 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 La ...
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 ...
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 ...
''. 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 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. In 1971 ...
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 The National Sprint Car Hall of Fame & Museum is a Hall of Fame and museum for Sprint car racing, sprint car drivers, owners, mechanics, builders, manufacturers, promoters, sanctioning officials and media members. The museum is located in Knox ...
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 England A ...
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 popul ...
, he now lives in
Ipswich, Massachusetts Ipswich is a coastal town in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 13,785 at the 2020 census. Home to Willowdale State Forest and Sandy Point State Reservation, Ipswich includes the southern part of Plum Island. A reside ...
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