Folks Of Interest Dick Trickle RIP....

What a sad end to a legend.....

Here's press release about death of NASCAR driver Dick Trickle:


Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office News Release
Self-Inflicted Gun Shot Takes Life of Racing Legend

May 16, 2013

Lincolnton, NC – Retired race car driver Richard “Dick” Trickle, 71, died today from an apparent self inflicted gun shot wound.

The incident occurred at 12:02 p.m. at Forest Lawn Cemetery on Highway 150 East in Boger City.

The Lincoln County Communications Center received a call apparently from the victim that “there would be a dead body and it would be his “. Communications Center workers tried to place a return call to the number but did not get an answer.

The first emergency units arriving on the scene located the body lying near the victim’s pickup truck.

Trickle was a Lincoln County resident and had lived there since the early 1990’s

 

Sad to hear- but a deal like that , it's over for trickle but leaves a lot of pain for his friends and kin folk. Godspeed, Mr Trickle

 

Why

 

He was at a cemetery, not sure if related.

We raced against him often in ASA and All Pro.

Godspeed 99

 

suicide sucks I have lost a couple of good friends to that I will just never understand WHY......

 

An investigation is underway after deputies in Lincoln County say a NASCAR legend called 911 before committing suicide in a local cemetery. According to the sheriff's office, Retired race car driver Richard "Dick" Trickle, 71, died Thursday from an apparent self inflicted gun shot wound.

Investigators say Trickle apparently went to the Forest Lawn Cemetery on Highway 150 East in Boger City around noon on Thursday.

He used his phone to call the Lincoln County Communications Center and told the 911 operator to come to the cemetery and "there would be a dead body and it would be his." He then hung up the phone.

Communications Center workers attempted to call Trickle back, but he did not answer.

When emergency crews arrived on the scene, they reportedly found Trickle's body lying near his pickup truck.

Dick Trickle was NASCAR legend who actually didn't start with the organization until he was 48-years-old. He won the Winston Cup Series' "Rookie of the Year" in 1989.Trickle, a Wisconisn-native who achieved much success on short tracks outside of NASCAR, made his Cup debut in 1970 but didn't race full time in the series until 19-years later. Prior to NASCAR he had raced as early as the 1950's
Trickle's family lived on welfare, so there was no money available for racing. Trickle spent his summers from young on working for area farmers, starting as a 13-year-old. He also spent a lot of time at the Rudolph Blacksmith shop that his father was a partner in. While his father was ill, his uncle Leonard ran the shop.
"I worked part time at the shop to earn a nickel or dime," Trickle said. "At that age, it was mostly sweeping the shop, but I started to play with the welder and soon I could make an arc and then weld. I started junking machinery. I save some things getting a head start for when I would go racing at 16. I didn't have any money, but I had this pile of stuff to build a race car with. It was a hope chest.
When I turned 16, I let the farmer I was working for keep most the money I earned until fall. That fall I collected my money and went down Main Street wheeling and dealing. I finally bought a 1950 Ford in good condition for $100. It was going to be my street car, but the urge to race got too strong and I cut up and made a stock car out of it."
I did run the car a little bit before I cut it up and I ended up drag racing a classmate, Melvin Hunsinger, who had a 1949 Ford. He beat me. It seems kind of dumb when I already knew there was a car that could beat me. Eventually, I bought Hunsinger's 1949 Ford for $32.50 and put the motor in my car"

His last Winston Cup start was in 2002.

He finished his Cup career with 303 starts, but no wins. Trickle had more than 150 starts in the Nationwide series, the last in 2001, where he won twice.

 

I met him a number of times while working for National Speed Sport News. Loved the guy because you just never knew what he was going to say or tell you. Great sense of humour even if it was sometimes inappropriate!

He was a very competitive short track racer and I followed his career with a great deal of interest. He would come to Canada and it was always a huge rivalry with Junior Hanley, when those two got together they were the show.

Sad news. Rest in peace Dick Trickle.

Condolences to family and friends.

 

Right around the corner practically. Damn....

 

Sad News !!! God Speed Dick Trickle

 

If they had an in car camera in his car you could see him light a cigarette during the cautions. The smokes were usually taped to the crossbar of the rollcage. RIP.


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Godspeed, Dick.

 

I saw him race many times at tracks in Wisconsin. He was a character. One of his cars was on display at the Busch race in Milwaukee and there was an ash tray built into it.

 

So sorry to hear this. But to me he was more of a short track legend than anything else. I heard he won over 1000 features, so many he had lost count. As a college kid in Northern Illinois I saw him race many times in Wisconsin, Illinois and Indiana against racers with family names like Combs, Miller, Wallace, Waltrip, Senneker, Martin, Kulwicki, Sauter, Eddy, Shear, and Lindley to name but a few. He was bad fast. RIP, Dick. Gary
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