David Poole, longtime NASCAR writer who brought enthusiasm to his craft, dies of a heart attack
Why
Over thousands of backstretches and hundreds of checkered flags, David Poole made himself into more than one of the nation's leading authorities on NASCAR. He became a part of the sport he loved. "David Poole was as much a fixture in this sport as the actual cars themselves," driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. said Tuesday. "He was a one-of-a-kind individual and an extremely talented writer." Poole, who covered racing for the Charlotte Observer, died of a heart attack Tuesday at his Stanly County home. He was 50. A Gastonia native, Poole became the Observer's NASCAR writer in 1997. He built a national following through ThatsRacin.com and a daily program he hosted on Sirius NASCAR Radio. The National Motorsports Press Association four times named him its writer of the year. He wrote about the sport with the enthusiasm of a fan and the critical eye of a journalist. "He could be controversial from time to time, but he always wrote and spoke what he believed," said Richard Childress, president and CEO Richard Childress Racing. "He didn't pull any punches with anybody and that's what people respected about him. He was good for the sport." To honor Poole, Sirius plans to broadcast a tribute on Wednesday morning. NASCAR plans a moment of silence before Saturday's race at Richmond. "He was truly one of the nation's best and he always wrote what he believed," said Bruton Smith, chairman and CEO of Speedway Motorsports. "Whether you agreed with him or not, he made us all think, and that's what the best writers do. He cared about what he did and had a passion for his work. It came through in what he wrote every day." In announcing Poole's death to a hushed newsroom Tuesday afternoon, Observer editor Rick Thames called him "the best in his field, there's no doubt about that." Thames said: "David Poole was the fans' reporter, always covering NASCAR with their sensibilities in mind. Their passions were his passions. Their values, his values. If that occasionally clashed with the powerbrokers of the sport, so be it. David told it like it was. And by doing that, he made the sport richer and more genuine for all who love it." As word of his death spread, tributes poured in from throughout the NASCAR community. "So sorry," a reader named Scott wrote on one message board. "I've been ragging on Poole for years through e-mails and his blog. One thing about him, he would always answer back." "I listened to him every day on Sirius, even this morning, in all his glory ranting, like only David could, about Talladega!!!" Leslie from Arlington, Tenn., wrote. "His honesty and truth were greatly cherished." After dramatic weekend crashes at Talledega — one of which sent several spectators to the hospital — Poole criticized the track's design in a column headlined "Will it take a death for Talladega to change?" "It seems we've decided we can live with that much damage being done to the sport's customers for 'good racing,'" he wrote. "How many people have to be listed in 'guarded' or 'critical' condition before we say that's too much?" Roger Curtis, president of Michigan International Speedway, said Poole "made our sport better by expecting as much out of us as he did himself and, believe me, he was never shy about holding us to his standard."
Search Terms:
david poole, david poole dies, david poole charlotte observer, david poole death, david poole nascar, david poole sirius
References:
http://www.bostonherald.com/sports/other_sports/auto_racing/view/2009_04_29_David_Poole__longtime_NASCAR_writer_who_brought_enthusiasm_to_his_craft__dies_of_a_heart_attack/,http://insiderracingnews.com/Daily/2009/Apr/042809.html,http://fullthrottle.cranialcavity.net/rip-david-poole,http://wow-legs.blogspot.com/2009/04/david-poole.html
