(Author's note: I have no idea why this showed up as an NFL post, saying as how I didn't categorize it as one.)
 

This morning started out just like any other morning. I woke up, got out of bed, and poured a bowl of Frosted Flakes. Before getting the milk for my cereal, I always stop and briefly check the headlines of the sports section in my local paper, just to see if there's any articles worthy of reading while I eat. I skimmed past the headlines on the Patriots' trouncing of the Jets yesterday, continued beyond the Univeristy of Rhode Island men's basketball team's narrow victory over Dayton, and saw a headline that absolutely made my heart sink. Bobby Hamilton, Sr., a successful NASCAR driver, had passed away after losing his battle with cancer. He was only 49 years old.

It's difficult to explain why I consider myself a fan of Bobby Hamilton. He had some success, but not a great deal of it, in the Winston/Nextel Cup Series. He's was not particularly young or flashy. For the most part, Bobby Hamilton was the type of old-school southern racer that time had left behind, the very type of racer that young New Englanders like myself supposedly have no interest in following. There were no frills with Bobby Hamilton. He would do his talking on the race track, rather than with the media. He made a far better race car driver than spokesmodel. I don't recall ever seeing Bobby Hamilton in a major national marketing campaign. When Hamilton did speak (oftentimes in victory lane in the Craftsman Truck Series), he lacked the polish and saavy of a man groomed for the public spotlight, making him seem like more of a real, approachable person than many of today's drivers.

It was the personability of Hamilton that made me a fan of his. Bobby Hamilton, Sr. never lost the aura of an average, regular guy that was absolutely thrilled at having the opportunity to live a dream. He was the average, blue-collar American that worked hard at his craft so he could reach the top. Bobby Hamilton wasn't some rich kid that was groomed for success at an early age. He was a guy that had a race car and a dream, and, through hard work and dedication, that dream became a reality.

Goodbye, Bobby Hamilton. You were one of the last of a dying breed, and I will certainly never forget you. In closing, here is a look at some of the career highlights of Bobby Hamilton, courtesy of bobbyhamiltonracing.com:

• 2004 NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Champion.

• Became full-time driver/owner in 2003, winning at Darlington and Homestead to rank sixth in the points standings with 10 top fives and 18 top 10s.

• First Truck Series victory at Martinsville Speedway in 2000.

• First Truck Series pole position at Martinsville Speedway in 1996.

• Has four career victories in NASCAR Nextel Cup Series and eight in Craftsman Truck Series.

• Won Talladega 500 NASCAR Nextel Cup Series race for car owner Andy Petree in 2001.

• Won Nextel Cup race at Martinsville for car owner Larry McClure and finished 10th in final 1998 standings.

• Scored a career-best ninth place finish in 1996 points standings and won first career Cup Series race driving for car owners Richard Petty at Phoenix.

• Qualified fifth in first career Cup Series start in "Days of Thunder" movie car at Phoenix in 1989.

Bobby Hamilton, Sr.

May 29, 1957 - January 7, 2007