Racer turned race announcer Richard Chambers has died. He was 79 years old and passed away in California after a brief illness.

After a career as a top privateer racer he began an impromptu second career as a race announcer at AMA Superbike races all over the United States. His announcing career was bolstered when he became one-half of the race announcing team at Road America (teamed with Bob Applegate); the pair elevated race announcing from its dry early days to a true source of days long entertainment for race fans at the track.

Chambers was a colorful paddock personality and could tell and re-tell bench racing stories from his career with exquisite detail. He was a member of the old paddock Bad Pit Stop Blues Band and had a radio show in Daytona for a few years before becoming a regular guest on Chris Carter's nightly show.