Darlington's tireless Tommy Britt surely in line for honor

TOM HIGGINS' SCUFFS

Monday, Nov. 23, 2009

Tim Richmond’s face grew redder and redder, his voice louder and louder.

Richmond was talking on a telephone with some acquaintance, and the conversation grew more heated by the second.

It was 1986, a year during which Richmond solidified his NASCAR stardom by driving to seven victories, including a triumph in the storied Southern 500 on Labor Day weekend at Darlington Raceway in South Carolina.

The scene of Richmond’s phone call, in fact, was the infield media room at Darlington, a day after he’d taken the pole for the 500 in 1986.

It wasn’t a matter of eavesdropping. Richmond was shouting so loudly that everyone in the room was privy to what he was saying.

Finally a media wretch, writing on deadline, complained that Richmond was a distraction.

The speedway’s Tommy Britt, charged with overseeing operations in the media center, tapped Richmond on the shoulder.

“Sorry, Tim, you’re going to have to leave,” said Tommy. “These phones are reserved for the press. And on top of that you’re causing a ruckus in here and people can’t work.”

Richmond argued there was nowhere else nearby to make his call.

This was before the advent of cell phones, remember.

Richmond reluctantly hung up the phone. After a few hot words for Tommy, he left the building in a huff.

There was a round of appreciative applause for Britt from members of the press corps who were present.

Britt smiled and nodded.

He had faced far worse than an angry NASCAR star of Richmond’s magnitude. Tommy fought in Vietnam with the Army from 1968 to '70. He was awarded the Vietnam Service Medal with three Bronze Stars.

You’d never have known about Tommy’s war experiences. He never spoke of them, at least not to me.

I’m recalling all this because my friend Tommy Britt passed away on Nov. 17 at his residence in his beloved Darlington after a fight with cancer. He was 62.

I phoned Tommy in October. He said brightly, “I’m having a good day. I can walk.”

I sat and cried.

A stocky, rotund guy, Tommy’s favorite sports, in order, were NASCAR Sprint Cup racing, Clemson football, and all athletics at the local high schools, Darlington and St. John’s.

Every time I encountered Tommy I greeted him with the opening lyrics of Clemson’s fight song, “Hold That Tiger!”

He would grin and reply, “Chula!,” a nickname of Basque origin he tagged on me in the late 1970s after we'd attended a jai alai match.

By my count, Tommy worked under five different track presidents at Darlington Raceway, mainly in the public relations department.

In my opinion Tommy Britt ranks high among the most popular representatives in the raceway’s history, which dates to 1950.

Surely, speedway officials will name something in Tommy’s memory.

May I suggest the infield press room, where Tommy worked so tirelessly and efficiently during Darlington’s race weeks. Where he even had the guts to evict a NASCAR star.

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