Doug Rice, longtime NASCAR announcer for Performance Racing Network, to step back

CONCORD, N.C. (WGHP) – That familiar voice when you’re listening to NASCAR races on the Performance Racing Network is wrapping up his play-by-play duties at the end of this NASCAR Season.

Doug Rice has enjoyed his front-row seat in NASCAR as the lead announcer for the PRN since 1988. Rice, who grew up in Asheville, went to the World 600 with his brothers back in the day and was hooked. He knew he needed to figure out a way to become involved. He got involved in radio while he was a student at Appalachian State. He loves the intimate relationship radio builds with the listeners.

“The light went off, I really like it. And if you were going to cover big-time sports at that time in North Carolina, you had two choices, ACC Basketball and stock car racing,” Rice said. “And I didn’t know anything about basketball. I learned a lot about stock car racing.”

Calling a race on radio is storytelling, using words to build a picture. He learned that from mentors like Hall of Fame broadcaster Ken Squire, but his earlier influences came from baseball on the radio.

“My early influences were baseball announcers listening back to the Braves in the ’60s, and they were awful, but the guys doing the games, Ernie Johnson, Milo Hamilton, were wonderful and here again, storytellers,” Rice said. “And they painted these great word pictures, and I think a little bit of my style, which is kind of laid back, goes back to listening to the guys do baseball games.”

Rice has called some pretty big moments in NASCAR history: Jeff Gordon’s first win, which was in the Coke 600, and who could forget the first race on the ROVAL where Martin Truex Jr. and Jimmie Johnson wrecked and Ryan Blaney snuck in and won.

With calls like those and many more, Rice will forever be a part of the soundtrack of the sport. Drivers, crewmembers and fans look up to Rice as the voice of their generation. Kyle Petty says an announcer like Rice is in the same class as a great driver, just on the broadcast side.

“I think there are periods in the sport that will be remembered for different people, for Richard Petty, for Jeff Gordon, for Dale Earnhardt Sr., for guys like that as drivers,” said Kyle Petty. “But there’s also periods in this sport that will be remembered for Barney Hall, for Ken Squire and for Doug Rice, because that’s the voice that you heard. That’s the voice that brought you to the sport. That’s the voice that brought you your heroes.”

You will still be able to hear Rice on some weekly PRN shows in the future, but, as he takes a step back, he plans to travel the U.S. with some of his extra time and there is no doubt a radio with a race on will be close by.

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