October 7, Long Beach, NY--- Late this afternoon, we were shocked and horrified to learn of the death of Deane Mercier on Monday, October 6th. Deane was the Editor In Chief, along with Senior Columnist of Long Island Motorsports News, as well as the Host Announcer for Stafford Motor Speedway. Mercier worked in radio for 35 years as a talk show host and DJ, and a correspondent for The Hour newspaper in Connecticut.
              
(Photo courtesy of Karen Miller)

    I first met Deane a decade ago while writing for the Area Auto Racing News. He was as quick to give me a hand in the pressbox at Stafford as he was to make an off-color comment (which usually had me hysterical). He was a great friend to me in both good times and bad.

    Deane was quick with a joke, had an eye for the ladies, and could never wait to get back to his home in Norwalk so he could "head over to the cantina".

    However, there was a side that most didn't see. Deane suffered tremendously from Migraines which came on with little warning. Although they seemed to come most when the weather was cold, he wasn't immune at any other time of the year.

    I can remember this past spring when an attack came on while we were driving back from Stafford Motor Speedway late on Friday night. I still can't figure out how he managed to drive though it. And as much as he loved and couldn't wait to get to his job at Stafford, he dreaded the walk up the the steps each week to the pressbox with his bad leg.

    Final arrangements are pending, and we'll have it here, or on the front page of the website as soon as it's available.

    In the meantime, we invite you to go to the Press page on Long Island Motorsports News (www.LongIslandMotorsports.com), and read some of the gems that Deane penned for us over the page two years. We'll also miss him for his wonderful work taking the raw columns from our columnists, and turning them into work that they, and us, can be proud of.

    But most of all, I'll miss my best friend.