WoO announcer reported missing
Longtime World of Outlaws Case Late Model Series announcer Rick Eshelman remains missing Saturday morning after being out of contact with family, friends and co-workers for nearly 48 hours.
A 61-year-old Michigan native whose announcing career has stretched for 43 seasons, Eshelman was last heard from Thursday morning when departing a Paducah, Ky., hotel. He was en route to the weekend's DIRTcar Fall Nationals at Lincoln (Ill.) Speedway after the scheduled WoO doubleheader at Cherokee Speedway in Gaffney, S.C., and Senoia (Ga.) Raceway was rained out.
According to a Facebook post by Eshelman’s fiancee Melissa Browning Carmichael, Eshelman was traveling in a white Jeep Grand Cherokee with a Florida license plate (LLHV61). She asked Eshelman’s many friends in the racing community to be on the lookout for his vehicle and to message her through Facebook immediately.
Eshelman frequently visits closed and abandoned racetracks during his travels, documenting them with photos and stories on his Twitter feed. Racing historian Bobby Markos posted on Twitter a list of possible tracks that Eshelman might have stopped at between Paducah and Lincoln.
The voice of the WoO tour for two separate, lengthy stints since its rebirth in 2004, Eshelman was inducted into the National Dirt Late Model Hall of Fame in August. He resides in Daytona Beach Shores, Fla.
Correction: Fixes Eshelman's age.