The Final Lap: Motorsport legend André de Kock dies at 72 [Video & Pictures]
· Citizen
Motorsport has lost a legend with the death of André de Kock.
The Citizen’s former Motorsport Editor died yesterday after a short but intense battle with cancer at the age of 72.
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Andre de Kock poses for a picture at The Citizen offices in Johannesburg, March 2021. Picture: Michel BegaA life lived at full throttle
André will officially go down in the annals for being a motorsport scribe who reported for The Citizen for over four decades, earning a Lifetime Achievement award from Motorsport South Africa in the process.
But those close to him had the privilege to know a kind man with a warm heart and a sharp wit. And while his hard-charging maverick days of old were long gone at the time of his death, his unshackled spirit remained larger than life.
Apart from racing anything that mankind has unleashed on a race track, including hearses, sidecar motorbikes and three-wheel cars, his wild ways saw him perform dozens of death-defying stunts.
Whether it was being strapped to the top of a rocket car with a self-confessed flimsy seat belt cut from a scrap car or jumping over an untested ramp through a flaming steel ring, André lived life to the fullest.
Two of his most cherished achievements were the Guinness World Records he earned for riding through the longest fire tunnel on a motorcycle with a sidecar and on a quad bike.
He remained hell-bent on bettering the “paltry” quad bike record of 36.59m with his partner in crime Enrico Schoeman.
Veteran stuntmen Andre de Kock, left, and Enrico Schoeman celebrate after successfully completing two stunts that saw Schoeman ride a Harley-Davidson through a tunnel of fire and De Kock crash a car through a pyramid of flaming cars, 1 July 2017. Picture: Michel BegaALSO SEE: Citizen journalist defies death
Yet André still found wonderful ways of being entertaining even when there were no flames involved.
Between reading his computer the riot act or persuading you to watch the MotoGP race instead of the cricket or rugby on the big screen at the office, there was never a dull moment with him around.
Without even trying, he constantly had us in stitches. It could be a frantic call from the highway saying his test car’s cruise control is stuck on 30km/h and he doesn’t know how to change it.
And the next day, his pet pig Pumba had chomped through the charging cable of the electric car he was sampling at his house.
He said the mishaps are clear signs that he is being punished for his “sins from the past”, with the conversation incomplete with reference to his three ex-wives.
A legacy measured in stories, not possessions
André’s colourful storytelling was his trump card. In describing how he got involved in motorsport in the first place, he could have easily just said that he fell in love with the Adrenaline Game at a 9-hour race at Kyalami shortly after matriculating.
But he cranked up the revs to deliver another colourful masterpiece for the ages.
“For the first time, I got drunk. For the first time, I got laid. For the first time, I knew exactly what I wanted to do with the rest of my life. I wanted to get laid some more,” he wrote.
“I also decided that I would, somehow, find a way to spend the rest of my life around motorsport and the people who partake in this cruel, crazy, beautiful game.
“I’m going to die poor, but I collect experiences instead of possessions.”
Exceptions included an impressive collection of motorsport books, pictures, and other memorabilia he proudly collected during his career.
The last of the great motorsport characters
Right until the bitter end, André never strayed from his chosen path.
When he couldn’t go to his beloved Zwartkops Raceway last month due to the same medical reasons that took his life, he was more worried about who was going to report on the racing than he was about his own health.
He insisted on covering motorsport events for us even without pay for years after retiring.
ALSO SEE: On the fiery pursuit of Guinness glory
It was that kind of unwavering commitment that saw him call his dear mother from the office at exactly the same time every Sunday afternoon.
And take a cake to his AA meeting on the anniversary of his sobriety for over 20 years.
He loved saying they don’t make racing greats like James Hunt anymore.
What he didn’t realise is that he was cut from the same cloth as those irrepressible characters that inspired him.
Rest in peace, dear André; we miss you already. André is survived by his long-time partner Muriel.