Brooks came of age as a racer at a time when NASCAR offered modest financial rewards. He worked as a mechanic at a garage on Lynchburg's Mayflower Drive Monday through Friday to cover expenses that race winnings could not. His approach to the sport was practical and unadorned — he raced to support his family, without the corporate sponsorships that funded the elite teams of his era. He was known among those who watched him as a driver more at home on dirt tracks than paved surfaces, and he famously wore sandals while racing during the summer months, a practice that was eventually prohibited as NASCAR adopted stricter safety standards. Among his contemporaries was Wendell Scott, who would become the first African American to win a race in what is now the NASCAR Cup Series.
Brooks made 43,196 laps in professional NASCAR competition, equivalent to roughly 33,402 miles of racing. He competed in 165 starts across his career, recording three top-five finishes and 37 top-ten finishes while leading 24 laps in total. His average starting position was 23rd, and he improved on that to an average finishing position of 20th.
Notable results included top-five finishes at the 1963 South Boston 400, the 1969 Fireball 300, and the 1971 Nashville 420. His first top-ten finish came in 1962 at New Asheville Speedway, and his final top-ten finish was at the 1971 Georgia 500.
Brooks found his best form at Chattanooga International Raceway, where he averaged an eighth-place finish over the course of his career. His most difficult circuit was Atlanta Motor Speedway, where he averaged a 31st-place finish. The disparity reflected his strengths: on traditional NASCAR dirt tracks he averaged a 15th-place finish, compared to a 28th-place average on intermediate tri-ovals where smooth paved surfaces and high banking disadvantaged his style.
His preferred car was the No. 7 Dodge, sponsored by Reid Trailer Sales and owned by Buddy Arrington. Total career earnings in the NASCAR Cup Series amounted to $125,701, equivalent to roughly $557,000 adjusted for inflation. His single best earnings season was 1969, when he took home $34,793.
Without a Cup Series victory to his name, Brooks was ineligible for the NASCAR Hall of Fame under the rules governing that institution.
Brooks was enshrined in the Lynchburg Area Sports Hall of Fame in 1997 in recognition of his efforts to promote the local community through NASCAR. He remained in Lynchburg throughout his life and never relocated to the sport's larger centers in Charlotte or Daytona Beach. He was buried at Spring Hill Cemetery in Lynchburg following his death on July 21, 2010, survived by children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren.
His career stands as a record of what it meant to compete in NASCAR's early decades without factory support or major sponsorship — a self-funded effort sustained by mechanical skill and determination rather than commercial backing.