A year ago today the racing community was stunned as they learned of the death of Chuck Amati "The One-Arm Bandit". Not a days goes by that something I do or say doesn't remind me of him. He loved racing and it loved him, he loved the other racers and adored the fans. So please today instead of being sad, I want to celebrate Chuck's life. I want to print off the messages you send a make a book to give to his great grandsons who will never get to see him or enjoy watching him race that Sprint Car. Please share your memories with me, and celebrate Chucks life the way he lived it...full out. Thank you for sharing and caring. Love to you all.

Thank you for the reminder. I was thinking of Chuck the other day, and knew we were coming up on that time of year when we lost him.

Chuck was one of the most enjoyable and interesting people I've ever known, and I will never forget him.

I posted this photo about this time last year and thought it was appropriate to do so again. It was the first time I had ever met Chuck. You're right, he was great with the fans. He made a fan of me for life. He will always be greatly missed by everyone who ever met him. I still love those "driving shoes".
David.

when he raced ,this is the time of year he would be getting ready to head to florida, i alway's liked seeing him at the florida state fair racing at plant field . he and opp had some good battle's there.

I remember Chuck just flying at Lawrenceburg in the late 70's in the Larry Curtis robin-egg blue #4 Shores Sprinter. I also remember being up at Kokomo in the early 80's for a 50 lapper. The Eldora nationals were going on at the same time but, had rained out that day. Well, Sammy Swindell pulled in with the Nance rig, pulled the wing off, changed the gear and ran that night. Chuck was in Dick Briscoe's #5. Sammy had the best equipment money could buy, including a Gaerte 410, while Briscoe was still running 3-9/16" 350ci strokers back then. Chuck got the jump on Sammy at the start and led 48 of the 50 laps. I believe there was contact between the two on Sammy's pass but, they didn't crash. It was a fabulous race watching Swindell trying to get around Amati the entire feature. Sammy won it but, it wasn't easy. He had to pull a BONZAI to do it!! Chuck was a great sprint car driver and ran up front in just about anything he drove.

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Miss him.....

Thank You all for the nice comments and for keeping my grandpas memory alive in this thread and past threads. Being a daily "lurker" here on IOW i have read every one. It has been a hard year to say the least. It was very hard even being at the track without him. I have neglected to thank everyone who has been there for me in many ways over the last year. I appreciate every handshake, every comment, every story and i hope my actions have reflected that. Thank You again,

Shane Wade

To Shane Wade:
Shane, it sure was a lot of fun chatting with you this year at I-55 Raceway, MO. and Tri State Speedway in Haubstadt, IN. The stories about your grandpa are ones I will always remember. Ths last time I saw Chuck win was at St. Francois County Speedway, in Farmington, MO. - A good day was had by all, as we cheered him on. Shane, I am looking forward to visiting with you in 2010 at the race track.

To Chuck Amati - Auto racing fan favorite, veteran, champion, legend, and friend:
I sure miss you at the race track and talking racing. All the years I saw you race the sprints and Silver Crowns I will always remember, those were the good ole' days and a lot of fun. Still to this day my daughter who is all grown up remember's you racing the sprints at Tri City Speedway, IL. -RIP my friend-

Have a good day...see you at the races in 2010.

Rich - Arnold, Missouri

We miss you, Chuck.
Racing just was not the same this year
without the "One Arm Bandit" to guide us.

I remember Chuck Amati showing up at Haubstadt in the Bruce Cogle Ford in the early 70's. He would always make my day with his appearance because I knew it was gonna be ON. On those Sunday nights in 1971 ect. the competition was tough. Chuck would be racing with Bubby Jones,
Dick Gaines in Karl Kinsers #11, Hooker Hood, Larry Miller, Butch Wilkerson, Cliff Johns, Cliff Cockran just to name a few and it was anybodys feature win and Chuck won a bunch of 'em.