Forza Amon
23/11/2005 God forgive me for saying this, but, sadly, Chris Amon is just a little too old to seriously consider taking part in GP Masters, though his many fans - of which I proud to admit I am one - are confident that the Kiwi could 'see off' Messrs Mansell, Fittipaldi and Jones. Amon first raced in an F1 Grand Prix in 1963 (Spa Francorchamps), and though just over three years older than Emerson Fittipaldi, it was 1970 (Britain) before the Brazilian made his F1 debut. Amon's F1 career, which began with a Lola entered by Reg Parnell, and ended with a one-off drive for Walter Wolf in the Williams in 1976, included time at Ferrari, March, Matra, Martini, Ensign, and even a short-lived stint as constructor. In the same way that Francis Albert Sinatra was the singers' singer, Amon was the driver's driver, highly respected by his contemporaries, including Jackie Stewart. Sadly, other than a fine win in the Le Mans 24-Hours, with fellow Kiwi, Bruce McLaren, Amon will forever be remembered as the greatest driver never to win a Grand Prix, as opposed to Stirling moss, the greatest driver never to win the World Championship. The Chris Amon story was best told in a 2003 book by another Kiwi - and sometime Pitpasser - Eoin Young. Forza Amon told the whole story, and Chris was very much involved in the book, a book that his fans had been anticipating for many years. "God blessed him with the most amazing talent for driving racing cars," writes Jackie Stewart, in his foreword. "He must have been one of the most skilful and natural drivers ever to grace Formula One… Why Chris never won a Grand Prix is a conundrum that few people who were around at the time will ever fathom. It was nothing to do with his driving abilities… Chris was one of the best racing drivers I ever knew or saw in action." Praise indeed! Since Chris rarely leaves his native New Zealand, most fans are unlikely to get their copies of Forza Amon signed. However, we hear from Mr Young that a limited number of copies signed by author and subject are now available. Having been mentioned in the book (page 219), I am delighted to reveal that I had my copy signed some time ago, courtesy of another sometime Pitpasser, Michael Clark, who was the one to get Chris to really 'open up', thanks largely to copious amounts of Scotch. Anyway, if you're a fan of 'the man', or you know someone who still longs for the days when Ferraris were scarlet, devoid of advertising and the mechanics wore brown overalls, why not surprise them with something special this Christmas. To order your copy, or simply find out more about this special signed edition, contact, fazazz@ihug.co.nz Chris Balfe
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