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Happy Fathers Day

Writer's picture: Bruno@RacingwithbrunoBruno@Racingwithbruno

Updated: Jun 16, 2024

My father, Angelo, and I used to bond watching Italian's national soccer team.


Every major tournament I feel him next to me watching the games.


Its time for Euro2024, the European National Championship, just in time for Fathers day.




We like to thank CDI for running their Saturday program in the evening, to accomodate Italia's 1st match of the tournament.


My father, Angelo, liked the horses and soccer was his passion, his nickname was 'Boffi' named after Aldo Boffi, a striker for the Italian national team in 1938-39, as he had a wicked heavy shot lilke Aldo. I learned to play from him.



This is my time I spend with him these days, he passed away on labor day 2006.


Angelo was a very serious individual as his family came first.


Angelo shared with me his story with horseracing, in the 50s, a motorcycle was his means of transportation around Napoli.



In Italy late 1940s early 50s there was a lottery, you could buy a ticket and it would give you a horse to a designated race in Torino.


He rode his motorcycle from Napoli to Torino, 8 hour ride, one way 550 miles or 886 Kilometers.


His horse ran third, he used to always tell me 'i cavalli devono avere il treno posteriore'. In translation 'horses have to have the engine behind'. He knew who Federico Tesio was, I think I got those racing genes from him.


Waching this match with Albania and Italia tying the game in 10th minute with a header from Bastoni I can hear him say "Bello!"


Everything is better when you have a passion with a parent, my mom, Tina, loved to watch soccer and she used to always gear her comments to "Anno corso'', 'They ran', especially in losses.


We are our parents, and most of us got the racing bug from our family.


My father had dimentia and was bed ridden later in his life, I recall a few weeks before his passing, Italia had won the World Cup in 2006. He had lost all movement in his right arm after a stroke, a year earlier.


I whispered in his ear we had won World Cup, he raised his right hand and grabbed my hand.


He was a great man, a dedicated man and as Italia's Barella makes it 2-1, he jumped three feet off the couch, just like he did when Paolo Rossi powered Italia to the 1982 World Cup. I can still see him lift off off his recliner.


He is with me everywhere, when I drove to Chicago from Louisville to attend a Derby party at Arlington Park, he was with me on the drive throughout.


What about your family, your dad?


I wish all of your Fathers a Happy Fathers Day.

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