Fitting service for Chris Amon
The traditional two minutes of silence was shattered by the sound of a BMW E12 at full noise.
‘‘Chris wouldn’t want a moment of silence,’’ Michael Clark said of his friend and kiwi motor racing legend Chris Amon.
Amon was remembered in a special service at the Great Lake Centre on Taupo on Monday where more than 70 people turned up to celebrate his milestone life.
Soft, sombre music welcomed the guests in as a slide show of Amon’s racing life, family life, and general life flashed through on the big screen.
Clark spoke of Amon’s childhood and up-bringing, his love for his dogs, his love for his family and, of course, his love for motorsport.
‘‘Chris went to Australia in 1962 for one year,’’ Clark said.
‘‘It was always only going to be for one year and then he would come back and run the farm,’’ Clark said.
‘‘He came back [from the U.K] 15 years later.’’
Bob McMurray spoke after Clark.
‘‘To know Chris was like pulling up a chair, having a chat and sharing a story or two,’’ he said.
‘‘Motorsport, in New Zealand, will feel a whole lot emptier from now on.’’
Tributes from around the world were read out at the memorial, with some coming from other racing legends, Sir Jackie Stewart, Jean Todt - president of Federation Internationale De L’Automobile - and Sir Stirling Moss.
British racing driver, Derek Bell, wrote; ‘‘Without his realising it, he became my mentor. He was really one of the greats,’’ while Sir Colin Giltrap wrote; ‘‘Chris was one of three racing drivers who put New Zealand on the map.’’
Friends and family also got up and spoke.
Simon Rutherford from Ford Motor Company, said Amon was clearly amongst the best.
To finish off the memorial, Chris’ three children - Georgie, Alex and James - spoke of their memories with their father and growing up with a race car legend.
They ended their speech in unison; ‘‘Rest in peace father bear.’’
With that, and one final tribute read, the memorial for racing legend, dog lover, family man, and all round good guy, Chris Amon, came to an end.