CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Before he came to work at Tri-State Racetrack & Gaming Center in Nitro, Dave Puzzuoli had been in a casino only once in his life.

He lost.

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Patrons find the outgoing Dave Puzzuoli, with his quick wit and razor-sharp repartee, both fun and personable.

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"It's a lot better than working in a stamping plant and punching out headers for a Chevy truck all day," said Puzzuoli, who has been working at the racetrack for about two weeks.

A former bookkeeper, day trader, bartender, helicopter pilot and paratrooper, Puzzuoli heard that Tri-State was looking for blackjack dealers in a radio ad and decided to give the job a try.

"It's like being at a bar," he said. "It's not the bar you get used to, it's the guy who's schlepping the drinks. It's a face you become familiar with, and you keep coming back.

Patrons find the outgoing Puzzuoli, with his quick wit and razor-sharp repartee, both fun and personable.

"David is a good dealer," said Tri-State table games director Ron LaDuca. "He excels at guest service and his guests always have a good time."

CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Before he came to work at Tri-State Racetrack & Gaming Center in Nitro, Dave Puzzuoli had been in a casino only once in his life.

He lost.

Now the 51-year-old Charleston man brings his wheelchair up to the table all week long, dealing blackjack as one of the racetrack's newest card dealers.

"It's a lot better than working in a stamping plant and punching out headers for a Chevy truck all day," said Puzzuoli, who has been working at the racetrack for about two weeks.

A former bookkeeper, day trader, bartender, helicopter pilot and paratrooper, Puzzuoli heard that Tri-State was looking for blackjack dealers in a radio ad and decided to give the job a try.

"It's like being at a bar," he said. "It's not the bar you get used to, it's the guy who's schlepping the drinks. It's a face you become familiar with, and you keep coming back.

Patrons find the outgoing Puzzuoli, with his quick wit and razor-sharp repartee, both fun and personable.

"David is a good dealer," said Tri-State table games director Ron LaDuca. "He excels at guest service and his guests always have a good time."

Puzzuoli's ability to deal cards is not affected at all by the fact that he is physically handicapped.

In 1988, he said, he was driving home from work with his 3-year-old son when he flipped his pickup truck. The boy suffered a broken leg - he's now a Marine - but the elder Puzzuoli would be confined to a wheelchair. "That was a lifetime ago," he said, dismissing the accident.

He said dealing cards is no problem. He just uses a lower blackjack table.

"I call it the short bus," he said. "They brought a shorter table down from Wheeling."

Intended to allow wheelchair-equipped patrons an easier time at the gaming table, Puzzuoli said the low table works just as well when dealing cards.

Puzzuoli said Tri-State was already completely wheelchair-accessible before he came to work at the facility, but that track managers went out of their way to make sure he could do his job without any physical obstacles.

"It was seamless," he said. "There were absolutely no problems."

Reach Rusty Marks at rustyma...@wvgazette.com or 348-1215.