Chuck Leonowicz played football and baseball at Ithaca College. After graduation he opened a line of fitness clubs in Northern Virginia and several near Albany, New York. After his Olympic bobsled experience, he settled in northern New York and later started a landscaping business. He stayed active in sports, playing in twilight softball and baseball leagues, and also coached baseball at Burnt Hills High School. Leonowicz took up cycling as a way to stay in condition, and despite being in what was considered excellent condition, in September 2000, while on a ride, he got very dizzy and pulled over the to side of the road. He was seen by onlookers and rushed to the hospital but died from a massive heart attack.