I got the thrill of a lifetime a couple hours ago. The phone rang and I almost didnt answer it. I did. It was Mr. Buddy Stubbs. I had recently read an atticle about the cannonball and it mentioned Buddy as one of the oldest competitors, at 71 years young.
Buddy was also a stunt man in Hollywood for years. He owns 2 H-D dealerships in the phoenix area. He rode His 1915 Excelsior, with sidecar, in the Cannonball this year.
I had sent Him an e-mail asking if He knew the whereabouts of any of the Sportsters used in THEN CAME BRONSON. I didnt really think I would get a reply, but thenm came the phone call. He was very nice, and We talked about 30 minutes. He didnt know what happened to any of the the tv bikes, and said that most of the Guys that would, have died. He did say that Von Dutch had a little to do with the overall design of the bike (he thought), but mainly Bud Ekins( Bullit, The Great Escape)was the Guy that designed the Bronson bike.
He told Me His favorite movie He worked on was ELECTRA GLIDE IN BLUE. You old Guys (like Me) will remember it. It starred Robert Blake (Baretta) as a MC Cop, and was filmed in Monument Valley. He said when Robert Blake showed up on the set, he didnt know how to ride a bike! Buddy gave Him a crash course. I remember seeing it when it first came out. Not a great movie, but kind of a must see for MC Guys. The end scene shows Blake getting shot off His bike by drug dealers. I asked Buddy if it was Him, or Ekins doing that stunt. "Nope, that was a Feller named J.N Roberts, ever hear of Him?" Buddy asked. Oh, yeah. I hope I didnt sound too star struck, but damn, how often do you answer your phone and get to talk to a living legend???