Stone Matt - McQueens Motorcycles: Racing and Riding with the King of Cool

Older and grayer, but still tough guys and motorcycling legends. Off-road racing legends Cliff Coleman, left, and Dave Ekins, right, meet up to talk over bikes and old times with Steve McQueen. Scot Carlisle

There were always interesting Hollywood people hanging around the shop in those days. Steve McQueen and Robert Wagner were just two of the big names who would just come through the alleyway of the shop, give us a nod, and make their way unnoticed to the local hot dog stand. Steve was working on his television series Wanted Dead or Alive at the time, and he had previously met Robert Wagner during the filming of The War Lover. Bud was not especially impressed with the Hollywood scene, so it was easy for celebrities to come and go as they pleased without any special attention brought to them.

Bud and Steves friendship grew as the two of them discovered through conversations that they both spent time at court-ordered juvenile camps for at-risk teens. I personally feel that this was the bond they shared, and its the reason their friendship endured for so many years.

Bud told me a story about something Steve used to do late at night in the Nichols Canyon area, where they both lived in the Hollywood Hills. Steve would run his Jaguar XKSS in second gear, then shift into third just as he passed Buds bedroom window. It woke him up every time. This was just Steves way of saying hello to his friend.

Larry Harness, the shop mechanic, and Bud always made sure Steves bikes ran well. Steve started racing the most competitive District 37 races and went from the novice to amateur division in about six months time. That was pretty remarkable. There was a camaraderie in the desert among Bud, Steve, and me. We only raced for trophies and, if Steve fell down, there were no movie execs to fuss over him. The courage it took to be an actor and to race was central to Steve McQueens life: he put himself out there on the stage as an actor and also risked it all for the thrill of racing with a bunch of regular guys. He was one of us.

He also raced sports cars and, in my opinion, he was a better driver than James Garner and Paul Newman, who also shared the spotlight in Hollywood. To me, racing cars is more about money and racing motorcycles is more about courage. For example, Steve entered the Greenhorn Enduro with my brother and me. This wasnt a one-hour event; it was an all-day, ten-hour racing event. By contrast, a sprint race with sports cars usually takes less than an hour and requires a different kind of concentration.

I remember coming up on my bike to Bud and an exhausted Steve along the trail. They were way behind on their checkpoint time, and Steve kept falling off his bike. Bud followed behind him, picked him up, and helped him get going again. Bud would stay with Steve to help him finish.

This was also true when Bud became Steves stunt double. Afraid of crashing and scarring his face, Steve would refer to the demise of Van Johnsons career after a horrible vehicle accident. Steve did not want to risk his film career over facial scars that could be seen on the big screen, so it was only natural that Bud took a place at his side to do the more dangerous stunts. This allowed Steve to shine as the movie hero. Bud made it happen for Steve, and Steve made it happen for Bud.

Steve was very patriotic. At the International Six Days Trial held in East Germany in 1964, he insisted on carrying the American flag at the opening ceremonies, proudly walking between my brother and me in front of a large communist audience. When we first arrived in London to secure our blue van for the drive to East Germany, Steve hired a sign painter to paint the American flag on both sides of the van. He also insisted that the team membersBud Ekins, Cliff Coleman, John Steen, and meall have matching blue blazers with an American flag patch sewn on the left front pocket. He handled every visual detail for our US team and we were grateful for it. This was my first Six Days Trial. I rode a total of four, securing two gold medals and a bronze. Sadly, no event ever came close to the thrill of the one in 1964 with my brother and Steve McQueen.

Dave Ekins, July 2016

S teven McQueen needs little introduction here or anywhere else. Most fans of Steve McQueen know a little something about him. For anyone whos ever wondered more about him as a man than whatever character he may have played on the screen, just take a harder look at those characters, and at his films, and youll get a clear window into his persona. Take, for example, the veteran detective he portrays as Frank Bullitt, who prefers meting out justice to playing politics. Or as the sailor Jake, who develops a speaking relationship with the engine of his ship in