Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/125796
! gambol
t-
en
By Ronnie Schneiders
In glancing through recent issues of
. Cycle News I've noticed that they have
S!'.
.;;. Just a b out everything now: reportage,
editorial opinion, comics, classified,
~ even movie reviews occasionally. All
w that's really lacking is a society column.
~ When you think about it, this is a pretty
c3 serious omission. I mean, suppose
~ you're a hostess in the motorcycle set
U
and you're faced with a problem like
whether you should invite Bugsy Mann
and Burrito Romero to the same party.
Both,
of
course,
are
National
Champions, but Bugs has been doing it
so much longer. Without a society
columnist to offer guidance in such
matters, how could a lady know?
Or suppose she was faced with a
choice
between
Tom
Heininger,
President of Webco, and Joe Parkhurst,
publisher of Cycle World. By asking
around, with extreme discretion of
.course, she could find out that Joe was
a wine connoisseur, a yachtsman of
some reputation (for parties of course,
not sailing), the owner of some autos
revealing excellent taste, and of course
he's the most fashionably attired man in
the industry. Tom? Well he's really a
businessman, if you know what I mean.
You can see the problem.
Last week I had a chance to do
something
about
this
deplorable
situation, and not being one to shirk my
responsibilities to the readership, I took
on this new task with great en thusiasm.
The occasion was a most exclusive party
at the Hollywood Hills home of Mr. and
Mrs. Bud Ekins. An invitarion ro this
party is tendered only to Sweepstakes
winners of fabulous Greenhorn Enduro,
which au to matically limits the number
of guests to twenty, plus their wives of
course. Very occasionally, outsiders
such as society reporters and movie stars
are invited, but such occasions are rare.
The last guest was Steve McQueen.
The Ekins' home is ideally suited to a
soiree of this sort. A fine rambling
house in the Spanish motif, it has been
decorated in a manner most befitting its
architecture
with
many
large,
well-chosen plants. Complimenting the
decor is a portion of Bud Ekins'
5100,000
collection
of
antique
motorcycles and bicycles. One rarely
thinks of motorcycles as being suited
for indoor decoration, but a well
restored model of 1920 vintage was the
conversational piece de resistance of
the small, intimate bar which was the
gathering spot of those for whom
drinking is a serious sport.
Mercifully absent from the Ekins'
home was the usual garish display
sym!:>olizing past glories: the trophy
collection. Instead, the plaques noting
Bud's many victories had been stripped
from the accompanying brass and pot
metal and mounted in an interesting
pattern on black velvet.
Seated at the bar when I arrived were
Mr. and Mrs. Bud Howesman (Bud won
the '71 hom), the Bubecks (Max won in
'47 and '62), Bob Steffan (winner in '70
and '72Y, Mr. and Mrs. Dave Ekins (Dave
won in '67). John McLaughlin (winner
in '52), tliree·time winner Del Kuhn,
and host Bud Ekins, who won the horn
in 1953.
The evenin.g's fashion surprise was
Ellie Howesman who is most normally
seen in a set of blue leathers, boots and
helmet, an outfit not calculated to bring
bravos from admirers of feminine
beauty. For this occasion, though, she
was attired in a red and white-striped
hot pants outfit and failed to catch the
attention of only the most jaded eyes.
Bud Ekins carried off the fashion
honors for the men. He was nattily
attired in a white plaster cast which
stretched from his fingers to his
shoulder. The result of trying to shield
the roll bar of his dune buggy from the
ground with his forearm. Being injured
is nothing new to Bud and with the
attitude of winners, he just accepts it
and treats it as an opportunity to learn
something new, in this case how to do
things with his left hand that he
normally does with his right. Bud's big
project of the moment is preparing for
the Baja 1000 which he really wants to
win one of these days.
After a few drinks to loosen things
up, the party moved to the patio, where
more people could be accommodated.
In the cent« of the patio was a cement
planter, a ring about a foot high and 6
feet in diameter which was reserved for
flowers and plants. It was a bit
reminiscent of the beautiful tropical
patio .in \ ashingtoon'g ,I!"", AJIle.ican
Union Building_
1:f
One of the ladies in a short sl