James Sherwin "Bud" Ekins was an American professional stuntman in the US film industry.
21 Facts About Bud Ekins
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Bud Ekins is considered to be one of the film industry's most accomplished stuntmen with a body of work that includes classic films such as The Great Escape and Bullitt.
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Bud Ekins was recognized for his stunt work by being inducted into the Stuntmen's Hall of Fame.
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Bud Ekins was an accomplished off-road motorcycle racer in motocross and enduro events, and helped pioneer the sport of desert racing.
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Bud Ekins was inducted into the Off-road Motorsports Hall of Fame in 1980, and the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame in 1999.
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Bud Ekins helped McQueen learn off-road racing and the actor became an accomplished motorcycle racer.
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Bud Ekins represented the United States at the International Six Days Trial, a form of off-road motorcycle Olympics which, is the oldest annual competition sanctioned by the FIM dating back to 1913.
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Bud Ekins received a gold medal at the 1962 International Six Days Trials in East Germany, and was part of the 1964 US ISDT team with his brother, Dave Ekins, John Steen, Cliff Coleman and McQueen.
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Bud Ekins rode a 650cc Triumph TR6 Trophy alongside teammate Steve McQueen in the 1964 International Six Days Trial.
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Bud Ekins won four gold medals and a silver during his seven years of competing in the ISDT during the 1960s.
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Bud Ekins helped pioneer the sport of desert racing in 1962 when his brother Dave Bud Ekins and Bill Robertson Jr.
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One of these challengers to Bud Ekins' record run was Ed Pearlman, who decided to organize a yearly off-road race that became known as the Baja 1000.
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Bud Ekins raced alongside Steve McQueen in the inaugural Baja 500 in 1969 and subsequently won overall.
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Bud Ekins worked with fellow Off-Road Hall of Fame Inductee, Vic Hickey for five years, helping him to build the Baja Boot racer.
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Bud Ekins drove three races for Steve McQueen and Drino Miller, another Off-Road Hall of Fame Inductee.
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Bud Ekins is best known as the actor who jumped the fence on a motorcycle in the 1963 film The Great Escape, and one of the stuntmen who drove the Ford Mustang 390 GT in the car chase scene in the 1968 film Bullitt.
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Bud Ekins coordinated the stunts for the popular 1970s motorcycle cop show CHiPs.
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Bud Ekins eventually became one of the best stuntmen in Hollywood.
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Bud Ekins continued doing stunt work until he was in his mid-60s, his stunt career spanned 30 years.
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Bud Ekins was inducted into the Off-road Motorsports Hall of Fame in 1980 and into the Motorcycle Hall of Fame in 2009.
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Bud Ekins died at the age of 77 on October 6,2007, in Los Angeles, California.