This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 11/4/2017
Brad Andres, now an 81-year-old property management executive in San Diego, was once one of the most successful competitive motorcycle riders in racing history. Competing professionally since the age of 18, Andres won countless times including three Daytona 200 races, the first coming in his rookie season of 1955. The late E.C. Smith, meanwhile, served as the Executive Secretary of the American Motorcyclist Association (AMA) for 30 years (1928 to 1958). Taking the reins from the AMA’s first secretary, A.B. Coffman, Smith became the AMA’s first full-time employee. During Smith’s administration, the AMA moved from Chicago to Columbus, Ohio, and really began to take the form that it has today.
This lot features the 1956 E.C. Smith Most Popular Rider trophy that was awarded to Andres after yet another successful season of racing in 1956. The tarnished trophy stands 30 inches tall, but is missing its motorcycle rider on top as well as one of the celebratory female wreath holders from its center pedestal. The largely metal trophy sits atop a six-inch-tall wooden base that stretches 12 inches wide by 12 inches deep. The base includes an engraved plaque that reads as follows: “BRAD ANDRES E.C. SMITH TROPHY MOST POPULAR RIDER 1956.”
Includes Letter of Provenance from the San Diego Hall of Champions.