Easy Riders bike will sell at auction

The Captain America chopper, arguably the most famous motorcycle in history, will sell at auction on October 18.

The star-spangled Captain America bike was ridden by Peter Fonda in the 1969 bikersploitation film Easy Rider. Fonda and co-star Dennis Hopper’s choppers from the film were cultural icons, but after the wrap, only one of the four bikes involved in production had survived.

There were two Captain Americas and two “Billy bikes” (as Hopper’s machine was known) built for filming, but when the work was done, one Captain America was wrecked, and the other three bikes were stolen, never to be seen again. Presumably, they were chopped up for parts.

The torched Captain America bike was rebuilt, and given to actor Dan Haggerty. Haggerty hung on to the sole surviving bike until last year, when he sold it to California businessman Michael Eisenberg, who is now in turn putting it up for auction. Eisenberg had a personal interest in the bike, as he used to own a bike-themed restaurant in conjunction with Fonda and Hopper.

The bike is being sold by the Profiles in History auction house.

The choppers in Easy Rider were originally built by African-American customizers Cliff Vaughs and Ben Hardy, out of four ex-police bikes (Harley-Davidson Panheads).