Ben Campanale Archive photos from Don Emde Collection.


en Campanale twice won the Daytona 200 (1938 & 1939) as well as numerous other championship races in his legendary racing career. But when the last checkered flag fell, his days in motorcycling were not over. After moving from his home in Rhode Island to California, “Campy” first worked as a motorcycle mechanic at Rich Budelier Harley-Davidson in Hollywood where he struck up a friendship with movie star and motorcycle enthusiast Clark Gable. The rough photo shown above in the middle is a copy of a signed 1942 photo from Ben’s scrapbook that reads: “To my friend & best mechanic Campy. Clark Gable.” A few years later, Ben opened a Harley-Davidson dealership of his own in nearby Pomona that he and his wife Anna operated for about ten years.
     Ben lived out his years in California before moving back to the east coast when his health began to fail. He passed away in 2003 at age 89.