Oakland Raiders Head Coach and legendary sports broadcaster John Madden recently gave his beloved bus called the “Madden Cruiser” to the Pro Football Hall Of Fame in Canton, Ohio.
MaddenCruiser Canton OH #HOF wow!!! pic.twitter.com/jMRgPBYvxA
— Stephaine (@DFF_Stephaine) August 2, 2018
Oakland Raiders Coach John Madden’s “Madden Cruiser” bus arrived in Canton several weeks ago and has recently undergone a makeover to return to its original look. The restored exterior was shown to guests at the Pro Football Hall of Fame throughout the 2018 Enshrinement Week Powered by Johnson Controls.
The original Greyhound bus was converted into the “Madden Cruiser” in 1987. John Madden transitioned from his Hall of Fame Oakland Raiders coaching career into what becamean iconic broadcasting career with CBS and then FOX, and decided he no longer wanted to fly.
Coach Madden opted to travel long distances by train until it became inconvenient and decided a bus would be the perfect alternative.
The “Madden Cruiser” interior is in its original condition and features what was then, state-of-the-art technology, that includes two color televisions, a telephone and intercommunications system, a citizens band radio, two laser disc players, a built-in vacuum cleaner, a stereo system and a videotape player. There is also a queen-size bed in a private bedroom along with a full bathroom and a kitchenette complete with a microwave oven. The bus had several drivers over the years, but Willie Yarbrough of Los Angeles was the first driver of the “Madden Cruiser” that covered 55,000 miles in that first year.
In this update, long-time Zennie62Media blogger Melissa Rubin was at the Pro Football Hall of Fame for the NFL Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony (and to cheer on Baltimore Ravens Linebacker Ray Lewis), when she boarded the Madden Cruiser and took this photo she posted on Facebook, noting that the interior even “smelled old school.”
“We’ve kept the original ‘Madden Cruiser’ for all these years, and when it came for us to decide what we were going to do with it in perpetuity, the only place which made sense
was the Pro Football Hall of Fame. We asked to donate it and they accepted and we are happy that it will be there forever,” shared Raiders Coach John Madden.
Turbo Images coordinated with Greyhound to restore the Madden Cruiser exterior to its original look. Through the efforts of Turbo Images President Pier Veilleux, the company
donated their services to wrap the outside of the bus to make it look as it did in 1987.
Stay tuned.