#PONCHO PONCE LICENSE#

Unfortunately, fans of the show didn't love his replacement, Bobby “Hot Dog” Nelson, played by Tom Reilly. Of course, not to be outdone, Wilcox also left the show prior to the final season. MacLeish slowly disappeared when Estrada’s contract was settled. They hired the decathlete to play Officer Steve MacLeish for seven episodes thanks to his motorcycle skills and for the publicity, as he was a celebrity for winning Olympic gold and fresh off the Wheaties cereal box. Scrambling, producers hired Olympian Bruce Jenner, who is now Caitlyn Jenner. Estrada bailed on season five due to a contract dispute. Since the two biggest stars on the show failed to get along, you can only imagine the tension on set. Today, he works for the Southern Virginia Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force. Finally, Estrada actually became a police officer. MGM gifted him a $100,000 Rolls Royce Corniche when he returned to filming. They actually filmed scenes from his hospital bed, as the show must go on.

One of the first positively portrayed Latinos on television broke eight ribs, his sternum, collarbone, and wrist.

Then, to top it off the motorcycle landed on him. According to reports he flew over the handlebars and hit a parked car chest first. The training paid off but Estrada still took a nasty spill in ‘79 and was critically injured. To prepare he took an intensive course from a police academy expert.

#PONCHO PONCE LICENSE#

First, prior to CHiPs he did not own a motorcycle license in fact, he admitted to never having ridden a motorcycle. No one on CHiPs saw their lives change more than Erick Estrada who played the “Ponch.” Not only did he become the first highway patrol sex symbol and very famous but just about every aspect of his personal life changed forever.

Poncho ponce