Ken Hubbs - Death

Death

Hubbs had a fear of flying. Roommate Ron Santo described the sheer terror he dealt with every time the Cubs flew to their next venue. He decided to challenge this fear head-on by taking flying lessons in the winter between 1963 and 1964, and received his pilot's license in January 1964. His long-time friend, Dennis Doyle, became a father the month after. The young mother had taken the train from Colton, California to Provo, Utah to spend time with her parents and their new grandchild. Hubbs and Doyle set out to surprise her by making a one-day flight to Provo on February 12. Once there, the pair decided to stay the night and return to Colton the next day. Hubbs played in a charity basketball game that night.

A storm developed in the Utah Valley the morning of February 13. Hubbs thought he could beat the storm and decided to attempt the return flight. He and Doyle took off in a red and white Cessna 172 from Provo Airport, which sits on the edge of Utah Lake. He hadn't filed a flight plan, but just told airport staff that the pair were heading for Morrow Field near Colton, California. Euliss Hubbs, Ken's father, called to report that they had not arrived in Colton by Friday the 14th. A search began Saturday morning in areas of Utah, Nevada and California along a route the pair might have taken.

Utah's civil aeronautics director, Harlon Bement, noted there had been no record of radio contact with Hubbs after takeoff, adding, "This means the plane could be fairly close ." Rescuers found the wreckage a quarter mile south of Bird Island in Utah Lake. The weather temperature was estimated as -1° F, and it had been snowing heavily. Hubbs's funeral was held several days later in his hometown of Colton. Services were held in the Colton High School gymnasium because of the huge crowd that wanted to view Hubbs's casket. Fellow Cubs Ron Santo, Ernie Banks, Glen Hobbie and Don Elston were among the pallbearers.

Jim Murray of the Los Angeles Times wrote, "Kenneth Douglass Hubbs was more than just another baseball player. He was the kind of athlete all games need. A devout Mormon, a cheerful leader, a picture-book player, blond-haired, healthy, generous with his time for young boys; he was the kind of youth in short supply in these selfish times."

Hubbs's uniform number 16 was never retired by the Cubs, but was kept out of circulation for about three years before being issued to another player.

Shortly after Ken's death, the Ken Hubbs Foundation was organized in honor of this young, gifted athlete. Since 1964, the Ken Hubbs Award has been given to the best high school male athletes in the greater San Bernardino, California area.