While in jail - including a stint at New York’s notorious Attica prison - Rusty said he thought about “all the stupid things I’d done, along with all the good things I’d done. “I don’t tell on anybody, ever,” he said. Rusty told me he could have had it a lot easier if he’d named names, but he wouldn’t do that. He was looking at two life sentences, but was sentenced to eight years and ended up serving six. In 1999, Rusty went to prison for conspiracy to distribute ephedrine. He’s been an Angel for about 17 years, but we don’t talk a lot about the Angels because there’s a code about that. He’s also a Hells Angel, founder of the Orange County chapter and current head of the San Fernando chapter. Rusty Coones is a guitar player in a heavy metal band. This is where our story starts to come together. The name Attika 7 is emblazoned on a banner. In a second-story loft, a band rehearsal stage is set up with amps, drums and guitars. Over the thundering, metallic roar of motorcycle engines, Rusty beams as he leads our tour, stopping to kid with his employees and answer questions about works in progress. Several dozen bikes in various stages of creation and design are on display, including one $80,000 beauty that Rusty is customizing for a local businessman. Though they’ll do tune-ups and other bike maintenance here, it’s the design and building that they’re primarily focused on. They call it “the premier motorcycle customizing shop of Orange County,” and after a tour, it’s obvious why. On Goldenwest Street right near the 405 Freeway is Illusion Motorsports, the world this couple (along with Rusty’s business partner, Rodrigo Requejo) has been building for more than a decade. That’s how Katherine Coones describes her husband Rusty, a 6-foot-5 biker bear of a man who, despite what some might consider to be an intimidating presence, is disarmingly warm and engaging.
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