Smokey and the Bandit sponsored a racer in Atlanta's Southern Classic and wants to celebrate in style when he wins. They find local legend Bo "Bandit" Darville at a roadeo at Lakewood Fairgrounds in Atlanta and offer him $80,000 to pick up 400 cases of Coors from Texarkana (the closest place it could be legally sold at that time), and bring it back to Atlanta in 28 hours. Bandit takes the bet and recruits his partner Cledus "Snowman" Snow to drive the truck, while Bandit drives a black Pontiac Trans Am bought on an advance from the Burdettes as a "blocker" to divert attention
Jerry Reed a back seat to his acting aspirations. In 1974, he co-starred with his close friend Burt Reynolds in the film "W.W. and the Dixie Dancekings". While he continued to record throughout the decade, his greatest visibility was as a motion picture star, almost always in tandem with headliner Reynolds; after 1976's "Gator", Reed appeared in 1978's "High-Ballin'" and 1979's "Hot Stuff". He also co-starred in all three of the "Smokey and the Bandit" films; the first, which premiered in 1977, landed Reed a No. 2 hit with the soundtrack's "East Bound and Down". In 1977, Reed joined entrepreneur Larry Schmittou