Evel Knievel dead at 69

[Jeemag_USA]

Long may he rest in the biker tracks of heaven. I know I am an old fart and most people probably don't remember him, but when I was growing up his events had everyone glued to the telly, pushing the boundaries for no reason whatsoever other than for excitement, it was a sign of the times in the 60's 70's, everybody wanted action. And I remember the old red wind up stand where you set him on there on his bike and wound it up until he took off flying over a cornflakes packet off of a ramp made from a ring binder stolen from Dounraey :roll:

Evel Knievel RIP :~(

[northener]

We've lost a true showman.

.

[NickInTheNorth]

It's quite sobering when childhood hero's start to die :(

[johno]

yep Robert Craig Knievel, was my hero also. he was a real character & he will be sadly missed god bless him

[Rheghead]

Eyewitnesses reported seeing Evel accept a dare from Chuck Norris. He died instantly from the blunt force of a roundhouse kick to the head.

This is on Evel's wikipedia entry.:eek:

[changilass]

I remember seeing him at castletown as a kid, really exciting, so sad

[Jeemag_USA]

This is on Evel's wikipedia entry.:eek:

I doubt thats true since he was bed ridden with severe diabetes and pulmonary fibrosis?

[MadPict]

Wonder if he'll jump the Pearly gates? RIP EVEL.


This is on Evel's wikipedia entry.

One reason why you should treat WIKI with caution...

[weestraw]

I would suggest the Wiki comment was an attempt at a sick joke about the strength of Chuck Norris( There are several) . Suggesting that Evel could survive all the stunts but couldnt survive Chuck Norris. Happily it has since been removed from the site. Some people are sick.

[Anne x]

great guy and he was lovely RIP

[unicorn]

I loved him till my brothers nicked my 1st 2 wheeler bike to jump a ramp evil knievil stlye and brought it back in 2 bits :eek::~(
definately a true childhood hero in our house
RIP

[scorrie]

Long may he rest in the biker tracks of heaven. I know I am an old fart and most people probably don't remember him, but when I was growing up his events had everyone glued to the telly, pushing the boundaries for no reason whatsoever other than for excitement, it was a sign of the times in the 60's 70's, everybody wanted action. And I remember the old red wind up stand where you set him on there on his bike and wound it up until he took off flying over a cornflakes packet off of a ramp made from a ring binder stolen from Dounraey :roll:

Evel Knievel RIP :~(

I vividly recall Evel's attempt to jump Snake Canyon. I had just started High School and it seemed like all the boys in school were talking about it beforehand. The sense of anticipation was immense and we were all flat after it panned out the way it did. I was a bit old for the Knievel motorbike toy and was not wowed by the TV advert that boasted "Up and over that four foot ditch!!". However, a laddie up the road had one which had a gammy wheel and would not run straight for love nor money. I can just picture it now, wee plastic Evel setting off up the street time and again, invariably slewing off to crash into the kerb at the lamp post. A quip went up, "That guy is certainly the lesser of two Evels!!" and the lad carted peedie Knievel off in disgust.

There wasn't a Double Decker bus that was safe in the 70's and it even spawned the joke about the Irishman who jumped 13 motorbikes in a Double Decker bus.

RIP

[Bobinovich]

And I remember the old red wind up stand where you set him on there on his bike and wound it up until he took off flying over a cornflakes packet off of a ramp made from a ring binder stolen from Dounraey

Remember it well - kept me going for hours at a time devising new things to jump (or crash into, depending on how the mood took me!).

A great showman whos name can still evoke fond memories.

RIP :(

[Lolabelle]

I remember when I was little watching his stunts on the telly. I didn't know he was still alive though, and now he isn't. RIP

[sassylass]

gawd it's a miracle he lasted this long...what a daredevil!

[Gizmo]

Evel Knievel was such a huge part of my childhood, he was the all american hero and a living legend, today is a sad day for me....one of my childhood heroes is gone :(

Giz

[Thumper]

I remember going to see him at castletown too...it was great!Nothing was too hard for him!
RIP x

[Metalattakk]

A sad end to an incredible life.

When I were a lad, Evel Knievel was my hero. Me and my pals would spend hours sourcing a decent, strong piece of wood to make a ramp out of, or ages looking for a natural incline with a sudden drop so we could jump our bikes over stuff. We'd jump over anything, living or dead.

Many's a time we sent wee bairns back home to their mums with tyre marks on their arms or legs (mind you, we all had to have a go at lining up on the ground too, and the oldest bairn had to go on the end) and many's a time we'd go crying home to mum after crashing spectacularly.

The worst bit was if the bike broke - as then it could be literally days before the bike was fixed. I mind my faither telling me "And no more of those Evel Knievel jumps!" every time he fixed the bike for me. But, would we listen? Not a chance.

I'd like to thank Mr Knievel for being an unforgettable part of my childhood. After all, he was the only person in the world who could make me turn one of these:

http://i190.photobucket.com/albums/z55/Metalattakk/508rsw-1.jpg

Into one of these:

http://i190.photobucket.com/albums/z55/Metalattakk/knievel.jpg

R.I.P. Evel Knievel.

[nanoo]

So sorry to hear this today. I too have fond memories of his death defying leaps. he will be missed i'm sure. RIP Evel. :~(

[changilass]

I remember going to see him at castletown too...it was great!Nothing was too hard for him!
RIP x


Glad someone else remembered him coming to Castletown, was starting to think I had imagined it

[Dog-eared]

What was Evel Knievel doing in Castletown ??

I see in Bike magazine that Bud Ekins has also died.
He's the friend of Steve McQueen who actually did the " Great escape " motorbike jump over the wire, and also did a lot of the driving in " Bullitt "

He also rode in the same 1964 ISDT team as McQueen, and founded the Baja 1000 offroad race.

A real character.

[Thumper]

He was doing a big show up at Thurdistof!It was an amazing show,never had seen the likes of it before!Cant rememeber what year it was but it was in the 70's I think! x

[Mik.M.]

R.I.P. ...EK. We all used to copy him jumping off ramps made from old bits of wood on our Raleigh Choppers. Ahh the 70s,it was great growing up then.Mik

[changilass]

I think it was about '76, mum was away at the time and my older sis was looking after us

[bluelady]

I remember having a really early computor type game back in the late 70's/80's, the ones where you loaded a tape into a cassette thingy then loaded plugged a lead into the TV. It was Evel's bus jump, the buses increased as you went up a level and when he crashed, he skidded along upside down on his helmet. It was black and white and very simple graphics, but it was addictive. Sadly I gave it away some years ago, it would be a treasure now. RIP. EK

[Dog-eared]

I remember now . Was the show the "Hell Drivers" or some such lot ?
I met two big American guys in the street in Thurso ,they spotted my motorbike jacket and asked if there was anywhere in town to repair a thick studded jacket thing that looked like a coalman's leather back protector. They said it was used for sliding along on the ground.
I missed the show as I had to work.

[Metalattakk]

Nah, I remember 'Hell Drivers' and Evel wasn't involved. It must have been before that.

'Hell Drivers' was in 1978, I think, at the Castletown Aerodrome. I still have the programme. :)