BUTTE – Many watched Travis Pastrana recreate some of Evel Knievel’s famous motorcycle jumps on Sunday. One Butte resident recalls watching Robbie Knievel make the famed Caesar’s Palace leap 30 years ago.
With a happy landing Sunday evening, Pastrana paid tribute to Butte-born Evel Knievel by successfully clearing the fountain at Caesar’s Palace on Las Vegas, breaking Knievel’s record in the process. Fifty years ago, Knievel broke himself on the hard landing after clearing the famous fountain.
Butte resident Tim Dick was there in 1989 when Knievel’s son, Robbie, became the first person to successfully leap the fountain.
“From where we were watching, it didn’t look like he was going to make it until halfway through the jump. It didn’t look like he was going to reach the landing ramp, but he did, so it was pretty exciting,” Dick said.
Pastrana successfully recreated two other Evel Knievel jumps that same day before the fountain jump. Tim Dick said these were great feats but doubts anyone will attempt the fountain jump again.
“The difference in equipment from when Evel did it, even when Robbie did it, and even now to when this guy did it, these things get more advance all the time and, equipment-wise, it’s a lot easier jump,” he said.
He added Sunday’s event is an example of Evel Knievel’s influence on the world of extreme sports.
“It’s a sport now, it was death-defying stunts then and, you know, this sport was basically created on what he did.”
On the shoulders of a legend.
