In 1976 lots of kids were inspired by Evel Knievel

Does it have the coveted “Thumb-breaking Action™”?

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The Evel Knievel Museum in Topeka has a wall covered with photographs of kids in the 1970s jumping things on their bicycles. It’s a great part of the exhibit that really takes you down memory lane.

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Dr. Hibbert: Well, that’s all of them! [folksy chuckle]

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And the influence can be seen in the classic Bart the Daredevil S02E08 of The Simpsons.

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I remember being glued to the TV for the periodic showings of the 1971 biopic starring George Hamilton, and of course the ill-fated Snake River Canyon jump in 1974. It wasn’t until 1977 that he jumped the shark (unsuccessfully).

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Lol, a vote for a good flow. :joy:

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That was one of the first things I noticed! I thought about that even more when he only made 9 1/2 out of 10 trashcans. I’m amazed that I survived childhood, let alone never broke a bone, given I had a Honda ATC and no fear of danger at the time, but at least I wore a helmet! (Which honestly wouldn’t have done much good if I had fallen wrong on any of the numerous times that damn thing rolled over on me because I rarely used the brakes.)

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My brother tried that. Lost both his front teeth when he landed face first on the sidewalk. Weren’t the 70’s great?

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Hellz yeah we were! We dug a hole between two ramps in our dirt and gravel driveway, filled it with homemade napalm, lit it, and took turns jumping through the resulting smoky flaming mess. Ahhh, being a latchkey kid with less sense than a rabid raccoon.

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I don’t know if they had them in your area, but in ours (Louisiana), many fire hydrants were painted in red, white, and blue themes.

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Super Dave Osborne probably helped keep the memories alive, too. :laughing: I remember using a lot of ramps, but we rarely jumped over objects…

…OK, this one kid volunteered (and lived to tell the tale). :thinking: Still not sure why we thought a football helmet paired with hockey leg pads and a board on top was enough protective gear. :woman_shrugging:t4:

happy homer simpson GIF

:laughing:

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Same here. Surprised I never broke any bones.

Living in the frozen north, we also jumped toboggans. I was lucky to live near an old (like pre-1900s old) ski hill; not much by todays ski hills, but it was perfect for 12 year olds on toboggans.

For both bikes and sleds, seems like we were getting major air. 10’ or 15’ long, 5’ or 6’ high fer sure. ‘Course we lacked any sort of video recording equipment, so I lack evidence of what were likely 5’ long a barely 3’ high flights.

And yes, feet, no meters. It was before we converted.

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I rather enjoyed that. Nowadays, though, the kid’s choice of clothing for the jump (his mom’s outfit) would inspire outcries and howls of, “groomer mom!!”

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So, so many questions…
No, don’t tell me, let me dream.
:slightly_smiling_face:

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Not only did I manage to avoid broken bones, I did looking fantastic on my Evel Knievel Bike

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Were there no brakes (or is that a backpedal brake fixie?), very onbrand.

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Backpedal brakes, common back then for kids bikes (until you leveled up to a ten-speed). Note the motor box (don’t leave it out in the rain)…

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Serious Trailer Park Boys vibe in the first 3:03 minutes. Saving the rest for later.

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Very impressive. Did your kilt add any complications to your stunts?

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