He's got the best in the business working with him today."Īs Braun almost disappeared from sight, the first drogue 'chute popped out to the cheers of the crowd, followed by the larger 'chute deploying right on time. "Stunt men prepare, and plan, and lock it down, because they don't wanna die. Eddie's a stunt man," I was assured by Deirdre, the partner of one of Braun's lead stunt co-ordinators. Meanwhile, as the Evel Spirit left the launch ramp and rocketed into the sky, spraying anyone within a 130-foot radius with a cooling shower of water, the rocket started to spin –a terrifying sight as Eddie spiraled upward to some 2200 feet above the launch site, not counting the deep drop into the canyon below.īut this wasn't an Evel Knievel production. If Braun was to black out from the high-G acceleration, there were stunt co-ordinators both at the jump site and the landing area ready to remotely trigger the drogue 'chutes and main ballistic parachutes to bring him down safely – "that main 'chute will bring him down so soft," said Aussie stunt co-ordinator Mick Van Morson, "that he could land on his head without a helmet and be absolutely fine. The ensuing release of steam launched Braun up that ramp so fast it was almost hard to follow, with some 6 Gs worth of acceleration over a 3-4 second blast. When he was eight years old, Robert Craig Knievel attended an auto daredevil show. He did attempt a jump of the Snake River at Twin Fallls, Idaho in 1974 which failed, but he was only slightly injured.
The ramp remains today as a monument to the legendary daredevil’s daring attempt. Evel Kinevel never attempted a jump of the Grand Canyon.
DID EVEL KNIEVEL MAKE THE JUMP IN TWIN FALLS IDAHO FULL
Rocket engineer Scott Truax gave a countdown from five, Eddie thumbed his launch button, and the rocket did its fearsome thing.Ī cutter sheared through the dog food can lids that were holding in 6,000 pounds per square inch of steam pressure, generated by a huge tank full of water superheated to over 450 degrees celsius. In 1974, Evel Knievel set out to launch himself across the vast Snake River Canyon in Twin Falls, Idaho, on a customized rocket. There was little fanfare and no messing about. In front of a small crowd mainly comprised of family, friends, rocket scientists and the Hollywood stunt community, Braun was strapped into the Evel Spirit as it sat on a steep launch ramp. After more than 35 years as a stunt man, he was determined to retire with a bang.Īnd today, under perfect weather conditions near Twin Falls, Idaho, he did it. TWIN FALLS, Idaho Forty-six years ago on Tuesday, Evel Knievel attempted to make the 1,600-foot jump across the Snake River Canyon outside of Twin Falls, which put the city in the public spotlight as the country watched the death-defying stunt. Braun didn't manage to raise enough money to fund the jump, so he dug into his own pocket to fund the jump attempt – to the tune of 1.5 million dollars.
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