Triumph Celebrates 50th Anniversary of Evel Knievel’s Rocket Jump
Triumph Motorcycles joined the celebrations marking the 50th anniversary of Evel Knievel’s legendary Rocket Jump at Twin Falls, Idaho on Sunday 1 September. The day of festivities began with a motorcycle parade and featured live music from Krysten Knievel (Kaptain Robbie Knievel’s daughter) and The Knievel Daredevil Band.
Leading the motorcycle parade, Knievel’s son Kelly rode a custom-painted Bonneville T120, alongside stunt rider Robbie ‘Maddo’ Maddison, who rode a custom Rocket 3, in tribute to the one-of-a-kind Skycycle X-2 Rocket used in the original jump. Six-time gold medal X Games champion Colby Raha also chose a Triumph to ride in the parade, opting for a Speed 400.
The matching custom schemes were inspired by Evel’s original Bonneville T120-TT ‘Color Me Lucky’, which he used to perform his legendary 141-foot jump over the Caesar’s Palace fountains in Las Vegas on December 31st, 1967. Although the crash-landing crushed his pelvis and femur, fractured his hip, wrist, and both ankles, the stunt confirmed him as the ultimate daredevil. A Bonneville T120 was also used by Knievel to promote his Canyon flight in 1972, which he fitted with wings to capture everyone’s imagination.
Kelly Knievel said: “This bike is painted up just like ‘Color me Lucky’ the Triumph he used, it looks great! He always had a soft spot for his T120, said it flew ‘straight as a bullet’. Robbie’s riding a Triumph Rocket with the same custom paint scheme as this bike, which feels a very appropriate way to celebrate the anniversary.”
Triumph Motorcycles Chief Operating Officer Paul Stroud added: “This was an uplifting celebration of one of Evel Knievel’s best-known stunts, and Triumph is thrilled to support his family and fans by creating these one-off custom bikes to lead the parade. Following his jump at Caesar’s Palace on a T120 TT, Evel Knievel performed many stunts on Triumph motorcycles during the 60’s, securing his name in the hearts of generations of fans. It’s good to see the latest generation of the T120 bike that was used to first promote this notorious Snake Canyon jump, now being ridden by the next generation of the Knievel family.”
To promote the Grand Canyon jump, a prototype ‘jet powered’ Triumph Bonneville T120 fitted with wings, named the ‘Skycycle’, was shown to the press. Aeronautical engineer Doug Malewicki was then engaged to design and build a real ‘rocket-powered’ motorcycle to jump the Snake River Canyon. The Skycycle X-1 was based on a heavily-modified motorcycle chassis and powered by a steam engine built by former NASA engineer Robert Truax. After a test flight, which resulted in the X-1 crashing into the Snake River, the decision was made to remove the wheels entirely and instead take-off and fly more like a rocket than a motorcycle.
The final X-2 Rocket, with Knievel inside, launched at Snake River Canyon on September 8, 1974. During take-off, the drogue parachute deployed prematurely. Even though the X-2 made it part way across the canyon to the north rim, the drag of the prevailing winds caused it to drift back south, into the canyon, landing only a few feet clear of the water in which Evel would have surely drowned, strapped into the craft.
However, along with his jump at Caesars Palace, despite its ultimate failure, the Snake River Canyon rocket jump secured Evel’s reputation as the King of Stuntmen.
