Infamous daredevil Evel Knievel’s legacy lives on after extreme motorsports superstar Travis Pastrana completed all three of his most famous jumps in three hours on Sunday night in Las Vegas.
"It's such an honor to live a day in Evel's boots," Pastrana told The History Channel, which broadcast the live event.
Dressed in Knievel’s trademark red, white and blue, Pastrana used a heavy, track-like bike for the stunt.
Credit: John Locher
Credit: John Locher
He started out the night by jumping 140 feet over 52 crushed cars -- surpassing Knievel’s record of 50 cars.
In his second jump, Pastrana soared 192 feet, clearing 16 Greyhound Buses. This beat out Knievel's jump over 14 buses at King's Island in Ohio, in 1975, according to The History Channel.
After his first two jumps, Pastrana traveled down Las Vegas Boulevard via police escort -- doing wheelies and burnouts and taking selfies with fans along the way.
The grand finale was the most technical and infamous -- a jump over the main fountain at Caesar’s Palace.
Knievel attempted the jump in 1967 and missed -- crashing at about 90 miles per hour.
He crushed his pelvis, broke several bones and suffered a concussion that put him in the hospital for nearly a month.
It was the longest attempt of his career at 140 feet, according to NBC Sports.
Pastrana had roughly half the room Knievel had to ramp up ahead of the jump, estimating that he would need to get the bike up to 70 mph in less than 200 feet.
Credit: John Locher
Credit: John Locher
He hit the jump in a record length of 149 feet and performed a two-wheel burnout to celebrate.
Pastrana capped off the historic moment with a splash in the Caesar’s Palace fountain.
Credit: John Locher
Credit: John Locher
About the Author
