About 30 years ago, Evel Knievel kept popping up with one wild motorcycle jump after another, buses, trucks, almost anything you could line up and precede with a ramp and finally, the Snake River Canyon. Many of his jumps were successful, some spectacular failures but you have to admit, he was a showman and promoter. Other jumpers have come since but everyone remembers the name Evel Knievel while few could identify any of the new guys. Now the challenge is backflips and all sorts of acrobatics, Knievel was all about distance.
The X-2 Skycycle steam powered rocket, the vehicle that was to take Knievel over the Snake River Canyon but failed when the chute deployed shortly after launch and dropped the rocket into the canyon with Knievel on board, is now for sale. As you might expect, there is a bit of damage, but that just adds to the patina, none of those over restored vehicles here, after all, this is history!
The owner, who also has some of Evel Knievel’s Harley Davidson motorcycles used in other jumps, plans to sell the rocket first and then the rest will go soon after. He’s asking for a paltry $5,000,000 dollars for this piece of extreme sport history so step right up.
Link: X-2 Skycycle – auction over
Link: Evel Knievel memorabilia
John Bonanno says
5 million is a lot of money, for something you just stare at. I can think of alot better ways to spend that if i had it. I’d like to have the XR750 if the price was right.
I remember watching this on TV as a kid, looking at the launching ramp it seems like an awfully steep trajectory, I recall someone saying that he never intended to try to make the jump… he (Evel) just wanted the publicity… he is still so cool to me who cares if he played the media.
todd says
Who could forget Super Dave Osborne? Does he have anything for sale?
-todd
Frank Five says
Hey…eBay has been cancelling the X-2 Skycycle listing. It’s relisted under another number now on eBay. Now they’re selling a piece of crash debris on eBay and talking about cutting it into 5,000,000 pieces if eBay keeps cancelling their auction. WHAT A WASTE !!!!!!!
phil jac says
FYI that is not the rocket Evel used in his September 8, 1974 jump. The one that Evel used had a picture of the bulldog from the Mack trucks logo not the Harley-Davidson number one on the left side rear tail fin.
Ralph Mann says
Phil Jac: You are correct! This vehicle is not the vehicle that Evel made the attempt in! This is the X-2-1 a test vehicle it has the number 1 on the left rear finlet. (it also failed) The vehicle that Evel used was the X-2-2 and it had the Mack Bulldog on the left rear finlet and the distinctive hump on the turtledeck. Watch the actual attempt video and you will see the difference!