2000ft over the canyon… but 6 inches UNDER the media radar.

Earlier this week we posted about the recreation of Evel Knievel’s Snake River Canyon jump, well, Eddie Braun successfully ‘jumped’ over the infamous 1400 ft canyon.

The launch was scheduled for today, September 17^th….but the EVEL SPIRIT team opted to do it yesterday, possibly because of better weather conditions. There seemed to be virtually no crowd watching.

It looked like a textbook exercise and everybody is smiling. Hats off to the team but this is possibly one of the most under-publicised events in recent history. I don’t know why this newsworthy event failed to get any media coverage. It was rather badly covered by a local TV news crew and (so far) captured with a couple of quite frankly, terrible amateur Youtube clips. I sincerely hope that this occasion has been properly documented.  

I acknowledge that times have maybe changed and everybody these days is ‘Extremed-Out’ but I can’t help but think that this just shows what a showman and entrepreneur Knievel was. Always able to ‘Bring the Circus to town’ in what seemed an effortless and flamboyant way, hawking his stunts on a global scale.

I read that Braun Spent $1.5 million of his own money to make this happen. Perhaps the EVEL SPIRIT team invested all their combined resources and energy into the mechanics of making a successful jump, maybe overlooking the pre-event publicity and build up. Or maybe the mainstream media just don’t care about an ongoing 42-year-old story. Either way, it seems criminal that this wasn’t presented ‘live’ on satellite TV and it didn’t make ‘News at Ten’. I found a picture of a tattoo belonging to an English chap who made the pilgrimage to Twin Falls Idaho to witness the jump. Ironically, this tattoo could possibly make a bigger internet splash than the jump itself.

In other news it seems Rocket Sky-Cycles are just like buses…you wait 42 years for one and then two turn up together. Apparently, on October 18^th , self-taught rocket scientist ‘Mad Mike Hughes’ will climb aboard his own version of Evel Knievel’s X-2 Sky-Cycle and endeavour to jump over the ghost town of Amboy in California. You couldn’t make it up!

Dave Skooter Farm

All photos: AP

Never Go Back: Snake River Canyon

Dave Skooter Farm reports...

In this modern age, there seems to be an insatiable quest to revisit the good old days. The ‘rebooting’ of classic movies, old bands you thought you would never, ever get to see, reforming and long-discontinued chocolate bars once again available in the newsagents. However, maybe some things should be left in the nostalgic mind’s eye.

On September 17th 2016, as tribute to his childhood idol Evel Knievel, Hollywood stuntman Eddie Bruan will attempt to recreate Evel’s 1974 career highpoint (pun intended) and jump the Snake River Canyon in Twin Falls, Idaho. Regular readers of Sideblog won’t need me to point out how Knievel’s effort played out.

Bruan will be piloting an exact replica of EK’s ‘X-2 Sky-Cycle’ built to vintage blue-prints belonging to the builder of the original, NASA rocket scientist Bob Truax. The new version of the Sky-Cycle has been co-built by the late Bob Truax’s son, Scott. The craft has been christened ‘Evel Spirit’

Just like Evel’s ‘bike’, it’s steam-powered. 

Steam is superheated to precise temperature and pressure and when released, produces 6,000 pounds of thrust and 10,000 Horsepower! Expected maximum speed is in excess of 400 mph in 3.0 seconds with a calculated altitude of 3,000 feet. 

In keeping with exact specifications of Evel's X2 Sky-cycle, all of that temperature and pressure is being held in the rocket by THE LID OF A DOG-FOOD CAN!

'Evel used it—so we're using it! That's right, we actually cut off the tops of dog food cans (just like Evel did) and place the lid inside the rocket engine to keep all the pressure at bay until we are ready to release it!' 

For some reason, live spectators at the launch site have been limited to 500 people. We could speculate that it may have something to do with Evel (above) leaving behind a trail of unpaid bills with vendors and the local services his team used during their stay 42 years ago. A city councillor in Twin Falls said the town was wiser about what to expect from a daredevil attempting to jump their canyon.

Happy landings to the ‘Evel Spirit’ team.

Dave Skooter Farm

(Above) This post's author, Dave Skooter Farm, with the original Sky-Cycle in 1999. It prompted me to ask, 'Where was the photo of you taken? And why do you look like you’ve just taken one to the nuts?'

Dave replied, 'Daytona Bike week 1999, Met Evel that day too. Can’t explain why I’m in that position….soz'

Butterflies, Butterflies, Frank

The next round of the 2016 DTRA race series is the Greenfield TT, next weekend. TT racing is dirt track's nod to going right and leaving the ground. To the best of my knowledge, TT races only ever have one jump per lap. They're contested by flat track bikes, usually with slightly more compliant suspension and front brakes. There have been TT races in the UK, when the national series was organised by Short Track UK, but this is the first DTRA TT. It's also the first all dirt TT. Previous races have had concrete sections when the course turned onto the infield of King's Lynn speedway track, with a dirt jump.

As a very amateur racer, I'm not a massive fan of the TT format as I've never been much of a jumper, but there was a small scale practice at the Greenfield track earlier in the year, and running a few laps over the jump gave me more confidence for the upcoming race. I think the racing is going to be wild and action-packed, especially as this year, most classes are running without a front brake.

It's free to spectate, and it's a two-day meeting at:
Greenfield Farm
Greenfield
Alford
LN13 0EB

Anthony Brown, big cheese of the DTRA, sent a link to this clip through to get us excited about TT racing and it is wonderful. Evel Knievel is the guest pundit and while he does get some good info over, when asked about TT racing, he compares Ascot TT with the Isle of Man TT. Perhaps he'd only heard of the Isle of Man TT, not actually seen it. I don't have to tell you the two couldn't be more different.

This 100-lapper is dominated by Rick Hocking. He must have been the big favourite, because he was interviewed before the race, with the clips inserted into the coverage. I saw Hocking race at Vegas in 2010, also on a Yamaha 500, like he using in this race, then I was in the hotel hot tub with him (it was a big outdoor hot tub, not that awkward). I wish I'd seen this clip before that impromptu meeting. And it's too late to ask him about it now as, sadly, he took his own life a year later, in early 2011.

Another fact, the late Paul Bostrom (incorrectly captioned Bostrum in this Wide World Of Sports footage) is running third for part of the race. He was the uncle of former superbike racers Ben and and Eric Bostrom. G

We Love Motorcycho

Last month we spent a few bromantic days in California and Nevada with Norman from Motorcycho: three grown, married men; fathers of eight children in total, sharing a cheap motel room and a budget rental car. It was humiliating in a kind of fun way.

Sideburn has stocked Motorcycho, the original lame-ass bikerzine, and it's related patches for years now, so we got Norman to write a bit about the history of his zine.

The true beginning of Motorcycho began around 1969 (above) when I picked up my first motorcycle magazine, which I probably still have, and a few years later my first minibike. I've never been without two wheels since! 

As far as the magazine is concerned, I had been doing a music zine through the late 80's and reached a point where it was time for a change. It was probably around this point I stumbled upon my first issue of Gearhead magazine. Issue #2 featured articles on biker movies, biker movie soundtracks and Davie Allan. I was big into motorcycle music by then, doing a weekly radio show at the local University station, and it became clear to me that the next logical progression for me was a zine about motorcycles and music! 

This would have been around 1994, my riding days were at a minimum due to the fact I had 4 small kids, so doing a zine was the perfect distraction! 

Cut and paste and a dot matrix printer kept it simple. The first bunch of issues had a lot more music and band interviews, but through the years that has pretty much disappeared. I had also wanted keep it simple and easy, that also has pretty much disappeared, which is why we only seem to put out one issue a year. 

Lately the mag is pretty much about friends and fun. I guess that's been the common thread throughout Motorcycho's existence… Motorcycles are FUN, and the people are the best! Whether it be riding minibikes in the back alley, roadtripping with a bunch of buddies on vintage tin or riding with my wife on the back on some twisty mountain road, it all brings a big grin to this guy's face! 

 Like a wise man once said: "I Dig Sickles"

Above and below, Norm with his youngest daughter Miki, a few years apart. I get the feeling Norm is one of the best dads ever.

Norm on his trusty TT impersonating his hero Evel. 

If this inspires you to buy some Motorcycho goods, head over to the Sideburn shop and click the Motorcycho label in the category box on the right. You get a free Sideburn sticker with every Motorcycho order from us. G

Being Evel

This is getting promos over in the US.
I hope it's good, but it looks a bit 'made for TV' from the production values of this clip. In fact, it's got a History channel logo on it, so perhaps it is.

Jackass star Johnny Knoxville turns up in this clip, and the film says it's made by the makers of Jackass. Fellow Jackassers Dave English and Danger Ehren have done some work with Sideburn this year.
Danger wrote a great report on Dirt Quake USA for Sideburn 22.
Dave filmed the DQ USA II video. Check them out! G

Motorcycho Norm's Vegas Vacation

Norm from Motorcycho flew down to Vegas to watch the indoor short track and to snoop around the Mid-America Motor Auctions. In the pits he took photos of this tough Yamaha TT500 with an old Sideburn sticker on its tail. It was being raced by Mitch Gallagher of the Reno Wrecking Crew.

In the auction room, housed in the same hotel, Norm even got to try on one of his hero's helmets - one of Evel's last jump lids that the current owner bought for $80,000. The owner let him try it on because Norm has that very helmet design tattooed on his arm.

If you like the cut of Norm's jib (and if you don't I fear you're in the wrong place) check out the Motorcycho blog or buy the Motorcycho fanzine from the Sideburn webshop. G

Burning Man

Davida went with a small contingent to Burning Man this year. This was Fid's personal favorite, a Honda CX500 powered avgas tank car; with (the nerd in me says) Mini 1275 Rostyle wheels (but then they look bigger than 10"?).

This is their Evel Knievel Speedster. BP

Ace Cafe Day Soon

I was a bit down on the Ace Cafe flat track day when I posted it was coming up. I was under the weather, not myself. Anyway, I found these photos from last years and got quite excited about it. Good people, interesting bikes I hadn't seen before.
We'll have our new sweatshirts and zip necks, back issues, books and T-shirts. Co-Built, Short Track UK and Red Max will be there too. G

Evel Art

Fell running, whippet loving yorkshireman John Parkin was bought up to graft on’t farm / down’t mill, however he managed to escape a life of true hardship and drudgery way back in 2001 to follow the dream. After trudging the globe in search of the elusive Geoffrey Boycott, he now resides in Northumberland where it is on average winter 14 months of the year. It is through these bitterly cold, long, dark, snow driven winters John paints his dreams - his aspirations of what could have been, and just maybe what still could be...
Parkins’s paintings are a mixture of scientific human endeavour; factual and fictional, challenging nature, exploration, and the pioneering spirit and heroism of man. He draws inspiration from boyhood dreams and fantasies. Focusing on the colour and dynamism of conquering space, both large and small, and the harnessing of untested technologies.
Gallery APART
- Summer show has been extended to 30th Sept

Verona Expo snaps part 6

Evel Knievel's XR750, note the scaffold tube foot-rest.
On the other end of the scales, Jacapo Monti's new line in carbonfibre sprockets. The current prototype only lasts for 3 hours but a new diamond toothed version should last 5.
And 6' 3" aboard Alberto Narduzzi's flat tracker; just to show that even though there is big air above the engine ie. it's a little high for a race bike, it doesn't look daft (apart from the fact that I'm sitting on it). BP

Evel Popsicle

Harley Backflip

Holy sheee-it! Not one, but TWO lobotomised stunters have backflipped Harley's XR1200. How in the hell? I don't know. It takes some effort getting that pig off its sidestand. Head over to Hell for Leather to check out the video evidence. These nutters, and their names - because they deserve respect - are Kain Saul and Chuck Carothers, were channeling Evel.

Message from Chubby Rumble

"I DON' T KNOW WHAT YOUR MAGAZINE IS ABOUT ANY MORE!!....I CAN REMEMBER ALL THE WAY BACK TO WHEN "SIDEBURN " FIRST STARTED....WHERE DID IT ALL GO DOWNWARD INSTEAD OF SIDEWAYS!!"
Burrito, sporting Knievel colours, healthy lead over Skip Van Luwen (or whatever his name is!!)
Chubby Rumble

Wish you were there?

Evel, Skip, Swede, Butch and Destruction Derby. Hey fellas, those are some great names you got going on there. Now show us what you can do with those sickles.