The legend Evel Knievel, famous for his red-white-and-blue-spangles on a motorcycle, the same man who was immortalized in the Smithsonian Institution as “America’s Legendary Daredevil,” and was best known for a failed 1974 attempt to jump Snake River Canyon on a rocket-powered cycle and a spectacular crash at Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas. He also would jump over crazy obstacles like live sharks, fire, and Greyhound buses. Unfortunately for his family and the World, he died this past Friday at the age of 69, Knievel had 10 grandchildren and a great-grandchild.

Krysten Knievel, Evel’s granddaughter, confirmed his death. He had been in failing health for years, suffering from diabetes and pulmonary fibrosis, he had undergone a liver transplant in 1999 after nearly dying of hepatitis C, thought to be contracted through a blood transfusion after one of his bad spills. Evel had trouble breathing Friday at his Clearwater condo and died before an ambulance could get him to a hospital. Longtime friend and promoter Billy Rundel said,”It’s been coming for years, but you just don’t expect it. Superman just doesn’t die, right?”

“I think he lived 20 years longer than most people would have” said his son Kelly Knievel, 47. “I think he willed himself into an extra five or six years.”

His death came just two days after it was announced that he and rapper Kanye West had settled a federal lawsuit over the use of his trademarked image in a popular Kanye West music video. Evel Knievel made a good living selling his autographs and endorsing products. Thousands came to Butte, Mont., every year during the “Evel Knievel Days”. “They started out watching me bust my ass, and I became part of their lives,” Knievel said. “People wanted to associate with a winner, not a loser. They wanted to associate with someone who kept trying to be a winner.” To Knievel, there always were mountains to climb, feats to conquer.

“No king or prince has lived a better life,” he said in May 2006, “You’re looking at a guy who’s really done it all. And there are things I wish I had done better, not only for me but for the ones I loved.”

He began his daredevil career in 1965, Evel Knievel’s Motorcycle Daredevils, a touring show in which he performed stunts such as riding through fire walls, jumping over live rattlesnakes and mountain lions and being towed at 200 mph behind dragsters. In 1966 he began touring alone, touring the West and doing everything from driving the trucks, erecting the ramps and promoting the shows. In the early years he charged $500 for a jump over two cars parked between ramps. He steadily increased the length of the jumps until, on New Years 1968, he was nearly killed in Las Vegas when he jumped 151 feet across the fountains in front of Caesar’s Palace. He cleared the fountains but the crash landing put him in a coma and in the hospital for a month. His son, Robbie, successfully completed the same jump in April 1989.

In the years after the Caesar’s crash, the fee for Evel’s performances increased to $1 million for his jump over 13 buses at Wembley Stadium in London where the landing broke his pelvis. $6 million for the 1974 attempt to clear the Snake River Canyon in Idaho on a rocket-powered motorcycle. The parachute malfunctioned and deployed after takeoff. Strong winds blew him and the “Sky-cycle” into the canyon, landing him next to the swirling river below.

Never to act a quitter, in Oct. of 1975 he jumped 14 Greyhound buses at King Island in Ohio. Knievel decided to retire after a jump in the winter of 1976 where he was again injured. He suffered a concussion and broke both arms in an attempt to jump a tank full of live sharks in the Chicago Amphitheater. He continued to do smaller exhibitions around the country with his son, Robbie. Knievel also dabbled in movies and TV, starring as himself in “Viva Knievel” and in an episode of the 1980s TV show “Bionic Woman.” Evel Knievel toys accounted for more than $300 million in sales for Ideal and other companies in the 1970s and ’80s. Born Robert Craig Knievel in the copper mining town of Butte on Oct. 17, 1938, Knievel was raised by his grandparents. He traced his career choice back to the time he saw Joey Chitwood’s Auto Daredevil Show at age 8.

Outstanding in track and field, ski jumping and ice hockey at Butte High School, Knievel went on to win the Northern Rocky Mountain Ski Association Class A Men’s ski jumping championship in 1957 and played with the Charlotte Clippers of the Eastern Hockey League in 1959. He also formed the Butte Bombers semiprofessional hockey team, acting as owner, manager, coach and player. Knievel also worked in the copper mines, served in the Army, ran his own hunting guide service, sold insurance and ran Honda motorcycle dealerships. As a motorcycle dealer, he drummed up business by offering $100 off the price of a motorcycle to customers who could beat him at arm wrestling. At various interviews, Knievel claimed to have been a swindler, a card thief, a safe cracker, a holdup man.

Robbie Knievel followed in his father’s footsteps as a daredevil, jumping a moving locomotive in a 200-foot, ramp-to-ramp motorcycle stunt on live television in 2000. He also jumped a 200-foot-wide chasm of the Grand Canyon.

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Nearly Nine tenths of a second faster than his pole position time for the 2007 season’s race at Jerez, Dani Pedrosa came out on top of the timesheet at the last winter test of the season. Pedrosa was followed by teammate Nicky Hayden who also completed a successful run onboard the new 2008 Repsol Honda RC212v. Both Repsol riders put there time in on the track and they were the only two to be under the 1′39 mark. A significant feat which was done with a qualifier tire!

Lorenzo showed much improvement with development on the bike, where he ended up third overall, at a track where he has won for the past two seasons. Valentino Rossi was a notable rider that closed the day early, saying he didn’t have strength in his injured hand and had pain. Stoner didn’t make an appearance on the third day, where he went back home to rest his shoulder from his crash on day two.

MotoGP Jerez Test Day Three:

1. Dani Pedrosa-1′38.562 (Repsol Honda)

2. Nicky Hayden-1′38.848 (Repsol Honda)

3. Jorge Lorenzo-1′39.464 (Fiat Yamaha)

4. Andrea Dovizioso-1′39.747

5. Shinya Nakano-1′40.121 (Gresini Honda)

6. Colin Edwards-1′40.184 (Yamaha Tech 3)

7. Alex De Angelis-1′40.185 (Gresini Honda)

8. James Toseland-1′40.213 (Yamaha Tech 3)

9. Randy de Puniet-1′40.398 (LCR Honda)

10. John Hopkins-1′40.984 (Kawasaki)

11. Valentino Rossi-1′41.538 (Fiat Yamaha)

12. Marco Melandri-1′41.619 (Ducati Marlboro)

13. Taddy Okada-1′41.715 (Repsol Test Rider)

14. Niccolo Canepa-1′41.793 (Ducati Test Rider)

15. Anthony West-1′42.343 (Kawasaki)

16. Vittoriano Guareschi-1′42.343 (Ducati Test Rider)

17. Shinichi Ito-1′43.001 (Bridgestone Tester)

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Where do I start this… lets talk about Canepa and his new 1 year contract with Ducati as the spare rider, should any of the four main riders be injured, and the 19 year old will aid Vittoriano Guareschi with development duties of Ducati’s MotoGP machinery. He has the opportunity to aid in other development programs in other series and hopes to make the wild card appearance for 2008, a decision to be decided by Ducati Corse. He is working on an engineering degree and praised for his calm approach and excellent feedback.

Other news is Rizla Suzuki apparently was on the down-low down-under, conducting secret testing for 2 days at Phillip Island. With a near empty track, Suzuki was able to get a ton of development and testing work done on the latest GSV-R. Riders Chris Vermeulen and Loris Capirossi put in about 200 laps each in their final ride of 2007. Suzuki has yet to make the best times public, but Vermeulen hinted that he bested his best lap from the race there in October 2007. He left Australia content and eager to get more testing and work done so that his Team can be as competitive as possible.

Day two of testing started of relaxed, with better weather than the track has seen in the last week or two. By mid-day Stoner was the fastest man on the track, with good warm weather aiding all. But things went down-hill for the Champion after that, falling hard on turn 3 after falling to 8th fastest on the list, resulting in a suspected ligament damage to his shoulder. Casey Stoner made his way to Clinica Mobile where he was treated and placed in a sling. He later remarked he would rest and see how things were feeling but he may be out for the rest of this testing event in Spain.

And of course Valentino Rossi was the 2nd fastest rider today, going faster than he had on the same track with Michelin tyres onboard his Yamaha M1. All this was aboard the 2007 version of the bike, besting Casey Stoners best from yesterday.

And the fastest man of the day was Dani Pedrosa, the only rider to break below the 1′40 barrier clocking a 1′39.993 onboard his Honda RC212V.

1. Dani Pedrosa - Repsol Honda - 1′39.993

2. Valentino Rossi - Fiat Yamaha - 1′40.134

3. Shinya Nakano - Honda Gresini - 1′40.251

4. Alex de Angelis - Honda Gresini - 1′40.332

5. Andrea Dovizioso - JiR Scot - 1′40.650

6. Nicky Hayden - Repsol Honda - 1′40.692

7. Randy de Puniet - Honda LCR - 1′40.820

8. Casey Stoner - Ducati Marlboro - 1′40.833

9. Colin Edwards - Yamaha Tech 3 - 1′40.838

10. Jorge Lorenzo - Fiat Yamaha - 1′40.883

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Stoner was the rider with the fewest laps, but with the quickest times. Stoner did only 28 laps around the Jerez circuit in Spain on the GP08 machine. Pedrosa then followed on his new Honda RC212 machine and Rossi trailing up the top 3. This was Rossi’s first time running bridgestone tires and spent half of the day getting aquianted with the new manufacture, and then spending time on the 2007 bike getting a feel for the new rubber. Stoner had a big crash today as well which caused a red flag. Fiat Yamaha rider Jorge Lorenzo did the most laps during the day still getting used to a motogp bike, he did 91 laps.

Jerez Test Day One:

1. Casey Stoner- 1′40.221 (Ducati)

2. Dani Pedrosa- 1′40.355 (Repsol Honda)

3. Valentino Rossi-1′40.514 (Fiat Yamaha)

4. Colin Edwards- 1′40.790 (Yamaha Tech 3)

5. Nicky Hayden-1′40.923 (Repsol Honda)

6.Alex de Angelis-1′41.111 (Gresini Honda)

7. Jorge Lorenzo-1′41.230 (Fiat Yamaha)

8. Shinya Nakano-1′41.277 (Gresini Honda)

9. Randy de Puniet-1′41.313 (LCR Honda)

10. John Hopkins-1′41.414 (kawasaki)

11. James Toseland-1′41.776 (Yamaha Tech 3)

12. Marco Melandri-1′41.889 (Ducati)

13. Andrea dovizioso-1′42.033 (JiR Scot Honda)

14. Niccolo Canepa-1′42.666 (Ducati tester)

15. Taddy Okada-1′43.051 (HRC tester)

16. Anthony West-1′43.576 (kawasaki)

17. Shinichi Ito-1”44.530 (Bridgestone tester)

18. Vittoriano Guareschi-1′44.588 (Ducati tester)

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Hannspree Honda Althea started their pre-season tests at the Calafat circuit in Spain. Windy weather didn’t stop Roberto Rolfo, Gianluca Nannelli and Tommy Hill from completing several laps of the circuit, getting themselves used to the bikes and the team. Unfortunately Hill crashed and was taken to the local Tarragona hospital with a suspected broken right leg; the full extent of his injuries and his recovery time will be known tomorrow.

Gianluca Nannelli: “I am very happy because this first test has let me establish the professionalism of the new team and the abilities of the 2007 Honda CBR600RR. I turned in times averaging 1:29.0 but the team are convinced that tomorrow, if the weather stays good, I will be able to improve this time.”

Roberto Rolfo: “I am indeed happy with this first contact with my new team. We have worked a lot, always building, making continuous improvements. My best time as a 1:26.6 but tomorrow we will better this, without a doubt. The track is short but very technical so it’s a good test for the work we are doing.”

Salvatore Giorlandino: “The first day of testing has gone very well. There is a good feeling between the riders and technicians, and I see a focussed and enthusiastic team. We’re very sorry about Tommy’s accident and hope that the injuries he received aren’t too much of a setback. The crash happened in the first laps and we still don’t understand what caused it.”

Tomorrow the events at Qatar will begin, the 5.38 km Losail circuit hosts the first significant group test of the 2008 season, between November 28 and 30. Almost 2 months after the end of an exciting 2007 season, the 2008 season will begin at Qatar on Saturday 23 February, and this test will be a valuable early projection for all the competing teams and manufacturers. Expect new machines and rider line-ups for the 2008 season, with Qatar the first opportunity for most of the top teams to try out not just their new line-ups and machines against their main competitors, but the latest generation of Pirelli control tyres also.

The World Superbike Championship will embrace twin-cylinder machines of up to 1200cc from this point on. To ensure that no single format of machinery dominates any other, the new machines will run with air-intake restrictors and greater dry weight than the 1000cc fours, and by regulation the engines on the twins are now much closer to stock than any previous incarnation of Ducati race machinery.

Ducati Xerox riders Troy Bayliss and Michel Fabrizio will get their first chance to run their Ducati 1098F08 machinery against some of their competitors. Much is expected of the new machine, even in privateer form, but as always at these development tests, only one designated development team per manufacturer will be running. All three of Hannspree Ten Kate Honda’s 2008 riders will test at Qatar, but not all riders on all three days of the test.

The only SBK team with an unchanged rider line-up is the Yamaha Motor Italia squad of Noriyuki Haga and double World Champion Troy Corser. The Yamaha R1, which came within two points of the championship last year with Haga onboard, has proved potent, and even in its second model year is fully expected to be a force to be reckoned with again. The PSG-1 Kawasaki Corse team will not be at the Qatar tests, as they do not have their 2008 machinery ready for track action at present.

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