Growing up in the 1970s was not for the faint of heart. No one wore bicycle helmets. We rarely wore shoes. Most of our toys had safety recalls. Vehicles had no child restraint seats or airbags. Everyone around us smoked. We drank water from garden hoses and chased the pesticide truck as he fogged the neighborhood with DDT. And, the greatest influencer of the decade held the record for the most broken bones. 

Daredevil Evel Knievel influenced every kid in America to attempt daring jumps on motorcycles and bicycles. He jumped his Harley-Davidson over cars, buses, and Mack trucks. His many crashes were as glorious as his jumps. He even attempted a jump over the Snake River Canyon on a rocket bike.  After a huge buildup, however, it ended with a near-death fizzle. 

In honor of the canyon attempt, a neighborhood kid tried jumping his bike over a cliff in the “Pits.” The Pits was a large dirt quarry near our neighborhood. It was the perfect place to perform a dangerous Knievel-like stunt. The entire neighborhood turned out to watch. 

Much like the Canyon jump, the Pits jump was a bust. The kid raced his bike toward the ramp at the edge of the cliff. At the last minute, however, he panicked and braked. It was too late. He skidded over the edge and fell face-first into the dirt below. Show over. 

We all wanted to be like Knievel. He held hero status in my generation. He had wealth, women, and fame. He owned Ferraris, Rolls Royce, and private jets. Yet, Knievel would later say, “I was empty, just empty.” This week I learned the rest of the story. 

Later in his life, Knievel encountered God. One day while walking on the beach, he heard an inner voice saying, “Robert, I have saved you more times than you will ever know. Now you need to come to Me through My Son, Jesus.” Knievel responded, and his transformation was dramatic. He was baptized on national television after giving a public testimony of his faith. 

Robert Craig Knievel died on Nov 30, 2007. Though he cheated death many times, his final jump was into the presence of God. He said he only regretted not coming to faith earlier in life. As a final plea to his fans and followers, his gravestone now reads, “Believe in Jesus.” At the end of the journey that’s all that matters.

“Anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!” (2 Corinthians 5:17)