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Stuntman to attempt Knievel's failed jump

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Nuts!
 
I remember watching the Evel Knievel attempt and being disappointed that he didn't make it. If I recall correctly, the scuttlebutt at the time was the Evel popped the chute because he chickened out during the jump. Keep in mind I wasn't quite 7 years old when this went down. I wonder if the early deployment of the chute is revisionist history in play for the sake of Knievel's record.
 
SaxMan said:
I remember watching the Evel Knievel attempt and being disappointed that he didn't make it. If I recall correctly, the scuttlebutt at the time was the Evel popped the chute because he chickened out during the jump. Keep in mind I wasn't quite 7 years old when this went down. I wonder if the early deployment of the chute is revisionist history in play for the sake of Knievel's record.
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That's my recollection of it too.
 
I was a parachute rigger in the Navy and know that chutes do not deploy by themselves, they need help of some sort to pull the pins. :encouragement:
 
PAUL161 said:
I was a parachute rigger in the Navy and know that chutes do not deploy by themselves, they need help of some sort to pull the pins. :encouragement:
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This was not a normal parachute that someone would wear on their back. In this video starting at about 3:40 Bob Truax describes what he "suspects" happened - that the force of the launch caused the "canister" (cover) to come loose and the chute to deploy almost immediately at launch. Later in the video, starting at about 6:12 you see a slow motion video that clearly shows that the chute is deployed as soon at the rocket starts up the ramp and Evil is heard saying he never fired it.

 
Probably very lucky that chute wasn't torn right off.
 
Basil said:
This was not a normal parachute that someone would wear on their back. In this video starting at about 3:40 Bob Truax describes what he "suspects" happened - that the force of the launch caused the "canister" (cover) to come loose and the chute to deploy almost immediately at launch. Later in the video, starting at about 6:12 you see a slow motion video that clearly shows that the chute is deployed as soon at the rocket starts up the ramp and Evil is heard saying he never fired it.

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Thanks Basil, your 100% correct. I never knew that and I watched it on TV, but the room was crowded with a wild bunch of onlookers. :highly_amused: PJ
 
I think if that had not happened he'd have had a pretty good chance at success.
 
GTP1960 said:
or a pretty good chance of having a Snake River Memorial service.
(never know how his landing might have gone)
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Possibly. By the way, I learned to rappel on the snake river canyon, not far from that launch site.
 
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Basil said:
Possibly. By the way, I learned to repel on the snake river canyon, not far from that launch site.
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No. You learned to rappel on the Snake River Canyon - you learned to repel with that darn speedo! :grin:
 
JPSmit said:
No. You learned to rappel on the Snake River Canyon - you learned to repel with that darn speedo! :grin:
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You are correct. Wrong word. But then again, maybe I was rappelling in my speedo, which would have also been repelling. :popworm:
 
JPSmit said:
No. You learned to rappel on the Snake River Canyon - you learned to repel with that darn speedo! :grin:
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Could I get away with this excuse?

autocorrect.jpg
 
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