Was Evel Knievel the last daredevil?

I think the show is still going on, but his charisma was all time. 100 ft wave seekers, Red Bull has all stripes of lunatics. Racing is as nuts as ever, Isle of Mann and so on…

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kevinlc1971@reddit

Of course. It was cheesy as hell. That’s what made it so awesome to me. I love stupid off the wall shit.

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marklar7@reddit

Letterman was a bit of a stuntman himself. Trampoline onto velcro wall in a velcro suit...

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Head_Effect3728@reddit

Rex Kramer, Danger Seeker was the last true daredevil.

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Neren1138@reddit

Nope, but watch Being Evel (Johnny Knoxville produced it.) and you’ll never look at him the same again.

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DFWPunk@reddit

Yeah. The man was a complete piece of shit. He had brass balls, but he's not someone to admire.

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TheLeathal13@reddit

The guy that jumped from the edge of space.

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Upper-Information441@reddit

I think Nik Wallenda kind of qualifies? Walking (tethered) over Niagara Falls was pretty cool. And going untethered across (near?) part of the Grand Canyon. That one even got a little dicey.

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justheretohelpyou__@reddit

I watched some Red Bull stunt pilot jump from one plane to another in midair. I think he qualifies.

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disturbednadir@reddit

I was going to say that I think Red Bull has a whole team of them.

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Search “professional trial bike” or “Pol Tarres” on YouTube, it’s amazing the athleticism, control, and balance of these motorcyclists. Supercross is also a great show of acrobatics on a motorcycle in a more competitive environment.

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likewhenyoupee@reddit

You never watched Jackass?

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La_Mano_Cornuta@reddit

Did Rick Rojatt aka The Human Fly burn his thighs atop a DC airliner for nothing?

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IlluminatedMoose@reddit

Fuck, no. Seth Enslow was bigger, better and Landed most of his biggest jumps!

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Commercial_Lock6205@reddit

Travis Pastrana would like a word.

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bhub01@reddit

Came here to say this

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Bossanova72@reddit

When I think about growing up in the 70's and 80's, lately I think about how awesomely weird the 70's were and Evel Knievel is one of my examples of weird and crazy. Think about the outfits, the facial hair, and the machines he built and colorized. The spectacle of the stunts and the media attention made it even better.

Plenty of people have answered the question and we all know he wasn't the last but he was original and entertaining.

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mustardmadman@reddit

Ben Affleck was the last daredevil

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DiabloSerpentino@reddit

No. Charlie Cox was the first, the last, and the only Daredevil.

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pizzamergency@reddit

Super-Dave Osborne

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CB_Chuckles@reddit

Said this and then I saw this.

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Hyperocean@reddit

And Fuji

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CB_Chuckles@reddit

What about Super Dave?

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Correct-Condition-99@reddit

Hardly. Have you watched the crazy people in wing suits? Or base jumpers? People who jump out of planes without a shute?

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chikn2d@reddit

That's the first thing I thought. Those wing suits are crazy! So are the folks who free climb buildings and such.

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Embarrassed-Print54@reddit

There was Gary Wells and England had Robin Winter-Smith.....

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CDubs_94@reddit

No...Felix Baumgartner jumped from a space balloon, traveled at 845mph in free fall and broke the sound barrier.....and landed on his feet. I mean....cmon!

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Soulshiner402@reddit

The other Red Bull stunt that was cool was the guy who skied down from the summit of Mt Everest.

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WarExciting@reddit

I watched that happen live! That dude is my hero!

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CDubs_94@reddit

Same......I watched it with my father and its one of the greatest human feats I've ever seen live. It beats every great sports moment or championship for me. When he landed...I was actually emotional. He broke the sound barrier with his body....then walked away when he landed. Just writing this makes it sound impossible....but it actually happened.

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domesticatedprimate@reddit

It's not novel anymore. In Evel's day, he really stood out and got tons of media attention because nobody else was taking those risks.

Today you have risk takers doing crazy shit on social media every single day. People aren't impressed anymore.

But there are still guys able to attract brief media attention with crazy stunts. Like the guy who walked a tight rope between two skyscrapers or the guy who recently climbed one freehand. They're the modern equivalent of Evel Knievel.

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Fun-Sock1557@reddit

there are tons of them. are you just not counting his son, for some reason? and that british dude that jumped on/off the arch in vegas. jesus! it was so cool

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feralGenx@reddit

Robbie Kenevel

Robbie Madeson

Joey Chitwood

Mike Metzger, just to name a few. There are soon many more from the 70s and 80s I'm forgetting.

Evil kenevel is the original daredevil.

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deleted_by_reddit@reddit

[removed]

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GenX-ModTeam@reddit

No Politics - Political posts or comments of any sort are not permitted. If you wish to have political discussions, you may do so on our other sub r/GenXPolitics.

Breaking this rule may result in bans, either temporary or permanent.

Before you make the claim: No, providing respite from political discussions does not infringe on your rights.

Also, this politics ban was put before the sub over a year ago, and members have spoken.

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TheFoulToad@reddit

Man, haven't heard Joey Chitwood's name in a long time. He and his group would come to our hometown fair in western Wisconsin a lot in the 1970s and early 1980s, I remember the Chevy Chevette that would always drive around the track on two wheels, the clown car, and the jumps! Fun times!

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nixtarx@reddit

It all went to monster trucks

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Viridian_Cranberry68@reddit

I was just thinking about drawing his portrait too. Algorithm even knows what's inside my head.

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Objective-Minimum802@reddit

Have you ever seen any videos of Red Bull sports events?

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tomjulio@reddit

I have. And no one has ever come close to the impact and social zietgeist of Evel Knievel.

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50sDadSays@reddit

Super Dave Osborne

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Street-Technology-93@reddit

No; there’s an entire genre of extreme sports now. He was certainly the most famous of our generation though.

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MattyBeatz@reddit

He’s not even the last Knievel daredevil.

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nacnud_uk@reddit

You've not seen that guy that dives through busses?

You've not seen Red Bull Cliff Diving?

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nacnud_uk@reddit

You've not seen Redbull Rampage then?

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Mister_Macphisto@reddit

I'm sorry if this was posted and mad respect to all the original daredevils, but this is the top of the list and putting everyone else to shame outside of that dude who skydived w/out a parachute...

Felix Baumgartner Space Jump World Record 2012 Full HD 1080p [FULL]

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RoyalPuzzleheaded259@reddit

No. Redbull sponsors a lot of modern day dare devils. They’re just doing a lot more than jumping school busses on a Harley.

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hyst0rica1_29@reddit

That would be Super Dave Osborne!

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shaggin_maggie@reddit

He wasn’t the last but he is the GOAT and remains unmatched.

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zed2point0@reddit

I came here to say this!

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Historical_Project86@reddit

Eddie Kidd.

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EducationalOutcome26@reddit

Robbie Madison

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robbie_Maddison

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Sorry-Government920@reddit

Hot Rod Rod Kimble

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SpaceWrangler777@reddit

gif

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JJDiet76@reddit

Super Dave

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Disastrous-Exit7614@reddit

My furst thought too

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Disastrous-Exit7614@reddit

Super dave

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Murashi@reddit

RIP Ken Block

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ExtraAd7611@reddit

Steve Irwin?

As norm MacDonald noted, for an alligator wrestler/ stingray swimmer, 43 was a ripe old age.

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im_talking_ace@reddit

Johnny Blue Jeans once jumped over Evel Kneival on Viva Variety, thus taking the daredevil crown.

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feeb75@reddit

Viva Variety!

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Kindly_Bluebird_3741@reddit

Yes but he retired to be a bra.

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yurinator71@reddit

Travis Pastrana is pretty daring.

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Jebgogh@reddit

His latest videos he drives with the same energy he rode motorcycles. just crazy fun. he drives a Subaru Brat all over Australia and just goes nuts.

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Temporary_Nobody@reddit

Travis would blow Evels mind the first time he did a back flip.

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feeb75@reddit

Travis Pastrana and Nitro Circus?

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Standard_Gur30@reddit

Bill junior, he was a daredevil! Just like his old man.

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thejohnmc963@reddit

Johnny Knoxville

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Hopsape@reddit

I fancy myself something of a daredevil. I've adopted a sedentary lifestyle and a wreckless diet.

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Breklin76@reddit

Have you not seen Jackass?

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pandemicblues@reddit

X sports in general. Team Redbull. It was professionalized.

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Strange-Industry132@reddit

You could argue Jackie Chan was a daredevil with his stunts

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Sumeriandawn@reddit

https://i.redd.it/mbh1o87flm0h1.gif

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Sumeriandawn@reddit

https://i.redd.it/8olr7f40lm0h1.gif

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Ottomatica@reddit

Jackass. Not jumping the Grand Canyon stupid but very often, very stupid

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tigers692@reddit

You don’t like Robbie?

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dtoddh@reddit

Evel's style of stunt work has influenced tens of thousands of athletes who risk their physical well being professionally for cameras. Because bones heal, everyone digs scars and real danger generates lots of clicks.

Names like Ken Block and Travis Pastrana are easily as well known as Evel with hundreds of others. And brands like Red Bull, Jackass etc crank out tons of this style of content.

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Substantial_Diver_34@reddit

Jackass

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charliefoxtrot9@reddit

Points at xgames

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kabekew@reddit

Super Dave Osborne

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mandoaz1971@reddit

So damn funny 😆

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HolyHandGrenade_92@reddit

LOL. super dave. that was a creative really funny gig

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smellmyfinger22@reddit

Freaking LOVE Super Dave. He could deadpan a funeral eulogy.

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MudJumpy1063@reddit

Actually more of a tongue in cheek parody of Knievel. The reveal in every stunt where Super Dave was replaced by a super obvious dummy was a running gag.

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kabekew@reddit

Of course. I loved his show, I think it ran on HBO or Cinemax.

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shell_shocked_today@reddit

I think he started off as a bit on Letterman

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ThermoMother@reddit (OP)

Lol. Yes. Love him

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shell_shocked_today@reddit

I guess I should have read through the replies before I threw his name in!

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CawlinAlcarz@reddit

What about Super Dave Osborne?

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Own_Carry7396@reddit

The only correct answer

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That-Election9465@reddit

❤️

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CustomCarNerd@reddit

Robbie Knievel

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Ilovethe90sforreal@reddit

Not sure, but he was actually my neighbor for a few months before he passed away. Saw him in the elevator a couple times with his caretaker, girlfriend, or whatever.

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Vanman04@reddit

You miss all the red bull folks?

They are doing things that make evils stunts look like child play.

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Open_Appointment1091@reddit

Evel did jumps on a stock bike. Strapped his ass to a rocket to go over the Grand Canyon. Those boys would never.

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Chad_Hooper@reddit

*Snake River Canyon. Evel had a big ego, but not big enough to try the Grand Canyon.

I don’t mean that as a knock, I was a huge fan of his when I was in the 4th grade, and so was every other boy in that school.

We were all disappointed when the Canyon jump didn’t go as planned.

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Vanman04@reddit

Dude what are you even talking about a dude jumped from a plane with no parachute and landed in a net.

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FlatSixFun@reddit

Yeah, that's where my thoughts went immediately. There are more daredevils than ever before, all being caught in 4K HD HDR.

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SunMyungMoonMoon@reddit

Add some love to this thread for Hal Needham. He stuck a rocket on a K-body GM truck and jumped it 140-feet over a canal.

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NavierIsStoked@reddit

Umm... The big time Red Bull sponsored guys and gals can easily be considered superior "Daredevils".

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Nanojack@reddit

The Jackass crew definitely did daredevil stuff, when they weren't shoving toy cars up their asses or vomiting raw eggs into a frying pan

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HolyHandGrenade_92@reddit

think it's- evel was the first major dare devil. many since have competed but not to evel's level for what he did in his time. evel set the standard, and it's high. many have done a few things, evel did -a lot.' think that's the difference

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AutomaticFennel1658@reddit

This Kenevils.

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xologo@reddit

Travis Pastranais no joke

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Rogerbva090566@reddit

If this is the jumping out of the plane without a parachute I cannot watch it!!! lol It gives me so much anxiety.

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disco_duck2004@reddit

You're safe, it's Travis jumping the Caesars Palace fountain in vegas.

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Rogerbva090566@reddit

lol thanks.

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x100139@reddit

Johnny Knoxville and the rest of the crew

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lectroid@reddit

Honestly, this is the answer. Maybe throw in guys like Tony Hawke and Travis Pastrana. But, as someone said, Evel didn’t have the purpose built bikes those guys do.

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Darth1Football@reddit

The big difference with Evel is when he was jumping 20 cars in 1971 he was doing it on a basically stock Triumph not a custom bike with suspension to absorb the landing

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Nazz1968@reddit

His Harley XR-750 bikes were quite heavy, and the mass was difficult to control if he didn’t hit the landing ramp just right. There was no physicist with a computer on hand. It was all eyeballs and feel.

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furniguru@reddit

He rode Harley Davidson motorcycles as well. Not exactly 2 brands known for being light.

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marklanderson@reddit

Alex Honnold

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furniguru@reddit

Free Solo was a movie that blew my mind. I have never seen anything like that in my life.

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Ike_In_Rochester@reddit

gif

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Only-Weird-4519@reddit

Eddie Kidd was a big name in the UK in the 80s and early 90s. Then he had a big crash...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eddie_Kidd?wprov=sfla1

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accidentallyHelpful@reddit

Pastrana jumped out of a plane without a parachute

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Illustrious_Bad_2980@reddit

Felix Baumgartner jumped out of a balloon from the edge of space

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greatflicks@reddit

Nitro Circus does some wild stuff. The Red Bull guys are out there in terms of extreme stuff.

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Changoleo@reddit

Absolutely wild. This isn’t AI.

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Least_West5260@reddit

Tom Cruise puts his body on the line for us all the time.

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twstdbydsn@reddit

Hot Rod

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InsaneClownBossy@reddit

Besides Travis P I’d also mention Ken Block (R.I.P.) and his Hoonigan family as being pretty badass at stunting.

Oh, and Felix Baumgartner (R.I.P.)… geez I’m kind of a buzzkill. Sorry! But he was a tried and true daredevil!!!

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Changoleo@reddit

I came to say that Pastrana has always pushed freestyle motocross to new boundaries. Robbie Maddison’s jump up onto and back down off of that building in Vegas seems worthy.

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aran_maybe@reddit

I’m pretty sure Charlie Cox plays him now.

All jokes aside remember Felix Baumgardner, that guy who jumped from space? He’s dead now but I think he would count. I think it’s a lot scarier to jump from space with just a parachute than it is to jump over a canyon in a motorcycle. Call me crazy. Or maybe not. Evel missed and just broke a bunch of bones. Felix went splat.

And based upon his Wikipedia biography, it’s not a big loss.

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myloveisajoke@reddit

I dunno...jumping a canyon is more sketchy. More things can go wrong.

I figure jumping from the stratosphere is just applying the same practices as a lower free fall jump, you just need to hold it longer. Jumping from 150k feet probably isn't much different than jumping from 10k outside of the suit and how you get up there.

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aran_maybe@reddit

Yes but everything that goes wrong with the free fall leads to the same result.

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Formal_Challenge_542@reddit

I thought he was the first one

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InevitableOk5017@reddit

Buster Keaton enters the chat from the grave.

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SSquirrel76@reddit

No Charlie Cox

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ragingclaw@reddit

take my angry hallway upvote

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jaspnlv@reddit

Matt hoffman

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ZodL@reddit

your mom was pretty daring back in the day.

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ThermoMother@reddit (OP)

True. I heard she broke a lot of “bones”

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Couldbelater@reddit

Come on now, let’s get off moms. Cause I just got off yours.

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ZodL@reddit

your dad just told me he expected you to be a better original poster, not just a commenter.

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Couldbelater@reddit

Now we each have a parent expecting

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ZodL@reddit

ABORT

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heldaway@reddit

Hiyoooooo!

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MoeBlacksBack@reddit

Super Dave Osborne was

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AliMcLovinJr@reddit

Amateur backyard wrestlers.

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grunkage@reddit

Nah, stunt people and extreme athletes are doing stuff Evel never dreamed of

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smellmyfinger22@reddit

To be fair, if Knievel had today's equipment he would've been able to accomplish much more. Let's see today's daredevils do a backflip on a Harley Davidson.

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grunkage@reddit

Definitely - it's an era thing. There are people like Evel today - there have always been people like that. The technology and safety level have evolved. It's possible to simulate and practice things that weren't possible in the 70s and 80s. Evel today would be in the X-Games and doing Red Bull events

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HistoricalTowel1127@reddit

The braintrust from Jackass qualify as daredevils I think. In sort of low rent back alley huffing party kind of way.

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Instimatic@reddit

The Jackass Collective were likely the last

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mikeyfireman@reddit

They passed the torch to a new generation of jackasses. Jackass lives on!

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40Breath@reddit

Travis Pastrana is a modern day one.

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ridinderty@reddit

na, bro's retired from doing crazy shit. Colby Raha is the new blood setting records

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40Breath@reddit

Thx, that dude looks insane.

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JayRexx@reddit

Johnny Knoxville

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smellslikebigfootdic@reddit

Super Dave,hotrod

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mapoftasmania@reddit

Travis Pastrana. Approximately the same number of broken bones.

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TRS80487@reddit

Travis immediately came to mind. Dude has broken and torn lots of body parts going crazy shit.

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Rogerbva090566@reddit

I’m from DC and Travis was on local news when he was a kid. They were talking to him at like 12 years old because he tried a huge jump on his motorcycle and I think broke his back or legs when landing short. At the end of the interview the reporter says “so what lesson have we learned here?” And Travis says (paraphrasing) “next time I gotta go faster!”.

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kckitty71@reddit

The last daredevil to have his own awesome motorcycle toy.

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shell_shocked_today@reddit

What about Super Dave Osborne?

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trainsacrossthesea@reddit

And, he’d be the first to tell you, none of it was possible without the insight and guidance of Fuji Hakayito

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shinyviper@reddit

Bob Einstein. Brother to Albert Brooks, who changed his last name for showbiz.

In other words, Super Dave grew up with Albert Einstein.

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zipster8@reddit

Baloonball.

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heldaway@reddit

RIP

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Signature_Excellent@reddit

For sure Travis Pastrana. It's not even close.

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Immediate-Rub3807@reddit

Yes exactly this dude

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thereverendpuck@reddit

Super Dave Osborne man.

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Dense-Consequence-70@reddit

Thank you. Someone with sense.

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No_Difference8518@reddit

Larry Enticer is just gonna send it!

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A_Tom_McWedgie@reddit

Dar Robinson

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wheresbill@reddit

I saw him jump in the astrodome in the 70s or 80s

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mandoaz1971@reddit

Ever heard of Jackass???

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Lostintimeandspac@reddit

there are still folks out there doing stuff like that, just think Evel Knievel was that last star level dare devil

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Biff2019@reddit

Why would anyone want to be as shitty at their job as that douche?

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LeftRightGreenLight@reddit

I think it was Ben Affleck

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ChilledRoland@reddit

gif
Laughs in Charlie Cox

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umair01@reddit

It's hard to compare different eras, safety technology, and all that.. I liked Ken Block's work ...

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_r12n@reddit

X-games are full of daredevils

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NerdfestZyx@reddit

Team Jackass

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ThermoMother@reddit (OP)

So true. They took it to the next level

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bradglasses@reddit

and the Dudesons!

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Hilsam_Adent@reddit

The Jackass boys picked up where he left off. There's not been another singular person or group since then dumb enough to risk their lives on a regular basis for fame and very moderate fortune.

Kneivel flew so Knoxville, et. al. could sac-tap each other on a merry-go-round being spun by a motorcycle.

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ThermoMother@reddit (OP)

I didn’t think of Jackass. You’re right they were the next gen daredevil

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Nightgasm@reddit

Charlie Cox

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ridinderty@reddit

Colby Raha is the current modern day "daredevil"

Bro does some crazy jumps on bikes...

https://youtu.be/VcrgrLeyV9g?si=P3rhXxV5pWSH9Lh7

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