Autoblog

Originally intended as a tribute to the 40th anniversary of Evel Knievel's unforgettable Caesar's Palace jump, U.K. bike dealer Jack Lilley has created a special edition of Triumph's on-and-off-road Scrambler. The choice of motorcycle makes sense because that original jump some 40 years ago was done aboard a Triumph T120 Bonneville. Although the project was started before his death, it has taken on new meaning now that the legendary stunt-man has passed and is a tribute to more than just that one jump. According to the dealership, the bike "is based on a Scrambler and has a superb paint job along with short front mudguard, Thruxton seat and hump, chrome engine cases, red cam cover and other small details." The one-off tribute bike will be sold with a signed picture of the man himself in mid-jump and will command a few thousand extra over the base price of the Scrambler. Um... yeah, and we want one.

[Source: Jack Lilley via Motorcycle USA]

As a proud owner of a hand-me-down Evel Knievel motorcycle toy, I've always wanted to attempt an outrageous motorcycle stunt. After watching Robbie Madison's ridiculous record-breaking 322-foot jump, I think I'll instead revert to my plan to bid on Evel's Wild Turkey cane when it hits eBay. The video available after the jump shows several terrific replays of Madison as he launched himself off a ramp New Year's Eve and rose 60 feet in the air before landing 107 yards away. Check out how Madison uses his rear brake to properly position his bike for landing. Good stuff, very good stuff. Madison's Vegas jump easily beat the previous Guinness World Record of 277 feet by Trigger Gumm. We'd have thought a guy named Trigger could out-jump anyone named Robbie, but we've been wrong before.

[Source: Metacafe]

We just got word that Evel Knievel died at the age of 69 from apparent liver failure. His personal website isn't loading up, nor is there any confirmation of Knievel's death on any of the major media sites. We'll keep you posted as we find out more.

UPDATE: Yahoo! News has an obit on Knievel, whose death was confirmed by his granddaughter earlier today. The daredevil extraordinaire underwent a liver transplant in 1999 after a long battle with hepatitis C, rumored to be contracted during a blood transfusion after one of his spectacular crashes in his early years.

Our deepest sympathies to his friends, family and admirers.

As an automaker best known for its voluptuous, curvy coupes, the Aston Martin Lagonda is a knife-edged enigma. The origami aggression of its exterior, its tech-laden interior, along with the sheer scale of the thing (over 17' long) must've made it look like an aluminum-skinned spaceship when it hit the show scene in 1976. Launched with a 5.3-liter Weber-carb'd V8 (and clunky Chrysler three-speed automatic), the performance didn't completely deliver on the Lagonda's avant-garde visuals, though it was allegedly capable of 140 mph. Naturally, the Lagonda's habitually troublesome electronics and quality-control issues didn't stop at least one Autoblog staffer from falling in love with its impossibly futuristic shape collection of angles.

(click through to the jump for an interior shot, more details, and the link!)