Evel Knievel died in 2007 at the age of 69, but his daredevil spirit has taken on a second life with a motorcycle rider’s illegal jump over a Southland freeway — and state officials don’t want it to happen again.
Caltrans officials blocked access to makeshift dirt ramps used by a motocyclist to jump over the 60 freeway in Moreno Valley in order to prevent would-be copycats.
The stunt was caught on video and posted to the Instagram account of Kyle Katsandris of San Clemente, where it went viral and garnered nearly 100,000 views. The video showed a motorcyclist jumping over and across four lanes of the 60 freeway as traffic drove by.
“We hope to never see this again,” Caltrans spokeswoman Terri Kasinga said. “It was illegal and dangerous to motorists. It could have been a tragedy.”
Caltrans crews became aware of the video on Friday and by Saturday had sent crews to find the ramps in the San Timoteo Badlands and block them off.
The California Highway Patrol and the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department were investigating.
Knievel gained famed for his motorcycle stunt performances in more than 75 ramp-to-ramp jumps, including a failed Snake River Canyon try.
–City News Service