"Bob Gill Daredevil Legend"

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In 1973, daredevil legend Bob Gill jumped the entire fleet of Ryder trucks in a Super Bowl spot seen by 140 million viewers.  He was the first human being to take a bike over a canyon when he soared 152 feet over Cajun Canyon, in 1972.  Featured in the Guinness Book of World Records, Gill set many world records, and was the first daredevil to set a night record when he took his Kawasaki over 22 cars in Seattle, Washington.  He was a golden boy, loved by the media, as well as his sponsors.  Articulate and boyish, the US Navy, Kawasaki and Valvoline loved his being their spokesman because of his “Heart of America / Boy Next Door” image.

 

        In 1974, two weeks before Evel Knievel jumped Snake River, Gill crashed at Appalachia Lake, West Virginia, and has been paralyzed ever since. 

         There is a procedure called Laser Puncture being done by Dr. Albert Bohbot in France that will help him walk again.  Dr. Bohbot and his procedure have been featured in many Discovery Channel and BBC Network documentaries.  Dr. Bohbot has had success in over 500 of these miraculous procedures, with para and quadriplegics who had far worse injuries than Bob Gill’s.

   

December 17 , 1967:
DADE CITY, FL

Bob Gill's racing career began in 1962 with dirt track and road racing.

Photographed here in 1967 racing on a Ducati 250cc motorcycle out of Barney's Motorcycle Sales in St. Petersburg, Florida.

Bob Found the Trophies, Girl's and Cash Nice but he didn't make as much Money as he had hoped.

So in 1970, Bob Gill began jumping bikes full time.

Jumping 5 cars at a time, Bob Gill realized he needed to increase the distances to keep the audiences coming.

With friend Frank Boyd's help, they figured out the physics of motorcycle jumping.

For Bob, at first, the scariest part of jumping was speaking to the audience.

Bob Gill pioneered jumping without a landing ramp in the 1970s. Few other jumpers followed his style.

Setting records and gaining sponsorship, helped Bob settle into the role of the Daredevil.

He found his fans truly welcomed him into their cites and Bob overcame the scariest part of being a daredevil.

APRIL 16, 1972:
CAJUN CANYON
NEW ORLEANS, LA

Bob Gill was the first motorcycle jumper to jump across a canyon.

The Cajun Canyon outside New Orleans, LA. was 60 ft deep and 152 ft across.

10,000 people showed up to watch him jump his Suzuki 400.

JULY 8, 1972:
NEW YORK NATIONAL RACEWAY, LONG ISLAND, NY

On this three day weekend, Gill jumped 15 cars at 125 ft and then 16 cars before 42,000 people.

JULY 23, 1972:
LAKELAND INTERNATIONAL SPEEDWAY
MEMPHIS, TN

Bob jumped 130 ft. but upon landing his front wheel collapsed. He slid 125 more feet on the pavement.

MAY 10, 1973
RYDER TRUCK SHOOT
MASTERS FIELD
MIAMI, FL

Bob Gill jumps the Entire Fleet of Vehicles in the Ryder Truck Rental for a National TV Commercial.

Filmed by Michael Sloan Productions at Masters Field, a regional airport in Miami, Bob's rear tire touches the tallest truck...landing front wheel first on the hard concrete surface, but landing safely riding away.

What the Ad created was the First to feature a Motorcycle Jump, and put Ryder at the Top of the Rental Industry and the TV Industry with the Number One Action Commercial of the Year.

The spot was so Successful that Ryder bought Air Time during Super Bowl VIII and was viewed by over 140 million World Wide on January 13, 1974.

JULY 17, 1973:
SEATTLE INTERNATIONAL RACEWAY

Bob Gill set a World Record for the Longest Motorcycle Jump in Seattle Washington in Front of over 20,000 Screaming, Drunk Spectators signing Autographs till Sunrise.

Recorded by Guinness Book of Records 1975, he jumped over 22 cars for a distance of 171 feet.

JANUARY 24, 1974:
SPORTS ILLUSTRATED

Bob Gill is Written about in the "Scorecard Column" edited by Robert W. Creamer.

APRIL 9, 1974:
TO TELL THE TRUTH
NEW YORK CITY, NY

Bob Gill is a Guest on "To Tell The Truth," hosted by Garry Moore.

Show #1924 Aired in Primetime on NBC. It was the Thursday night episode for the week of April 24, 1975.

The actors who were pretending to be Bob were giving such bad answers to the questions, Bob had a hard time keeping a straight face. They were unable to fool the star panelists.

The second guest on the show with Bob was "Life Swap" writer Nancy Weber.

AUGUST 18, 1974:
The Great Jump APPALACHIA LAKE
BRUCETON MILLS, WV

A World Record attempt, Bob Gill tries to jump across Appalachia Lake.

Bob landed "3" feet short, the engine block hitting the dirt embankment.

His impact planted the motorcycle in the earth and he was thrown into the seat of his motorcycle at 95 mph.

He suffered severe back injuries which put an end to his motorcycle jumping career and his ability to walk.

Shown here is the cover of the program that was produced for the event.

JULY 1, 1976
ST PETERSBURG, FL

Bob starts a 8,000 mile cross country trip on his Kawasaki 900 with hand controls and custom side-hack.

He raised $1.2 million for spinal cord research in 30 days.

This Year - 2008:

The 32nd Anniversary of his cross-country trip.

Bob is planning a new cross-country motorcycle ride.

His goal is to raise the funds needed for The Bob Gill Foundation to complete it's mission:

• to advance research in spinal cord injury recovery.
• to film a documentary about advanced spinal cord injury treatments.
• to create awareness for the prevention spinal cord injuries.