The Salvation Story of Evel Knievel
by Andy Spencer
The Friendship
In 1956, Elden Wright was the Triumph Motorcycles representative for the West Coast. That year he met Robert Knievel, a Honda Motorcycle Dealer in Moses Lake, Washington. They began a business relationship and friendship over the next 16 years. Elden went to work for Johnson Motors in Pasadena California in the early 1960s, where he provided Triumph motorcycles for now "Evel" Knievel to use in his motorcycle jumping shows. Elden provided the motorcycle that Evel Knievel rode when he tried to jump the Caesar’s Palace Fountains on December 31, 1967. Elden brought the motorcycle to Evel in the morning and commented that the ramps did not look right for the jump. The crash that ensued is one of the most-watched pieces of film in existence.
the Gospel
During their sixteen-year friendship, Elden presented the Gospel to Evel Knievel many times. Each time he presented the Gospel, Knievel was not interested. Thirty-five years passed, and in early 2007, Evel Knievel called Elden to tell him that “he did not want to go to hell.” Evel asked Elden to share Christ with him one more time. This time Knievel responded in faith and prayed for Jesus Christ to be his personal Savior. Elden and Evel had not talked for 35 years, yet when it came time for his salvation, Elden was the first person Evel called.
Baptism
Evel Knievel was baptized in April of 2007 at the Crystal Cathedral in Garden Grove, California. In his testimony before the church, he mentioned Elden Wright from New Hope Community Church in Portland, Oregon, as being instrumental in telling him about Jesus.
He said, "I started off being a wild person, doing things that weren't right... ended up in Los Angeles, started my motorcycle show... I earned a lot of money, my name got to be known... [but] I was empty... I started thinking about God more and more... I called a friend I hadn't talked to in 30 years... the power of God and Jesus just grabbed me... I just got on my knees and prayed that God would put His arms around me... I was just all of a sudden overcome by the Spirit of God Almighty...."
"I know that there's more to life than what I've had... I've been a sinner... but not anymore... I'm so happy. This is the biggest step I've ever taken in my life.... You've got to believe – oh, you've got to believe in Jesus Christ!"
The Letter
I sent Elden a letter in early summer of 2007 thanking him for sharing Christ with one of my boyhood heroes. Elden called me back to thank me for the letter, and said that he had shared the letter with Evel, who requested a copy of it.
In October of that same year, Elden and I went to see Evel at his home in Florida. We spent the day with him, telling stories and remembering his early escapades.
Later in the day, Evel let us view his motorcycle collection. Elden's wife, Naomi, joined us.
Heroes
It was a great day. Evel Knievel had been a boyhood hero of mine, and now that I was an adult, Elden also had become one of my heroes.
In Evel's motorcycle collection is this model skeleton (behind Naomi) which shows all the injuries Evel sustained during his daredevil career.
Passing
One month after our visit, on November 30, 2007, Robert Craig Knievel passed away. I am honored that I got to meet him and to know that, at the end of his life, he put his faith in Jesus Christ.