When you mention the Snake River to anyone from my generation there are two words that inevitably come to mind: Evel Knievel. The daredevil’s failed attempt to jump Snake River Canyon in the mid 1970s was borderline mythical growing up even though a prematurely deployed chute derailed the attempted “jump.” The idea of climbing into a rocket and shooting oneself across a deep gorge to thousands of adoring fans was a little boy’s fantasy come true.

Having spent time in Montana and worked in the motorcycle industry, I know what a revered figure Evel is.  There is an annual, weekend festival in his hometown of Butte, MT that invokes not only his daredevil spirit but his keen sense of showmanship. Driving around today and crossing over the Snake (let’s face it, if Evel would have jumped the Madison or the Missouri river it wouldn’t have had the same appeal) it’s easy to flashback to Knievel’s rocket slowly descending into the canyon. For me thinking about watching Evel on TV as a kid brought back another memory.

Most of Evel’s jumps were shown on ABC’s Wide World of Sports (ironically the Snake River attempt was not), a Saturday afternoon, ninety minute sports show whose introduction proclaimed they were “spanning the globe to bring you the constant variety of sport…” and variety they did. I remember watching lumberjack contests, arm wrestling, demolition derby, cliff diving, rodeo, stock car racing, and more. It was ESPN before there was ESPN all in one television show. For a young kid into sports, it was a Saturday staple.

But as much as the Snake River=Evel Kneivel there is an equivalent that Wide World of Sports conjures up. It is the “…agony of defeat” guy. In the introduction as a voice speaks the agony line, a ski jumper crouched and speeding down the ramp wobbles, falls, then elevates off the ramp, spinning horrifically in the air all the while creating the gold standard for wipe outs. Miraculously the ski jumper was okay.

Over the thirty-seven years of the show they changed the show’s intro video numerous times while keeping the same voice-over. Jim McKay’s iconic voice speaks of “the thrill of victory” before leading into “the agony of defeat.”  They replaced the video idealizing the thrill of victory every few years but they kept the poor jumper as the portrayal of the agony of defeat. Although none of us knew who he was, he was and still is the face of the agony of defeat for a generation.

Forty years after miserably failing in front of the whole world, I thought of you today “agony of defeat” guy. Here’s the intro video, talk about a bad day at the office.

All “agony of defeat” talk aside, it was a thrilling drive through eastern Idaho.