Parenting & Family Quote by Evel Knievel

Knievel is doing something deceptively hard here: praising the next generation without turning himself into a monument. On its face, the line is a genial thumbs-up to “young kids” throwing “fantastic back flips.” Underneath, it’s an old master quietly rewriting the rules of legacy. He built fame on brute nerve and spectacle, a body-as-cannonball ethic where the drama came from distance, danger, and the near-certainty of impact. Backflips belong to a different era: controlled rotation, technical progression, a kind of athletic literacy that reads as futuristic compared to Knievel’s blunt-force heroics.

The repetition of “I think” matters. It’s not an edict from a legend; it’s a considered admission, almost conversational, as if he’s talking himself into generosity. Then the pivot: “They did what I never did.” That’s the hinge that makes the quote work. Most icons protect their mythology by insisting no one does it like they did. Knievel does the opposite. He acknowledges a boundary in his own skill set, and by doing so he protects the larger myth: the show must evolve, even if the founder can’t follow it.

There’s also a sly self-preservation in the humility. By admitting he never did backflips, he dodges the tedious comparison game and instead claims the role of elder statesman of risk. The subtext isn’t regret; it’s relief. The kids can have the new tricks. Knievel still owns the idea that daring is entertainment, and that the crowd will always pay to watch someone try what yesterday’s legend couldn’t.