By Staff
Rounder Magazine was trackside on May 17, 2026, as a new chapter in daredevil history was written above the iconic Caesars fountains.
The desert sun glinted off chrome as Colby Raha twisted the throttle and launched his motorcycle skyward from a custom quarter-pipe ramp. In one fluid, gravity-defying arc, he cleared the legendary fountains at Caesars Palace and etched a new world record: 94 feet off the ground.
Our photographers captured every heartbeat of the moment — the coiled tension on the ramp, the perfect apex against the Las Vegas skyline, and the safe touchdown that proved preparation and courage can still rewrite what’s possible.
This was no ordinary stunt. It was a deliberate return to sacred, dangerous ground. On New Year’s Eve 1967, Evel Knievel attempted the impossible: a motorcycle jump across the massive fountains in front of Caesars Palace. The world watched live. Knievel hit the takeoff with trademark swagger, but his rear wheel clipped the edge of the safety ramp.
The bike bucked violently, hurling him across the pavement in a horrific tumble. He crushed his pelvis and femur, shattered his wrist, and suffered a concussion so severe he spent 29 days in a coma. He survived what many believed would be a fatal crash — broken in body but unbreakable in spirit. That single, savage moment helped define an entire era of American risk-taking.
Twenty-two years later, on April 14, 1989, Evel’s son Robbie Knievel returned to the same spot. With family legacy riding shotgun, Robbie cleared the fountains cleanly and dedicated the leap to his father. Redemption, delivered on two wheels. In 2018, freestyle icon Travis Pastrana added his own successful crossing. The fountains had become a proving ground — and a reminder that the line between triumph and tragedy is measured in inches and nerve.
Colby Raha stepped into that lineage on May 17 with something fresh: a pure vertical-height world-record attempt. The 12-time X Games medalist and multiple record holder came to Caesars Palace chasing 100 feet.
While he fell just short of the century mark, his 94-foot apex surpassed his own previous best of 90 feet and established a new global benchmark for motorcycle vertical jump height. He completed multiple runs that afternoon, each one smoother, each one pushing the envelope a little farther while the fountains sprayed beneath him.
“Attempting a jump at the same location where Evel Knievel made his historic attempt carries real meaning,” Raha said afterward. “It’s an opportunity to push limits at one of the most iconic locations in stunt history at one of the most iconic resorts in Las Vegas.”
The timing was perfect. Raha’s flights headlined the grand-opening weekend of the new OMNIA Dayclub & Skybar and Caesars Palace’s 60th anniversary celebrations. Produced by his Record Breakers brand, the spectacle blended raw motocross athleticism with full Vegas theatricality. Members of the Knievel family watched from the crowd, a quiet passing of the torch from one generation of limit-pushers to the next.
For Rounder Magazine, being on site felt like stepping inside the story we love to tell. Our team documented the engineering precision of the ramp, the controlled chaos of the production, and — most importantly — the human element: the hush before launch, the collective gasp at the peak, and the roar when Raha rolled to a stop unharmed. Those images will run alongside this piece, preserving the moment for our readers.
Raha’s record may stand for years, but its real power lies in the continuum it honors. From Evel Knievel’s near-fatal pioneering ride to Robbie’s redemptive flight to Colby Raha’s record-shattering vertical leap, the Caesars Palace fountains have tested the boldest among us. What Raha proved on that May afternoon is that the daredevil spirit isn’t about courting death — it’s about calculated courage, relentless progression, and the audacity to aim higher than the last legend.
In an age of simulations and safe spectacles, moments like these still cut through. They remind us why we gather, why we hold our breath, and why some still choose to live — and fly — at full throttle.
Rounder Magazine — capturing the moments that define American adventure.
Read the article in the Spring/Summer 2026 issue of Rounder Magazine
