Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/591462
W hen Big Red recently appeared at the premiere of "Being Evel," a documentary about the life of legendary daredevil Robert Craig "Evel" Knievel (1938-2007), it marked the culmi- nation of years of restoration work on the 1974 Mack FS cabover, a pro- cess that transformed the former icon from near scrap to celluloid star. As Knievel's transport truck in the 1970s, Big Red not only hauled the stuntman's motorcycles, Cadillac station wagons and pickups, and the famous SkyCycle, it also served as a custom-built office and dressing room, decked out in Knievel's signature red, white and blue color scheme. The meticulously restored interior features memorabilia from Knievel's life on the road, including a lucky horseshoe he would touch before making every jump. Carrying on the legend As part of a partnership with Evel Knievel Enterprises and Historic Harley-Davidson of Topeka, Kansas, where Big Red was restored, Mack has provided two Pinnacle highway models – a DayCab and a 70-inch high-rise sleeper – to help transport the definitive collection of Knievel memorabilia, including Big Red, to stops across the country. The travel- ing memorabilia collection features not only the truck, but also several of Knievel's motorcycles, leathers, helmets, medical X-rays, casts and other unique items collected by Evel enthusiast and world-renowned skateboarder Lathan McKay. After Big Red was featured by Robb Mariani on his TV show, "American Trucker," McKay tracked the Mack down at a salvage yard in Clearwater, Florida. He says the cab's roof looked like Swiss cheese and was filled with 20 years' worth of pine needles. McKay bought the rig and eventually enlisted Historic Harley-Davidson owner Mike Patterson to rebuild the combo. "There was more sky than metal in the cab when we got the truck," Patterson says. "It took us the last year-and-a-half, with the help of more than 96 businesses and individuals in and around the town, to rebuild it." Big Red has been showing off its facelift: It headlined the 14th annual Evel Knievel Days in Knievel's hometown of Butte, Montana; appeared at the Sturgis Motorcycle rally in South Dakota, was on site at the Great American Trucking Show in Dallas; and graced the red carpet at the premiere of "Being Evel," in which it plays a supporting role. "Seeing Evel's restored Mack FS model in the film, then experienc- ing the rig in real life, adds a great dimension to Evel's fascinating story," says John Walsh, Mack vice president of marketing. "Not just anyone can be depended upon to haul a legend, and what better choice than a present-day Mack Pinnacle model to deliver Big Red to the premiere." 2 6 | BULLDOG | 2 0 1 5 V 3 TAILLIGHTS Being Evel The restored 1974 Mack FS Model gets its close-up in a new film about Evel Knievel