 Classic SI photo by Peter Read Miller |
Voir dare
His Snake River Canyon jump was a televised disappointment, but Butte's Robert "Evel" Knievel lived to ride again and again throughout a dangerous career that once took famous flight over the fountains at Caesar's Palace (above) in Las Vegas.
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GREATEST ATHLETES |
Dave McNally, Billings
Four-time 20-game winner with the Orioles; tied then AL record with 17 consecutive wins in 1968-69.
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Dan Mortensen, Billings
Rodeo all-around world champion in 1997; saddle bronc winner in '93, '94, '95 and again in '97 and '98.
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Lones Wigger, Great Falls
One of the greatest U.S. rifle shooters; won two Olympic gold medals, in small-bore (1964) and free rifle ('72), and a silver in small bore ('64).
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FLASHBACK |
1996: Where Evel Lurks
Former daredevil Evel Knievel is still a gambler, so look for him in Las Vegas
At rest, which is a physically enforced condition for him, he is a startling sight. Diamonds of odd provenance ("Redd Foxx, paid $50,000 for them," he says) catch the casino light, and his half leer gleams wickedly. There's a crookedness to him that you can't quite put your finger on.
FULL STORY
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SI COVERS |
White Out
With some mountains boasting nearly 400 inches of annual snowfall, Montana's downhill ski areas can make for, as Sports Illustrated wrote in a 1962 cover story featuring the West's best ski resorts, a "winter wonderland."
Click here to see a gallery of every skiing cover
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THE SI POLL |
Who do Montanans root for? SI asked the Treasure State residents to weigh in* on sports.
Favorite major league baseball team
New York Yankees | 12% |
Seattle Mariners | 12% |
Atlanta Braves | 6% |
Favorite NFL team
Denver Broncos | 17% |
Green Bay Packers | 10% |
Dallas Cowboys | 8% |
Minnesota Vikings | 7% |
Favorite NBA team
Los Angeles Lakers | 20% |
No favorite | 34% |
Favorite NHL team
Colorado Avalanche | 15% |
No favorite | 49% |
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Favorite pro team
Denver Broncos | 11% |
Dallas Cowboys | 6% |
Oakland Raiders | 5% |
State's biggest rival
Greatest athlete who ever lived in or played for a team in your state
Dave Dickenson | 19% |
Jan Stenerud | 18% |
Dave McNally | 9% |
Ryan Leaf | 5% |
Micheal Ray Richardson | 4%
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State's biggest rivalry
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More a fan of college or pro sports?
Favorite sport to play
Fishing | 21% |
Hiking | 15% |
Golf | 14% |
Baseball/softball | 10% |
Hunting | 10% |
Favorite sports to watch on TV
Football | 78% |
Winter Olympics | 54% |
Summer Olympics | 49% |
Baseball | 45% |
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*Harris Interactive poll, conducted online, of 401 Montana residents who identified themselves as sports fans. Margin of error +/- 5%.
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FAST FACTS |
Admission to statehood: Nov. 8, 1889 (41st state)
Area: 147,046 square miles
Bird: Western Meadowlark
Capital: Helena
Economy: Agriculture -- Cattle, wheat, barley, sugar beets, hay, hogs. Industry -- Mining, lumber and wood products, food processing, tourism.
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Flower: Bitterroot (Lewisia rediviva)
Nickname: Treasure State
Population: 902,195 (44st)
Pro sports teams: None
Major college programs: University of Montana Grizzlies, Montana State University Bobcats
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Sports Illustrated's 50th Anniversary |
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STATITUDES |
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.881 The University of Montana's winning percentage (104-14) at Washington-Grizzly stadium between 1986 and 2002.
1 Women's rodeo national championship won by Montana State University, in 1986. The men's team earned championships in 1972, '75, '88, '90, '91, '95.
2 Division I-AA football championships won by the University of Montana (1995, 2001). The school is .500 in I-AA football championship games.
18 Round in which Joe Tiller was drafted by the AFL's Boston Patriots in 1964 after an honorable mention season as an offensive tackle at Montana State. In 2002 Tiller, who began his coaching career with the Bobcats in 1965, became the second-winningest football coach at Purdue University.
52 Audience share for ABC's Wide World of Sports on Oct. 25, 1975, the airing that featured Butte's Evel Knievel jumping his motorcycle over 14 busses.
60 Weight, in pounds, of the heaviest pallid sturgeon caught in Montana. The fish, according to the Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks Web site, was fished from the Yellowstone River on May 13, 1979.
63 Montana wins in the Cat-Griz game vs. Montana State, a rivalry that began in 1897. The Bobcats ended a 16-game losing streak in 2002 to earn their 35th win in the series and a share of the Big Sky title.
101.06 Percent capacity that Montana football played to at home in 2002 (19,044 per game), one of only two Division I-AA programs above 100 percent.
330.6 Yards-per-game passing average for Ryan Leaf in 1997, the season he guided Washington State to the Rose Bowl. The Great Falls native went on to play 25 NFL games in which he completed 317 passes for a total of 3,666 yards from 1998-2001.
335 Inches of snowfall the Big Mountain ski area receives annually.
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ENEMY OF THE STATE |
Ryan Leaf
Great Falls native Leaf alienated his home state with his immature behavior during his disastrous NFL career. Respondents' most hated opponents: Montana State (16%) and the universities of Idaho (16%) and Montana (9%).
Ryan Leaf | 10% |
George Steinbrenner | 8% |
Al Davis | 7% |
Randy Moss | 7% |
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