Dale Buggins

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[edit] Daredevil

Australian Daredevil Dale Charles Buggins was a world champion. Originally born in Carmarthen, Wales, he emigrated to Australia at 7 months of age. By the age 17 he was breaking jump records held by his childhood idol Evel Knievel. On May 28, 1978, he jumped his motorcycle over 25 cars at the Newcastle Motordome, N.S.W.. But less that three years later he was dead.

Dale got interested in motorcycles when on his ninth birthday his father gave him a tiny motorbike that was powered by a lawn mower engine. While other kids his age were kicking footballs, Dale was on his way to daredevil fame. Dale went on to jump everything from cars to buses.

[edit] World Stage

In 1980 he went to Seattle, Washington to have a jump off with famed American jumper Gary Wells. Dale only had one bad accident. It occurred while he was attempting a 14 car jump. He miscalculated and clipped the last car. He cartwheeled across the ground and his bike disintegrated. About that jump Dale said, "Everything happened so quickly I didn't have much time to think. All I could do was hang on as long as possible. That's all I remember." The crowds kept getting bigger and so did the money. He even toured in the Evel Knievel Spectacular in 1979. There even was a Dale Buggins Stunt Cycle similar to Evel's.

[edit] Death

Buggins was scheduled to perform on September 19, 1981 at the Royal Melbourne Show. The day before this performance, however, he was found dead in his hotel room from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. The reasons for his suicide are unclear.