In a move that seems quite a bit like adding two plus two and getting four, the Evel Knievel Museum appears to be on its way to Las Vegas as of August 2021. The museum is currently based in Topeka, Kansas, where it has been a popular tourist attraction since it opened in 2017. AMERiders gives you the information.
The Las Vegas Review-Journal first broke the news, which was quickly mostly confirmed by the Museum itself. Museum marketing director Amanda Beach characterized the announcement as “a bit premature,” but also added that a formal, official deal is “imminent.”
According to Beach, both the Evel Knievel Museum and the Knievel family have actively been involved in exploring their options to find the best way to honor Knievel’s legacy. Given the man’s extensive history with Las Vegas, this math kind of seems like a no-brainer.
If the deal does happen, it’s worth noting that as of August 2021, there are no plans to move the museum to Las Vegas immediately. The process will likely take a couple of years to complete, with the current Museum’s staff overseeing the process.
Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Museum welcomed an estimated 40,000 people per year since it first opened. It’s unclear how the numbers would change after a move to Las Vegas, although reasonable expectations would see it fly much higher.
Visit Topeka president Sean Dixon told the Topeka Capital-Journal that the announcement came as a surprise, and said that the museum’s reputation meant a lot as a tourism draw to the area. However, he also said it wasn’t the only reason that people visit, and added that Topeka has plenty more to offer visitors.
If the deal goes through as currently planned, Las Vegas developer J Dapper will bring it to the Las Vegas Arts District, with an address at 1001 S. 1st Street. There are also plans for a restaurant to be located on the new museum campus.
“This museum deserves to be in a tourism destination, and I don’t think anyone would question that Las Vegas makes the most sense for the Evel Knievel Museum to be there with Evel’s history in that city,” Beach said.
“There are more people involved in this decision than just us our team in Topeka. This has been a joint venture with the Knievel family from the beginning. The museum has received many awards, had great reviews and received a lot of national exposure. This led to the Knievel family exploring the possibility of having our team move the museum to Las Vegas where the attraction can realize its greatest potential. Having the museum in Topeka has been awesome for us, but it is not realizing its potential for the Knievel family. We are not selling out to anyone in Las Vegas. Our Topeka team will be installing and operating the museum in Las Vegas.”
EVEL KNIEVEL MUSEUM
~And as always…
~Live Free Ride Hard~
~AMERiders
and
Let AMERiders give you information on the Evel Knievel Museum leaving Topeka for Las Vegas.
Don’t forget to come visit us for all your Motorcycle Apparel needs.
And as always don’t forget to send us your stories, pictures, and events for posting to GALLERY.AMERIDERS @ GMAIL.COM and we will post them for you. The more people that know about your event the better and we are offering free advertising. We would also love to hear about your rides and love to see those bikes so send those stories and pictures.
Like what you just read? Share it on social media ( Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Google+, and Instagram) with others and let them get the information and benefit from it as well.