The BEST episodes of Ripley's Believe It or Not! (2000)

#1 - Episode 412

Season 4 - Episode 12 - Aired 8/6/2003

Mountain Bike Speed Record Believe it or not, Eric Barone will break a land speed world record on a bicycle, by pedaling downhill at an unbelievable 107 miles per hour. Mini Mozart Noah Gray-Cabey is an accomplished Concert Pianist who Believe it or Not is only 7-years old. Army Troop Sled The year is 1945 and American soldiers in Italy come up with this makeshift sled as a safer way to cross the battlefield. It's a torpedo tube cut in half which can protect up to 12 soldiers at a time. Sand Man In an attempt to show humans are one with the earth, this man will pour sand directly into his open eyes! Snake Eats Stomach Believe it or not, Dave Weathers was bit by a cobra and the poisonous venom literally ate a hole through his stomach! World's Most Unbelievable Animal This week Ripley's goes to Los Angeles on their continuing search for America's most unbelievable animal! Face Breaker Jim Guercio and Mike Miller will face off in this Ripley's Challenge to see who can brea

#2 - Episode 117

Season 1 - Episode 17 - Aired 8/23/2000

Sarah Donohue When Sarah Donohue died in a horrific power boat crash, her friend Enrico refused to accept it and continued performing CPR after everyone else had given up. Although she was clinically dead for four minutes Sarah came back to life! Snake Head/Millionaire Millionaire Bill Shirk will hang upside down beneath a crane wearing two straight jackets...an assistant will cover Bill with a boa constrictor! He'll attempt to get out of the jackets without being strangled or falling to his death! Bulldozer King Edmond Nussbaumer is known as the Bulldozer King because of his love for tractors. As a matter of fact, he has even built his three-story, 200 ton home on top of a bulldozer. Waterfall Jumper 21 year-old marketing student Tao Berman loves plunging over a 98-foot raging waterfall at over 55 m.p.h., a maneuver that could kill even an experienced kayaker!

#3 - Episode 106

Season 1 - Episode 6 - Aired 2/16/2000

Zamora - Torture King A human voodoo doll, Tim Cridland can withstand incredible amounts of pain.In front of the Ripley's Museum, Cridland will perform a feat that has never been attempted before -- he will lay on a bed of nails while a small truck drives over him! Snake Milker Bill Haast began injecting himself with snake venom in the late 1950s, because he believed this would build an immunity and help him survive deadly snake bites in the future. His own blood has actually been used to save the lives of snake bite victims. Gentle Giant Known as the ""Gentle Giant"", Robert was 5' 4"" at age 5. By age 10 he was 6' 5"", and at 8' 11"", 22-year-old Robert Wadlow was, and remains, the tallest man in recorded history! Clean Escape Rick Maisel is the only man who can free himself from six pairs of handcuffs and two pairs of leg-irons while spinning around in a soap and water-filled front-loading washing machine. Believe It or Not!

#4 - Episode 104

Season 1 - Episode 4 - Aired 2/2/2000

Human Stun Gun Tom Cameron and his teenage daughters can perform a death touch, which can stop a person's heart instantly using an ancient martial arts secret. Believe it or not, Tom Cameron can knock out 25 men in a minute using the secrets he has learned from Chinese martial arts masters. Buried Alive Geoff Smith's brilliant idea was simple. Climb into a coffin sized box, and have himself buried 6 feet under ground in the yard behind his local pub. Believe it or not, that's just where he remained... for 147 days! In a Ripley's exclusive, we'll go with Geoff under the earth to find out how he survived and why he did it. We'll show our viewers the never-before-seen footage documenting Geoff's 147-day ordeal! Quick Draw Bob Bob Munden is the fastest gun in the Wst, or anywhere else, for that matter. Believe it or not, this pistol-packin' Montana cowboy can unholster his Colt .45 and plug a target as small as a half dollar in a mere two-one hundredths of a second -- seven times fast

#5 - Episode 112

Season 1 - Episode 12 - Aired 3/29/2000

Stretchy Man Gary Turner is known to all his friends as ""Stretch,"" and for good reason! Because of an extremely rare medical problem (fortunately, Gary's life is not threatened) this 30 year-old man's skin is virtually like rubber. He can actually cover his face completely--simply by pulling the skin of his neck up and the skin of his forehead down! Left Turn Louise Louise Lynes can turn a 3-mile drive into an hour-long nightmare. Ever since she was involved in a traffic accident ten years ago, Louise drives miles out of her way to avoid making any right hand turns. Her problem is so extreme, British TV featured her on a special called ""Bad Drivers."" Super Human Memory Tatiana Cooley has a memory like no other. When this secretary needs a phone number, she doesn't need to consult her rolodex, because she has all the numbers in her head. And if you give the reigning and only USA National Memory Champion strings of 4,000 numbers, ""70093518555899..."" or 500 words: ""liquid, da

#6 - Episode 103

Season 1 - Episode 3 - Aired 1/26/2000

Pyro Boy For Ripley's, Walley will attempt to do something he' s never done before... walk through rings of fire while he's loaded with twenty pounds of explosives strapped on his body. If the rings ignite the charges, it could be Pyro Boy's last stand... Millenium Force Meet the man who, believe it or not, actually makes a living being shot at by lazers, phazers or maced! He's the human guinea pig for a company that has developed non-lethal weapons of the future. Shark Tourists Believe it or not, there's no shortage of tourists who pay big bucks to visit South Africa's notorious ""Shark Alley"" and get up close and personal with the most feared and deadly creatures on earth-- the Great White Shark! Cyborg Kevin Warwick is part man, part computer... the world's first cyborg. Believe it or not, this professor from England has implanted a microchip into his body that can open doors and downlaod his e-mail!

#7 - Episode 105

Season 1 - Episode 5 - Aired 2/9/2000

Neck Kabob Young Neil Pearson (age 25) impaled himself on a stake in his mum's garden... and lives to tell about it! He tripped on frosty paving stones, tripping in his mother's sweet pea garden and falling on one of the long stakes she had used to support the plants. Amazingly, it missed all of his vital organs, received no major injuries and remained conscious throughout the ordeal. Lightning Stalker David Stillings risks his life on a regular basis in order to take photos. He races out into approaching thunderstorms in hopes of capturing one of the most powerful things in nature... lightning. Ark of the Covenant The Ark of the Covenant is the stuff legends are made of. The ornate gold box in which the tablets bearing the Ten Commandments were held, disappeared long ago, and no-one claimed to know where... until now. Meet archeologist Bob Cornuke who, believe or not, has discovered what experts are beginning to agree is the secret location of the Ark of the Covenant in a remote

#8 - Episode 113

Season 1 - Episode 13 - Aired 4/5/2000

Grand Master Zhou Grand Master Zhou has learned to harness the power of the mind and body and use it to perform exercises that push the limits. With the point of a sharp spear nested in the soft tissue of his throat, and the other on the bumper he will push a Volkswagon Beetle. Volcano Chasers When a volcano blows its top, people naturally run the other way. But not the O'Mearas. Meet the only living married couple on the planet who travel the world to chase erupting volcanoes, risking their lives and coming within 10 feet of the rushing molten lava to film it. Man's Best Friend This dog goes above and beyond the call of duty as ""man's best friend."" In fact this amazing pooch helps his disabled master by getting items off grocery shelves, picking up around the house and even using a cash machine. Sand Hogs More than 500 feet down, and far below the busy streets of New York, is a secret world inhabited by the Sandhogs--a brotherhood of 120 macho men who risk their lives

#9 - Episode 114

Season 1 - Episode 14 - Aired 8/2/2000

Little Hercules Seven-year-old Richard was born with extra muscle mass and keen interest for weightlifting. This combination has made this little boy so buff that he looks like a mini-Arnold Schwarzeneggar-- with huge biceps, ripped abs and bulging leg muscles. Believe it or not! Cliff Hanger Belive it or not, Henrys Rechatan gets his kicks by sitting on a plain straight-back wooden chair, balanced on top of another chair, standingon top of upturned drinkging glasses -- all balanced tenuously on the very ege of a 2,000- foot-rock cliff! Its his special sensitivity and skill at finding the balancing point between objects that keeps hi m alive as he practices his very scary hobby. Canine Calculator Three-year-old Isaac is a math whiz. He can add subtract, multiply, divide and even tell you the square root of a number. That's amazing enough for anyone one of his age, but, believe it or not, Isaac is a dog! Modern Crucifixion This modern day ritual is held each year in th

#10 - Episode 115

Season 1 - Episode 15 - Aired 9/8/2000

Enigma and Katzen This husband and wife have found a permanent way to express and share their love for each other by tattooing their entire bodies. In an ultimate act of marital trust ""Enigma"" will put his neck on the end of a pitchfork, and his wife will attempt to slice a watermelon on his back... with a hatchet, believe it or not! Cable Crossing In the remote jungles of Columbia, children like 11-year-old Lourdes have only one option to get to school - ride a cable suspended 1,200 feet over the raging river below - using nothing but a simple pulley and a stick to navigate the dangerous ride. Banana George Believe it or not, at 85-year-old, George Blair is the oldest and the greatest master of ""Barefoot-Rope-In-The-Teeth"" water-skiing. That means, no skiis, no hands, and he must rely on only his teeth to keep upright. Thai Taoist Ritual On the tiny island of Phuket, in their own ceremony to the gods, participants don't just hang objects from their skin. They shove ob

#11 - Episode 118

Season 1 - Episode 18 - Aired 9/6/2000

Moab Desert Tragedy The passengers of this 4-wheel-drive vehicle walk away after their car loses control and plummets down a steep slope in Utah's Moab Desert! Driving Blind Since losing his sight eight years ago, Ken Moss hasn't been alone in a car, let alone behind dhte wheel. But this completely blind man will drive a car around a race track ...at 200 mph! Needle Throwing Man This specially trained agent against terrorism for the Chinese government defies the laws of nature by throwing up to six needles like darts through glass. You can even see the pinholes where the needles have penetrated! Homing Pigeons In the age of one hour photos, there is a photographer who would rather use homing pigeons to develop instant photographs for his clients.

#12 - Episode 120

Season 1 - Episode 20 - Aired 9/13/2000

Snake Charmer Johnny Tong has a unique nasal cavity. He has trained his pet snake to crawl in his mouth and out his nose! Construction Worker King A construction worker went on a long-awaited vacation to Africa and ended up becoming King of the country! Secret Lap Top Graffiti Each and every Lap Top has an art gallery hidden under the keyboard. In fact anything with a micro chip in it, contains hundreds of pieces of art, invisible to the naked eye! Bug Splat Mark Hostetler is so obsessed with the gunk left on your car when a bug goes splat! on your winshield, that he's researched it, catalogued it, and even written a book about it called ""That Gunk on Your Car."" The Invisibles Like foot binding, this ancient tradition is chilling...castrating males in Indian society. But, these eunuchs, known as ""the Invisibles"" are thought to hold strange powers to bless and to curse, and Indian citizens readily pay money to stay in their good favor.

#13 - Episode 413

Season 4 - Episode 13 - Aired 8/13/2003

Skateboard Loop Believe it or not, Bob Burnquist is the only skateboarder in the world who can perform ""The Loop of Death""! Whiz Kid Abby Julo is a political whiz. She knows the names of our 43 presidents, and over 50 world leaders.....and believe it or not, she's only 4 years old! Buffalo Dung Delicacy Believe it or not, as a source of protein, these people eat flies and larvae living inside buffalo patties. Backwards Leg Boy 10 year old Patrick German is no different from his friends, except that, Believe it or Not, his left leg and foot were literally turned backwards to save his life. World's Most Unbelievable Animal This week Ripley's goes to Orlando, Florida on their continuing search for America's most unbelievable animal! Camera Car Believe it or not, this one of a kind van created by Harrod Blank has over 2000 cameras and light meters! Electric Bike In 1967 Russel Win invented an electric bike that traveled at 30 mph Rattlesnake Bath Believe it or not, two cha

#14 - Episode 414

Season 4 - Episode 14 - Aired 8/20/2003

Vertical Plane Stall Believe it or not, Kirby Chambliss is the only pilot in the world who can defy gravity and bring his plane to a vertical standstill just seven feet off the ground! Wakeboard Wonder Phillip Soven is the world's youngest professional wakeboarder. Believe it or not, he's only thirteen years old and he is the only person in the world can do a front toe-side roll while spinning blind 540-degrees in mid-air! Toe Cocktail Believe it or not, as a sort of rite of passage in the Yukon, you must consume a cocktail that actually contains a severed human toe! All you have to do is let the toe touch your lips to become a part of this Yukon tradition that boasts more than 16,000 members! Boomerang Egg Believe It or Not, Barnaby Ruhe is so accurate with a boomerang, he can throw it and hit an egg sitting on top of his own head. Legless Marathon Man Believe It or Not, Bob Wieland who lost his legs in Vietnam, completed the Los Angeles Marathon...on his hands! World's Most

#15 - Episode 417

Season 4 - Episode 17 - Aired 9/10/2003

Balloon Skywalker: Believe It or Not, Mike Howard will walk a 20 ft. plank from one hot air balloon to another - 3000 ft. above the ground without any safety equipment! Child Supermodel: Gerren Taylor is the fashion industry's hottest new face. But believe it or not, this top runway model is only 12-years-old! World's Largest Lasso: Believe It or Not, Kimberly Mink will rope a herd of twenty steer using 80 feet of rope, creating the world's largest lasso! Rain Ritual: Believe it or not, these women live day to day with their own wrists bound together hoping for rain in their drought-ridden village. Microphone Stand Baby: Jessie Wickham survived being impaled on a microphone stand and believe it or not, she was 8 1/2 months pregnant! Fly Powered Airplane: It's no ordinary paper airplane, this is the latest in insect aviation...a ""Fly powered"" airplane! World's Most Unbelievable Animal: This week Ripley?s goes to Ocean City, Maryland on their continuing search for America?s

#16 - Episode 420

Season 4 - Episode 20 - Aired 10/1/2003

Double Dirt Bike Backflip - Mike Metzger is the only motocross rider in the world who can perform two consecutive backflips in a row. Baby Ruth - Pitcher Anthony Ippolito Jr. can throw a baseball almost 40 miles per hour and he's only three years old. Jump Rope Unicycle - Chad Marquette will jump rope will standing on top of a nine-foot unicycle. Reed City - The indigenous Totora Indians use boats made from reeds, have houses made from reeds, and even live on floating islands in Lake Titicaca which are made entirely of reeds. Liver Baby - Baby Nhlahla was born after developing in her mother's liver. She's only the fourth baby to ever survive such a pregnancy. Inflatable Church - Michael Gill has invented a blow-up church complete with an altar and an organ. Human Chain Escape - Scott Hammell will attempt to free himself from a straight jacket wrapped in fifty feet of chain, while hanging by his ankles fifteen feet under a hot air balloon. Body Sushi Update - The exotic dining experienc

#17 - Episode 102

Season 1 - Episode 2 - Aired 1/19/2000

Cut-Away Bungee Ron Jones can jump from a platform 225 feet in the air, attached to a cut-away bungee cord that allows him to release from the bungee as he reaches the ground. He then walks away unharmed. Lizard Man Erik Sprague doesn't just like lizards. he's actually turning into one. He is altering his body to become as reptilian as possible through a series of tattoos, implants and permanent cosmetic changes. Bionic Man Tony Volpentest was born without hands and feet and with only partially formed legs. Today, with the help of mechanical legs, he is a world-class runner. Pool Playing Dogs Larry Grindiger has taught his two dogs how to play pool. These amazing mutts can even call shot by barking out the ball numbers. Flame Throwing Car South Africans fearful of car-jacking can now legally install a device which throws flames onto any threatening characters! Human Jack-O-Lantern When Scott Sabala lost an eye to cancer, he was left with a large, circular hole in his face.

#18 - Episode 402

Season 4 - Episode 2 - Aired 1/15/2003

Record Board Breaker Believe it or not, Mike Reeves will break 500 one inch boards in less than 1 minute. Homemade Monorail Believe it or not Kim Pedersen is so obsessed with monorails that he's built one in his own backyard. Clock Tower Tree Miraculously, this tree has been growing without soil or water for 132 years and -believe it or not- it's rooted on the roof of a clock tower! Beauty Buffet Before they are married, these girls go to fat houses and believe it or not, are stuffed with food to make them more desirable. Gray Lady Believe it or not, Rosemary Jacobs skin is no longer flesh colored, it's gray! Golfball Eating Alligator What makes this specimen unbelievable is what was found inside this gator's gut. And the apparent cause of its death was a diet that included over 200 indigestible golf balls!

#19 - Episode 110

Season 1 - Episode 10 - Aired 3/15/2000

Corset Woman Move over Scarlett O'Hara! Extreme corseting has made its way back into fashion. We'll meet a young woman with a 15 inch waist and a man whose waist is only 18 inches! Odd Couple New Yorkers Fred Kahl and his wife Kiva Kahl are truly an odd couple with a mission - proving that ancient art forms like sword swallowing and fire eating aren'tillusions or magic tricks. Fred will swallow an endoscopic camera with a small light source and then he'll swallow live cockroaches! Next, he'll stand in front of a flouroscopic machine, which is a moving x-ray and swallow a sword! Fastest Brain Bob Gray, a.k.a. ""Backwards Bob,"" can write backwards and upside with both hands simultaneously on 4 quadrants. He is also the only person who can speak backwards phonetically. Check out Bob's website at www.memoryedge.com. Baby Signing There is a doctor teaching babies as young as 3 months old to use sign language to communicate everything from ""I'm hungry"" to ""I want to go outside.

#20 - Episode 116

Season 1 - Episode 16 - Aired 8/16/2000

Death Dive Robert Gallup will handcuff himself and then get inside a mail bag locked inside a jail cell. His assistants will push the cell out of a cargo plane at 18,000 feet! Robert will escape from the cell before it smashes into the ground! He's so proud of the fact that his escapes are real, Gallup will even tell us how he does it! Mexican Mummies In Guanajuato, Mexico, if a relative can't afford the tax on a grave plot they dig up the body and place them in the mummy museum. There, they are put on display, and tourists go and visit the dearly departed. Supermarket Rollercoaster Customers ride on rollercoasters along aisles in order to shop in this grocery store! One in a Billion Mates Ian Fleming fell in love with Teresa for their common interests, but in a bizarre twist of fate, when she was near death from kidney disease, they later discovered he was the perfect match as a donor... a one-in-a-billion chance.

#21 - Episode 201

Season 2 - Episode 1 - Aired 1/10/2001

Slackliner: Darrin Carter will walk across a gorge thirty stories above the ground on a springy nylon cord -- with nothing to catch him if he falls. Wardrobe in a Bottle This entire wardrobe can fit into a one gallon bottle! Worm Lover Brenda Fox loves worms so much that she has been eating them almost all her life! Backflip Motorcycle Carey Hart made motorcycle history by doing the impossible... the world's only complete backflip on a 250 lb. motorcycle! He's going to do it again and Ripley's will be there as he prepares to do this truly amazing maneuver! Legless Football Hero 14-year-old Willie McQueen has no legs, but he plays starting defensive tackle for his school's football team -- without the aid of prosthetics!

#22 - Episode 401

Season 4 - Episode 1 - Aired 1/8/2003

Surfing Cat Believe It or Not, Sweetie the cat surfs the waves of Hawaii's famed Waikikii beach. Baby Shaq Auri Allen stands 6 ft. 8 inches and weighs 301 pounds... and believe it or not, he's only 12-years old! Biking Cards Baseball cards are being replaced with bikini cards. Believe it or Not, Gina Lee Nolin and PinUp Queen Cindy Margolis are just two famous faces on these Bench Warmer Trading Cards. Trial Chair This carved wood chair is the centerpiece of tribal justice in Ghana, West Africa. At a trial, the accuser and the accused were forced to sit side by side during the proceedings. Whoever was eventually declared a liar was immediately beheaded, right where he sat. Mountain Board Jump Believe It or Not, Jason Lee has designed a Mountain Board that will allow him to set a long distance world record. Youngest Sailor Fifteen-year-old Sebastian Clover crossed the Atlantic by himself in a sailboat in only 25 days, making him the youngest sailor to ever sail the Atlant

#23 - Episode 403

Season 4 - Episode 3 - Aired 1/22/2003

Great Rope Escape The world's strongest man will twist and contort Michael Griffin's body and then tie him with 200 feet of rope... leaving little room for movement... And believe it or not, he will escape. Open Ocean Snowmobile Alexander Karason is going to ride his snowmobile for 15 miles from his home town straight into the open ocean and back again! PowerPlank This is the ""Power Plank,"" the world's first motorized snowboard. This 170 pound monstrosity can power ""up"" a snow covered mountain as well, maxing out at about 45 mph! Ash Bath Believe it or not, after a member of the tribe is cremated, these holy men bathe in the remaining ashes! Scalpless In India Believe it or not, after getting her hair caught in a ferris wheel, seven year old Roopavani's entire scalp was ripped from her head!

#24 - Episode 408

Season 4 - Episode 8 - Aired 2/26/2003

Belly Button Bottle Opener Joel Freeborn is a human bottle opener. Believe it or Not, he opens the bottles with his belly Frisbee Ashes Ed Headrick, who is the father of the modern day Frisbee, is so obsessed with the sport that believe it or not, he's going to have his cremated ashes cast into the flying discs to give to his family and friends. Matchstick Apartment Istvan Kalincsak has covered every square foot of his apartment with matches. Lingerie Shark Dive The women's scuba diving club called ""Mystic Blue"" is planning a dive in shark-infested waters to raise money for a children's charity. Believe it or not, the women will do this wearing no protective gear. Senior Skier Mary Murphy wants to set the world record for water-skiing 62-miles from Long Beach to Catalina Island and back. Believe it or not, Mary is 84 years old! Bone Furniture Suciu Nicolae has been collecting animal bones for years. Believe it or not, he has built furniture and decorated his entire home wit

#25 - Episode 410

Season 4 - Episode 10 - Aired 3/12/2003