# Kenny POWERs (DD-740)

> The St. Lawrence 'Super Jump' was Canadian stuntman Ken Carter's project, begun in 1976, to jump a rocket-powered Lincoln Continental about a mile from near Morrisburg, Ontario to the United States. On September 26, 1979, after Carter's attempt was aborted, the backers and film producers had American stuntman Kenny Powers make the jump while Carter was away. The bumpy runway damaged the car, the parachutes deployed early, and it traveled about 506 feet before landing in shallow water. Powers survived with eight broken vertebrae, three broken ribs and a broken wrist. He died in 2009.

- Department: People (also Cars, History)
- First published: 2026-09-15
- Last updated: 2026-09-15
- Permalink: https://detailenjoyer.com/case/kenny-powers/
- Author: Marcus Easterling (DetailEnjoyer), The Detail Department

## Status as of Oct. 18, 2026

Died February 28, 2009, at the Hampton Veterans Center in Hampton, Virginia, aged 61, according to his obituary. Wikipedia says he kept performing stunts into the 2000s.

## On the timeline

- **1976**: Ken Carter begins his St. Lawrence 'Super Jump' rocket-car project
- **Sept. 26, 1979**: With Carter away, Kenny Powers makes the jump; the car travels about 506 ft and lands short
- **Sept. 5, 1983**: Ken Carter is killed during a rocket-car jump in Peterborough, Ontario
- **2009**: Kenny Powers dies

Full timeline: https://detailenjoyer.com/timeline/?case=kenny-powers

## Quick facts

- **DD-740-F01**: Kenny Powers replaced Ken Carter at the last minute for the 1979 jump. _(Write-up · Exhibit B (The switch))_
- **DD-740-F02**: The rocket Lincoln traveled about 506 feet, not the planned mile. _(Write-up · Exhibit C (The jump))_

## Write-up

The 1979 rocket-car jump across the St. Lawrence that went wrong. Powers replaced Ken Carter at the last minute; the car flew 506 feet.

1. **Carter's project**: Ken 'The Mad Canadian' Carter announced the St. Lawrence jump in 1976. He built a long paved takeoff run and a tall ramp near Morrisburg, Ontario. ABC's planned 1976 broadcast fell through when the car and ramp weren't ready, and attempts in 1977 and 1978 were also cancelled.
2. **The switch**: On September 26, 1979, Carter aborted an attempt about five seconds before takeoff. Believing he had lost his nerve, the backers and film crew arranged for Kenny Powers to make the jump while Carter was away at a hotel in Ottawa. The NFB documentary gives health concerns about Carter as the reason.
3. **The jump**: Bumps in the runway cracked the fiberglass body, and the car reached about 180 mph at the ramp instead of the planned 270 mph. The parachutes deployed early, and the car traveled about 506 feet before landing in shallow water off the Canadian shore.
4. **Injuries**: Powers broke eight vertebrae, three ribs and a wrist. Afterward, Carter said Powers had been unprepared and could have been killed. The two remained friends until Carter's death.
5. **Aftermath**: Carter was killed on September 5, 1983, during a rocket-car jump in Peterborough, Ontario. Powers kept performing stunts for years afterward and died in 2009.

## Related case files

- [Rick Charls (DD-742)](https://detailenjoyer.com/case/rick-charls/): Another Persons of Interest profile of a record stunt: a 172-foot dive at SeaWorld San Diego in 1983.
- [Felix Falls (DD-637)](https://detailenjoyer.com/case/felix-falls/): Another Persons of Interest daredevil
- [Hajwala (DD-656)](https://detailenjoyer.com/case/hajwala/): Another case about a risky car stunt
- [Air Jordan (DD-713)](https://detailenjoyer.com/case/air-jordan/): Another Persons of Interest profile built around a famous jump

## Reel vs. record

- **Missing context**: the jump was Canadian stuntman Ken Carter's project. The backers and film crew had Powers make it without Carter, reportedly believing Carter had lost his nerve.
- **Precision**: the car didn't reach the river's middle. Its parachutes deployed early and it came down in shallow water off the Canadian shore after about 506 feet.
- **Cause**: bumps in the old runway cracked the fiberglass body, and the car reached about 180 mph at the ramp instead of the planned 270 mph.
- **Date**: the jump took place on September 26, 1979, near Morrisburg, Ontario.
- **Aftermath**: Carter was killed in a 1983 rocket-car jump in Peterborough, Ontario. Powers died in 2009.

## Video: Kenny POWERs: The 1979 Rocket-Car Jump Across the St. Lawrence That Went Wrong

- Duration: 30.5 s · Published: 2026-09-15
- File: https://detailenjoyer.com/assets/videos/DdUymfWxsnu.mp4

### Transcript

DID YOU KNOW? In 1979 American stuntman Kenny Powers was secretly put behind the wheel of a rocket-powered Lincoln Continental, for one of the most bizarre car jumps ever attempted. The plan was to cross about one mile of the Saint Lawrence River, from Canada into the United States, using an enormous 26-meter high ramp. Powers accelerated toward the ramp, but the car became airborne for only about 506 feet before breaking apart and crashing into the river. Powers survived but suffered eight broken vertebrae, three broken ribs, and a broken wrist. NOW YOU KNOW!

## Questions & answers

**Q: Whose project was the St. Lawrence jump originally?**  
A: It was Ken 'The Mad Canadian' Carter's project from 1976. _(Source: Write-up · Exhibit A (Carter's project) · Wikipedia: Ken Carter (stuntman); Motorious: Disaster In Motion, Lincoln Jet Car River Jump)_

**Q: How far did the car travel?**  
A: About 506 feet, landing in shallow water. _(Source: Write-up · Exhibit C (The jump) · Cornwall Seaway News: Rocket men, collecting pieces of missing stunt car that plunged into the St. Lawrence River; Motorious: Disaster In Motion, Lincoln Jet Car River Jump)_

**Q: What damaged the car before takeoff?**  
A: The bumpy runway cracked the fiberglass body. _(Source: Write-up · Exhibit C (The jump) · Cornwall Seaway News: Rocket men, collecting pieces of missing stunt car that plunged into the St. Lawrence River; Motorious: Disaster In Motion, Lincoln Jet Car River Jump)_

**Q: How many vertebrae did Powers break?**  
A: Eight vertebrae, three ribs and a wrist. _(Source: Write-up · Exhibit D (Injuries) · Wikipedia: Ken Carter (stuntman))_

**Q: When did the jump happen?**  
A: September 26, 1979. _(Source: Write-up · Exhibit B (The switch) · Wikipedia: Ken Carter (stuntman); National Film Board of Canada: The Devil at Your Heels (1981))_

## Sources

- [Wikipedia: Ken Carter (stuntman)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ken_Carter_(stuntman))
- [Cornwall Seaway News: Rocket men, collecting pieces of missing stunt car that plunged into the St. Lawrence River](https://www.cornwallseawaynews.com/news/rocket-men-collecting-pieces-of-missing-stunt-car-that-plunged-into-the-st-lawrence-river/)
- [Motorious: Disaster In Motion, Lincoln Jet Car River Jump](https://www.motorious.com/articles/features-3/lincoln-jet-car-jump/)
- [National Film Board of Canada: The Devil at Your Heels (1981)](https://www.nfb.ca/film/devil_at_your_heels/)
- [Wikipedia: Kenny Powers (stuntman)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kenny_Powers_(stuntman))

## Cite this case file

Easterling, Marcus. "Kenny POWERs." The Detail Department (DetailEnjoyer), case file DD-740, last updated Sep 15, 2026. https://detailenjoyer.com/case/kenny-powers/