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this poses a fair question though... if one were to undertake a dangerous and illegal endeavor like the cannonball run, is this the best or worst time to do it? i think it's sort of cheating honestly, no other attempt made use of a global pandemic
i'm also a bit sad to see the record no longer be held by an AMG vehicle lol... this time it was a 2019 Audi A8 with additional fuel tanks in the trunk
Car and Driver popularized the New York to* Los Angeles speed run in the '70s. We're here to tell you it's no longer cool.
By Eric TingwallApr 9, 2020
Coronavirus killed 336 people in New York City on Saturday, April 4, 2020. As America's greatest city battled with the deadly pandemic, thousands of health-care workers and first responders left their families for another day, risking their own lives on the front lines. Countless more New Yorkers did their part by simply staying at home, where a not insignificant number likely fretted over how they would pay their rent or afford groceries in the face of an economic shock that has left millions of Americans unemployed.
This was the backdrop when, on that same Saturday, three (or possibly four) of this country's biggest *******s loaded a luxury sedan with a trunk full of gasoline and charged across the country to claim a speed record that proves nothing other than their own self-importance.
To accomplish this feat of nothingness, the cross-country racers averaged nearly 109 mph on public roads for more than 26 hours. Their reckless speed was undoubtedly made easier by the disease that has also cleared traffic from American highways. Fewer SUVs taking the kids to see Grandma. Fewer trucks delivering new cars to dealer lots. Fewer police officers to enforce the speed limit. The Cannonballers--who have not yet come forward--surely thought it was the perfect time to race from New York to Los Angeles. In fact, it was the opposite of the perfect time.
In a moment when most Americans are making personal sacrifices for the good of their community and their country, the people racing from New York to LA on April 4 decided they were above it all. Not only were they exempt from all efforts to control the spread of coronavirus, these individuals took it upon themselves to endanger hundreds (probably thousands) of unwitting motorists in pursuit of their five minutes of internet fame.
We shoulder some of the blame for this particular style of stupidity. Car and Driver popularized the Cannonball cross-country sprint in the early '70s. It was foolish back then, too, but not nearly as reckless. The fastest car from New York's Red Ball Garage to California's Portofino Hotel and Marina in 1971 averaged barely more than 80 mph. At the time, the Kansas turnpike had an 80-mph speed limit. Montana and Nevada generally didn't post highway speed limits.
We're older and wiser today--no longer that same magazine that once campaigned against making cars safer. Driving across the country is different now, too. The speeds required to set the record are too extreme. The traffic is too heavy. And the payoff--a few thousand new Instagram followers, maybe?--is too pointless.
The Cannonball Instagram account proved just how misguided the speed-record community is when it responded to the record claim with a post that read "None of these so-called-records [sic] have any value. We won't publish them because runs in these days of #covid19 devalues [sic] the difficulty of the exercise. It could end up badly." The post suggests that weaving through minivans filled with families is some sort of noble cause, like donating blood or sewing masks for the workers who have kept society running through this disaster. It also completely ignores the reality that any coast-to-coast run could very easily end badly.
Ed Bolian, who has held the cross-country speed record from 2013 until November 2019, at least showed a glimmer of self-awareness when he told Road & Track, "Do I think this is the best use of time while the country is staying in during a pandemic? Probably not, but for me to say it's awful is like a cocaine dealer saying a heroin dealer is awful."
Bolian knows that he can't condemn any record set during a pandemic for being unsafe or imprudent, because any Cannonball record attempt in the 21st century is unsafe and imprudent. Setting either record required extended stretches moving at well more than twice the speed of traffic. Hitting 150 mph or more on public roads isn't something to celebrate.
We don't have any hesitation saying that cocaine dealers and heroin dealers are both awful. The only difference between Bolian's record and the one set on April 4 is a matter of perception. Please, we're not in the mood for your wanton endangerment of the public right now. If right now is not a good time to jeopardize innocent lives by indulging in a selfish and hollow pursuit of notoriety, what makes that acceptable in better times?
Nothing. The answer is nothing. Even without the backdrop of a pandemic, racing across the country to set a record in 2020 is unconscionable and dumb
Wow who knew if there is a country wide advisory to not travel and that the police are told to only stop people unless it is 100% necessary you can speed unhindered through the country lol
Wow who knew if there is a country wide advisory to not travel and that the police are told to only stop people unless it is 100% necessary you can speed unhindered through the country lol
cant catch the virus from others when youre going average speed 120!
Wow who knew if there is a country wide advisory to not travel and that the police are told to only stop people unless it is 100% necessary you can speed unhindered through the country lol
ed bolian (previous record holder) put it quite well, he basically said that for him to condemn what they did would be like a cocaine dealer condemning a heroin dealer lol
i'd love to be a passenger on a cannonball attempt, it really shows how our speed limits are quite outdated
to me though this record will always have an asterisk next to it since it was done in circumstances that can't really be replicated, and doesn't seem to stay true to the spirit of the cannonball run
also i think the negativity they're receiving is a bit unjustified... most accidents are from people distracted / impaired, it's not like a single brand new audi a8 driven by people who've done a lot of planning is a serious cause for concern in the grand scheme of things, and now the roads are emptier than ever
also i think the negativity they're receiving is a bit unjustified... most accidents are from people distracted / impaired, it's not like a single brand new audi a8 driven by people who've done a lot of planning is a serious cause for concern in the grand scheme of things, and now the roads are emptier than ever
The previous record with the AMG, did you see what kind of speeds he was reaching? he showed it on his display. 191 MPH!!!! You don't think that is dangerous on a US highway?
I've been on roads without a car in sight going cross country so able to reach 140mph easy. Just flat desert in Utah and Arizona. I can understand going that fast without a single car anywhere in sight going straight on those roads. But to maintain 109mph on average means they must have been hauling even through metro areas.
The previous record with the AMG, did you see what kind of speeds he was reaching? he showed it on his display. 191 MPH!!!! You don't think that is dangerous on a US highway?
depends on the highway... koenignegg set the production car record on a closed section of Nevada highway and that car hit 283, going 50 through a crowded urban area is potentially more dangerous than doing 190 across an empty desert
The previous record with the AMG, did you see what kind of speeds he was reaching? he showed it on his display. 191 MPH!!!! You don't think that is dangerous on a US highway?
Originally Posted by Stroock639
depends on the highway... koenignegg set the production car record on a closed section of Nevada highway and that car hit 283, going 50 through a crowded urban area is potentially more dangerous than doing 190 across an empty desert
I don't want to be rude or out-of-place, but come on, Stroock. 191 MPH is insane on any open public road, even in the lightly-populated American West. And you can be rest-assured that the cops don't close off or reserve long stretches of road just so the speed-junkies at the auto magazines can get their jollies off doing a Cannonball run.
I don't want to be rude or out-of-place, but come on, Stroock. 191 MPH is insane on any open public road, even in the lightly-populated American West. And you can be rest-assured that the cops don't close off or reserve long stretches of road just so the speed-junkies at the auto magazines can get their jollies off doing a Cannonball run.
the main danger comes from the general level of incompetence that surrounds many of our drivers... you don't think it's possible that the lower speed limits actually create more danger? most accidents as we know come from distracted drivers, when you're going fast i promise there's no getting distracted, nor are you as likely to start dozing off... people are also less likely to respect a law if they feel it's irrelevant
if people could follow the incredibly basic rule of keep right except to pass there's no reason we couldn't implement a more autobahn approach to our straight wide open highways... i also can't help but think you wouldn't feel nearly as strongly about this if it weren't illegal
an E63 like that is literally designed to cruise at 185 mph, assuming some idiot not paying attention doesn't pull out in front at the last second and the road surface / tires are good there's really no concern, i've been able to run my E55 at 150+ for short periods and it was almost boring lol... my friend who's generally quite critical of that sort of stuff even remarked that it felt "safe"
excessive fuel consumption is the most fair argument for why 75 or so is generally the fastest you want to be going
04-09-20, 11:16 PM
New Cannonball Run Record Set - 26 hours 38 minutes
