#CannonballRun

Each one of us, minus the psychopaths, lives by a personal code, and that set of deeply held beliefs and attitudes dictates how we treat others. How we interact in society. It makes us whole.

Given that there’s a hell of a lot of variation in what drives a person, there’s been no shortage of diverging takes on the latest Cannonball Run “trophy” holder — the crew of a white, 2019 Audi A8 that rocketed from New York City to Los Angeles in 26 hours and 38 minutes earlier this month, using lightly trafficked highways borne of the coronavirus pandemic to their advantage. Average speed? Roughly 105 mph.

Is this feat worthy of a slap on the back, or a punch in the face?

Last December, we reported that a team piloting a 2015 Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG obliterated the standing Cannonball record between New York City and Los Angeles. In March, we also noted that traffic density has declined immensely as a result of the viral pandemic currently gripping the nation — with those two cities seeing larger declines than the already low national averages. You can probably guess where this is going.

Rumors are circulating that a 2019 Audi A8 was prepped to capitalize on the moment, setting a new Cannonball benchmark while (almost) no one was watching. According to Road & Track, a team of at least three equipped a white sedan with auxiliary fuel tanks and set out from NYC’s Red Ball Garage on the night of April 4th. They arrived at the Redondo Beach finish line less than 27 hours later — beating the old record with time to spare.

I had forgotten all about coast-to-coast Cannonball Runs. Erwin “Cannon Ball” Baker was the first, of course, going from the East Coast to the West Coast in 53.5 hours in 1933, driving a Graham-Paige Model 57 Blue Streak 8.

The late Brock Yates, of Car and Driver fame, got it down to 32 hours, 51 minutes in 1971, and the 30-hour mark fell to Dave Black and Ed Bolian in 2013 (28 hours, 50 minutes).

Now, Arne Toman and Doug Tabutt have shaved over an hour off that time. With the help of spotter Berkeley Chadwick, they motored from Manhattan’s Red Ball Garage to the Portofino Hotel in Redondo Beach, California, in 27 hours and 25 minutes.

Brock Yates wore many hats during his enviable madcap life, and each one blew off as he pinned the accelerator to the firewall.

The longtime Car & Driver editor, racecar driver, brief TTAC contributor, author, restaurateur, television commentator, screenwriter, Cannonball Run founder and fierce critic of government regulations packed a burning passion for cars into every strand of his DNA.

Yates passed away yesterday from complications of Alzheimer’s. He was 82.

A group of documentarians calling themselves RaceReporters/MotorReporters are attempting to piece together what happened during the Cannonball Runs between 1971 and 1979.

Started by Brock Yates, who temporarily found himself at TTAC for a few short weeks, and Steve Smith of Car & Driver, the Cannonball Baker Sea-to-Shining-Sea Memorial Trophy Dash was born in secrecy and kept away from the general public until the Hollywood film of the same name hit the silver screen.

After a “large stash of photography” taken by a Cannonball Run attendee was uncovered in Germany, the filmmakers are putting out a call to others who may have been present to witness what is now one of the most well-known underground “races” in history.

It’s 10:33AM, Monday, 30 March 2015. I’m at an undisclosed but very pricey location in Greater Los Angeles. Three very tired and irritable men are watching me watch a very long and mostly mind-numbing video.

And yes, we’re all wearing pants.