# NY-to-LA in 27 hours 25 minutes. New Cannonball run record **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [December 4, 2019, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ny-to-la-in-27-hours-25-minutes-new-cannonball-run-record/844366 "2019-12-04T17:11:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2019, 10:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ny-to-la-in-27-hours-25-minutes-new-cannonball-run-record/844366/101 "2019-12-12T10:05:04Z")
Ahh, Mexico. The place where I bribed an LEO to get out of a traffic ticket. The bribe? $5 USD, in Cabo, in 1996. ---
**Author:** ![Fleetwood](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fleetwood/32/271_2.png) [@Fleetwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fleetwood)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2019, 12:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ny-to-la-in-27-hours-25-minutes-new-cannonball-run-record/844366/102 "2019-12-12T12:45:43Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#): > > Why are people congratulating someone who drove three times the posted limit at times, and averaged 40 mph over the posted limit, thereby endangering other people using the roads? OK, Boomer. ---
**Author:** ![iamthewalrus\_3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/258eb7/32.png) [@iamthewalrus\_3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamthewalrus_3)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2019, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ny-to-la-in-27-hours-25-minutes-new-cannonball-run-record/844366/103 "2019-12-14T17:50:25Z")
> [@Spiderman](#): > > You do know how something like a Garmin Nuvi works, right? > It’s a receiver only; it doesn’t transmit any data anywhere. > The data for the trip was recorded on a stopwatch-like function. Yes, but the article strongly implies that they’re talking about something else. Something that _does_communicate back to a central service. The reason you’d use something like that would be to provide 3rd party confirmation. Presumably because the standalone ones are harder to use as true verification. > [@](#): > > “I kidnapped the Lindbergh baby.” I don’t know what you think this proves, but “not everything stated is true” doesn’t invalidate the fact that statements on the record _are_ evidence. They’re probably not sufficient by themselves, but come on. There’s plenty to build a case here, and that magazine interview is part of it. Like, if you write a detailed account of how you committed a crime, and that account is consistent with other evidence, that detailed account is going to be used against you. Possibly introduced as evidence, possibly just used to construct parallel evidence that is admissible. ---
**Author:** ![DPRK](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/4491bb/32.png) [@DPRK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DPRK)\ **Post date:** [December 14, 2019, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ny-to-la-in-27-hours-25-minutes-new-cannonball-run-record/844366/104 "2019-12-14T19:24:43Z")
The funny thing about this whole episode is that underground races are supposed to be… underground. Fellow gearheads would know about it, but they are doing something very wrong if details of their run are all over the Internet or if they are giving interviews. ---
**Author:** ![Airman\_Doors\_USAF](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e36b37/32.png) [@Airman\_Doors\_USAF](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Airman_Doors_USAF)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2019, 11:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ny-to-la-in-27-hours-25-minutes-new-cannonball-run-record/844366/105 "2019-12-15T11:41:51Z")
I’m actually OK with this. If there is a right way to do this they did it. They planned the route, they had scouts out ahead of them, they were running Waze and every other GPS-based mapping program so they could avoid traffic issues, etc. See, the thing is that a) speed limits are artificially low because driver’s licenses are tossed out like candy to the lowest common denominator, b) people steadfastly refuse to drive in predictable manners and observe laws and customs (yes, I’m talking to you, the jerk who walks his car in the left lane and claims against all evidence that it’s your God-given right to screw with everybody), and c) they weren’t doing anything unusual in unusual places. They didn’t do 193 in New York, for example. They did it out where traffic was sparse. I’m sure they were doing 85-90 in New York, but that’s nothing out of the ordinary. There have been lots of record runs and attempts over the years. To the best of my knowledge none of them have resulted in injuries for non-participants or deaths of any kind. These people plan these things and execute the plan, and if things don’t go according to that plan they bail on it and try again some other time. ---
**Author:** ![Spiderman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiderman/32/230_2.png) [@Spiderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiderman)\ **Post date:** [December 15, 2019, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ny-to-la-in-27-hours-25-minutes-new-cannonball-run-record/844366/106 "2019-12-15T15:17:15Z")
> [@iamthewalrus\_3](#): > > Yes, but the article strongly implies that they’re talking about something else. Something that _does_communicate back to a central service. The reason you’d use something like that would be to provide 3rd party confirmation. Presumably because the standalone ones are harder to use as true verification. [Here](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M6s9o6uIWZw&t=20m44s) is a screenshot from their video of their “hi-tech” timing device, a basic kitchen stopwatch/clock/timer. [Here](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M6s9o6uIWZw&t=9m49s) is another screenshot from the same video of their dash. The rightmost screen is a Garmin Nuvi (unless it’s a TomTom); they don’t even have the ability to save an event or upload data anywhere. All it will do is show you your stats since it was last reset. Mine currently shows a few thousand miles & a top speed of mumblety, mumblety. That’s collectively since it was last reset. I didn’t do one trip that long, nor could I tell you when or where that max speed was obtained. Some Garmin devices will automatically upload data, some you can manually upload data, & some you can’t upload any (GPS) data. Hell, Nuvi’s are so bottom end in the Garmin ecosphere that they don’t even have elevation/altitude info in them. I know. Been there, seen/heard it. I’m not making a right turn at 800’ despite what it was telling me to do! They had people know they were doing this, they had local spotters that they were talking to along the way; much like a running race with intermediate timing points it’s virtually impossible to cheat on a point-to-point event when you’re recorded at numerous intermediate points. Their ‘record’ is talking to & being seen by their various spotters/refuelers along the way. All you need to upload data to Garmin’s website is a Garmin recording device, a computer (or mobile device, including a tablet), internet connectivity, & an email address. Assuming that they _did_ upload it, law enforcement would need to find the right account to to get records for. Maybe it was under their email, maybe it was a friend who has an existing account because they don’t, or maybe they made up a new, free email address (CannonballRecord2019@\_\_\_.com???) & loaded it under that account. There isn’t much to go on. > [@iamthewalrus\_3](#): > > I don’t know what you think this proves, but “not everything stated is true” doesn’t invalidate the fact that statements on the record _are_ evidence. They’re probably not sufficient by themselves, but come on. There’s plenty to build a case here, and that magazine interview is part of it. > > Like, if you write a detailed account of how you committed a crime, and that account is consistent with other evidence, that detailed account is going to be used against you. Possibly introduced as evidence, possibly just used to construct parallel evidence that is admissible. My kidnapping statement in no more ‘on the record’ than the video they made; neither were done under oath & there’s no crime (lying to law enforcement, perjury) for recanting. Right now all we have is their word, & a clip or two along the route; clips that are so easy to speed up in post processing there’s an actual button/slider for it in the software. I don’t doubt they did it but if I was a prosecutor I wouldn’t take them to court or use their ‘evidence’ in the their own ‘brag’ video. ---
**Author:** ![iamthewalrus\_3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/258eb7/32.png) [@iamthewalrus\_3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamthewalrus_3)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2019, 8:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ny-to-la-in-27-hours-25-minutes-new-cannonball-run-record/844366/107 "2019-12-19T20:44:43Z")
> [@Spiderman](#): > > [Here](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M6s9o6uIWZw&t=20m44s) is a screenshot from their video of their “hi-tech” timing device, a basic kitchen stopwatch/clock/timer. > [Here](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M6s9o6uIWZw&t=9m49s) is another screenshot from the same video of their dash. The rightmost screen is a Garmin Nuvi (unless it’s a TomTom); they don’t even have the ability to save an event or upload data anywhere. > [@The Article Linked in the OP](#): > > they ran two dash-mount Garmin GPS units and one of those GPS tags tracked by a third party. I’ve used a GPS tag tracked by a third party. It’s exactly what it implies and what I’ve been saying it is. It’s a thing that connects to a cell or satellite network and periodically pings back to. I’ve used them for offshore sailing. You attach one to every sailor so if they fall overboard you can tell the Coast Guard where they are. It’s not local storage. It’s uploaded regularly to a 3rd-party server. Depending on the protocol it uses, it’s possible that such a thing could be faked, but it’s evidence held by a third party. > [@](#): > > I don’t doubt they did it but if I was a prosecutor I wouldn’t take them to court or use their ‘evidence’ in the their own ‘brag’ video. Not-under-oath statements by people who have committed crimes are used as evidence _all the time_. Is it incontrovertible? No. But it’s not totally irrelevant, either. Again, the idea that sometimes people say things that aren’t true does not totally invalidate the evidentiary value of things that they memorialize. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2020, 1:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ny-to-la-in-27-hours-25-minutes-new-cannonball-run-record/844366/108 "2020-04-23T13:07:32Z")
New Coronavirus aided record - [Cannonball Run challenge - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cannonball_Run_Challenge#Current_record) 26 hours, 38 minutes ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2020, 1:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ny-to-la-in-27-hours-25-minutes-new-cannonball-run-record/844366/109 "2020-04-23T13:33:25Z")
> [@Telemark](#): > > New Coronavirus aided record - [Cannonball Run challenge - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cannonball_Run_Challenge#Current_record) > > 26 hours, 38 minutes I got the Road & Track article email about that a couple of weeks ago: [Exclusive: A Team Exploited the Coronavirus Pandemic to Set a 26-Hour 38-Minute Cross-Country Record](https://www.roadandtrack.com/car-culture/a32092440/26-hour-38-minute-cannonball-record-coronavirus/). **Telemark** , you’re a car guy. You may want to get their emails. That’s where I first learned of the November record run. I’m pretty sure the record was set on 04 April, or at least in the first week of April. Pretty wild, especially so soon after the previous record set on 10 November. But, COVID-19 cleared the roads for this latest record. Back in February when I was back east in DC and NYC, because of the November record I just _ **had to** _ go see the Red Ball Garage in Manhattan. I took a couple of selfies there and, to boot, I spotted an E63 AMG on the way there, the same car driven in the November record. I just posted a few pics to imgur \>\> [Cannonball! - Album on Imgur](https://imgur.com/a/XE7R3Xo). My own personal Cannonball record, while decidedly NOT trying to set a speed record but trying to get to Santa Barbara CA quickly, from St. Petersburg FL, was 2 days & nights non-stop; 2,701.5 miles; 51 hours 26 minutes; ≐ 52.5 MPH overall average (including stops). That was back during the Double Nickel days. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [April 23, 2020, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ny-to-la-in-27-hours-25-minutes-new-cannonball-run-record/844366/110 "2020-04-23T14:05:23Z")
> [@Bullitt](#): > > I got the Road & Track article email about that a couple of weeks ago: [Exclusive: A Team Exploited the Coronavirus Pandemic to Set a 26-Hour 38-Minute Cross-Country Record](https://www.roadandtrack.com/car-culture/a32092440/26-hour-38-minute-cannonball-record-coronavirus/). I heard it on the nightly news during the first week of April, but forgot about it until today when something triggered my increasingly scattered memory. I read R&T from time to time, and I like cars, but I’m not really a _car guy_, I’m just a guy who likes cars. 🙂 My coast to coast record is around a week, but it involves a visit with my cousins in eastern Washington and some time burned in Minnesota trying to meet up with a friend for dinner. Solo in a 1979 Chevy Impala, tent camping along the way. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2020, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ny-to-la-in-27-hours-25-minutes-new-cannonball-run-record/844366/111 "2020-04-24T18:28:31Z")
> [@Telemark](#): > > I read R&T from time to time, and I like cars, but I’m not really a _car guy_, I’m just a guy who likes cars. 🙂 Same goes here, I guess. I read it from time to time, although I do get their emails almost daily. These Cannonball Run attempts are clearly illegal. Those cars average over 100 MPH while moving on the interstates. Depending on how they’re driving, the drivers put John and Jane Q. Public at risk. But to do so during the current COVID-19 pandemic is not just illegal, it’s unwise and irresponsible. If they hit any first responders or medical supply drivers, then there are other lives impacted as well. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2020, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ny-to-la-in-27-hours-25-minutes-new-cannonball-run-record/844366/112 "2020-04-24T19:51:33Z")
> [@Bullitt](#): > > But to do so during the current COVID-19 pandemic is not just illegal, it’s unwise and irresponsible. If they hit any first responders or medical supply drivers, then there are other lives impacted as well. I can understand their desire to remain anonymous. Doing a Cannonball Run right now is incredibly stupid. While the traffic on the roads will be lower, the majority of it will be essential travel. In the event of a wreck pulling first responders into a mess is the height of irresponsibility. It’s kind of light stealing a one of a kind work of art; you can never let anyone know you have it or risk being arrested. I don’t know if law enforcement ever seriously considered going after the previous record holders, but there would be pressure on them to go after these guys if their names were known. ---
**Author:** ![madsircool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madsircool/32/3432_2.png) [@madsircool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madsircool)\ **Post date:** [April 24, 2020, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ny-to-la-in-27-hours-25-minutes-new-cannonball-run-record/844366/113 "2020-04-24T19:58:31Z")
> [@Bullitt](#): > > Same goes here, I guess. I read it from time to time, although I do get their emails almost daily. > > These Cannonball Run attempts are clearly illegal. Those cars average over 100 MPH while moving on the interstates. Depending on how they’re driving, the drivers put John and Jane Q. Public at risk. > > But to do so during the current COVID-19 pandemic is not just illegal, it’s unwise and irresponsible. If they hit any first responders or medical supply drivers, then there are other lives impacted as well. So are drivers on the Autobahn putting John and Jane Q Public at risk or is this just another example of American Puritanism? Also, first responders usually dont use rural interstates. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2020, 12:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ny-to-la-in-27-hours-25-minutes-new-cannonball-run-record/844366/114 "2020-04-25T00:08:14Z")
> [@Telemark](#): > > It’s kind of light stealing a one of a kind work of art; you can never let anyone know you have it or risk being arrested. I don’t know if law enforcement ever seriously considered going after the previous record holders, but there would be pressure on them to go after these guys if their names were known. I’m thinking the same thing. LE would want to get these guys. > [@madsircool](#): > > So are drivers on the Autobahn putting John and Jane Q Public at risk or is this just another example of American Puritanism? Also, first responders usually dont use rural interstates. Autobahn? That’s a very (very!) different thing. Have you driven the Autobahns? Drivers are generally better trained WRT lane discipline. Going slow? Keep right. Need to pass? Check for fast movers (and possibly very fast) before signaling and moving to the left lane. It’s not a perfect system but it’s pretty good. And it’s very refreshing driving in a place without left lane road boulders. And as for rural interstates, truckers are there and they can be hauling medical supplies and masks. In fact truckers hauling med supplies are likely on rural interstates, driving from port cities to cities and towns that need the supplies. ---
**Author:** ![Bullitt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bullitt/32/5725_2.png) [@Bullitt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bullitt)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2020, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ny-to-la-in-27-hours-25-minutes-new-cannonball-run-record/844366/115 "2020-04-25T19:58:02Z")
> [@](#): > > According to the World Health Organization, there are about four traffic deaths per 100,000 people in Germany, compared to nearly 12 per 100,000 in the US. _Road & Track_: [A Cop Who Runs Cannonballs Explains Why Speed Alone Doesn’t Kill](https://www.roadandtrack.com/car-culture/a30210151/a-cop-who-runs-cannonballs-explains-why-speed-alone-doesnt-kill/) ---
**Author:** ![Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hilarity_n.suze/32/6223_2.png) [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hilarity_N.Suze)\ **Post date:** [April 25, 2020, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ny-to-la-in-27-hours-25-minutes-new-cannonball-run-record/844366/116 "2020-04-25T20:05:28Z")
> [@Bullitt](#): > > Same goes here, I guess. I read it from time to time, although I do get their emails almost daily. > > These Cannonball Run attempts are clearly illegal. Those cars average over 100 MPH while moving on the interstates. Depending on how they’re driving, the drivers put John and Jane Q. Public at risk. > > But to do so during the current COVID-19 pandemic is not just illegal, it’s unwise and irresponsible. If they hit any first responders or medical supply drivers, then there are other lives impacted as well. The only thing scary about this is that, by publicizing these efforts by expert drivers, they might encourage more folks who are not expert drivers to give it a go. Expert drivers do not put JQP at risk. They aren’t going to have a wreck or cause one. It’s no more risky to JQP during a pandemic than any other time. ---
**Author:** ![commasense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/commasense/32/3017_2.png) [@commasense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/commasense)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2020, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ny-to-la-in-27-hours-25-minutes-new-cannonball-run-record/844366/117 "2020-09-14T03:43:57Z")
I just found [this video](https://m.youtube.com/watch?t=351s&v=GOWn1WSYhVQ), in which the guys who set the 27:25 record last year describe how they took advantage of the pandemic to do another run in May in an Audi S6, with a new record time of 25:39, and average speed 110 mph. ---
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2020, 11:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ny-to-la-in-27-hours-25-minutes-new-cannonball-run-record/844366/118 "2020-09-14T11:08:59Z")
Because America is a dying nation with very few real accomplishments this century. Reality stars and YouTube influencers are all we have. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2020, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ny-to-la-in-27-hours-25-minutes-new-cannonball-run-record/844366/119 "2020-09-14T17:12:54Z")
> [@Bullitt](#): > > I-5, but be careful. Better yet is I-40 east of Barstow. But watch out for the [bats](http://thue.stanford.edu/jacquie/hunter.html)! ---
**Author:** ![Oredigger77](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/oredigger77/32/3181_2.png) [@Oredigger77](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oredigger77)\ **Post date:** [September 14, 2020, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ny-to-la-in-27-hours-25-minutes-new-cannonball-run-record/844366/120 "2020-09-14T23:22:00Z")
[Right](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vanishing_Point_(1971_film)). That’s why they never made movies in the past glorifying this kind of driving. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ny-to-la-in-27-hours-25-minutes-new-cannonball-run-record/844366.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/ny-to-la-in-27-hours-25-minutes-new-cannonball-run-record/844366.md?page=7)