Posted on 10/31/2013 3:52:36 PM PDT by nascarnation
Ed Bolian had a serious cross-country need for speed.
The 28-year-old Atlanta man and a two-man crew shattered the unofficial record for fastest drive from New York City to Los Angeles earlier this month by making the 2,813-mile trip in 28 hours and 50 minutes, besting the previous mark set in 2006 by more than two hours.
Using a souped-up 2004 Mercedes-Benz CL55 AMG, Bolian, co-driver Dave Black and support passenger Dan Huang left the Red Ball Parking Garage on 31st Street in New York City at 9:55 p.m. on Oct. 19. The trio later arrived at the Portofino Hotel and Marina in Redondo Beach, Calif., at 11:46 p.m. local time on Oct. 20. The ride went as smooth as anyone couldve imagined, Bolian said.
The trip went completely perfectly, in ways I could not have guessed, he said. We had no traffic, no construction, no accidents, we didnt find any speed traps and had no bad weather It was perfection.
The trio stopped only three times to refuel, add oil and to take restroom breaks. The Mercedes average speed was 98 mph, Bolian said.
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
I’ve cruise controlled 400 mile trips in CA set on 100 in a Saturn SL2 before they started radaring the interstate here. Most fly over country freeways are in better shape than here too...
Daytime speed limit, “Reasonable And Prudent,” nighttime speed limit 75 mph. Wyoming, I seem to recall but could be mistaken.
They must have been using racing grade tires.I don’t think even tires graded for highway use would be able to survive those speeds.
Back in the 70’s I drove from the East Coast of Florida to San Antonio Texas.I did Pretty well until I hit Houston and my tires started rumbling.
I stopped at a Firestone Tire dealer and the guy told me the belts were separating on the Steel Radial 500’s I was using.
Those tires apparently couldn’t take the heat of that kind of drive.
I don't know about a Datsun, but a Subaru will work.
To follow up on my number 11...
See this story: http://www.caranddriver.com/features/the-last-cannonball-feature
for the summary of the 1979 last run of the Cannonball Baker Sea-to-Shining-Sea Memorial Trophy Dash which was sort of affiliated with Car and Driver and gave rise to the Cannonball Run films of Burt Reynolds.
Brock Yates was one of the central figures.
Wow! That record could last a long time.
Too many just becomes bait.
Montana I thought
Could’ve been. I recall that there was an active police presence. It’s apparently not reasonable and prudent to blast along at a hundred plus in a poorly maintained vehicle. There were a few pulled over.
Geez! I did Wilmington, N.C. to Sacramento, CA in 76 hours driving solo. I could have made it sooner if the damned Ryder truck hadn’t been governed at 70 mph ... and I didn’t stop to sleep.
I don't think I've come across any roads with no speed limit at all. There are places out west where the speed limits are variable. The signs are electronic and the speed limit changes with the weather conditions. I-80 across Wyoming has long stretches like that. As the wind speed goes up, the highway speed limit goes down.
Well I bet so. That tire nearly bankrupted Firestone. They were unsafe and they all had to be recalled. They had sold tons of the 500's to Sears with Sears branding and those had to be recalled also. 60 minutes even did a piece on the infamous Firestone 500.
1972, Amarillo, TX, to Columbus, OH in 24 hours and five minutes. Driving a Honda 600N Coupe running on 10” Bridgestone radials and powered by a two cylinder transverse mounted motorcycle engine. $1600 brand new off the showroom floor in CA. Damn thing got almost 50mpg on the highway. Of course, every little crosswind was a lane change...
I bought a new Pontiac Grand Prix in 1974. It had Firestone 500’s. All 5 (full size spare back in those days)separated within 20,000 miles.
Those origianl Cannonball Baker runs were some great reads in C&D Magazine. As I recall Dan Gurney won one of the things in a Ferrari.
Better yet, Danny DeVito once impregnated Arnold Schwarzeneger with Emma Thompson’s egg, proving young men need ObamaCare’s maternity benefit.
"With an average speed just under 100 mph, Bolian acknowledged he easily eclipsed local and state speed limits while driving the Mercedes that was outfitted with additional 22-gallon gas tanks, a police scanner, several GPS units and two laser jammers to avoid detection by police radar."
most roads are made for at least 20 miles over. curves at least 10.
two other guys and more than one extra 22 gallon tank? that’s a lot of extra weight they were hauling too.
Ping
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