“I believe the starting and ending points are the same used in the old Cannon Ball Runs of forty years ago.”
In spite of the blazing fast run those guys did, I would still say namesake Cannonball Baker made the more impressive drives considering he was running alone on most of them, and on dirt roads part of the way.
Cannonball Baker, who won the first race ever held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, made his first coast to coast run in 1914 on an Indian motorcycle - 11 days. Quite a guy.
Keeping the Baker name was something Yates wanted to do as I recall reading this stuff in the 70s.
Kind of a Gonzo event every time. But, over fifty years ago when I was 14, I came up with nine cases of dynamite I wasn’t supposed to have, so I might not be a good judge of prudence in action.