Racing Across The United States

November 1, 2013 in Daily Bulletin

In 2006 a team managed to drive from one end of the United States to the other in 31 hours and four minutes. A new team recently broke the record by making the run in under 29 hours. Doug DeMuro wrote about what it takes to drive across the United States in that kind of time:

  • The car that was used for the most recent record-setting journey was modified to include additional gas tanks. This gave the team the ability to drive 800 miles (1,300 km) between gas stops.
  • Additional equipment included GPS units that could track traffic and radar detectors to avoid the police as the team sped through America’s highways.
  • A CB radio was used to pose as a trucker to convince other truckers to give way to the race car.
  • Nutrition bars and energy drinks were a must.
  • An additional passenger sat with the driver to spot police cars, calculate gas mileage and to ensure that everybody stayed awake.
  • At times a ‘lead car’ was also used to drive several hours ahead at the speed limit to warn of any police or construction.
  • Before embarking on the journey the team put their vehicle through a $9,000 “tune-up”.

Find out which car they used, the time they almost crashed, the close calls with the police, and much more over here.

Source: Jalopnik