Three men have broken a record for competing a Cannonball Run which involves driving cross-country from New York to Los Angeles in the shortest amount of time possible.
Arne Toman, Doug Tabbutt, and Berkeley Chadwick pulled off the impressive feat after driving from Manhattan and pulled into the Portofino Hotel in Redondo Beach in less than 27 and a half hours, Road and Track reported.
The Cannonball run, as it is known, is controversial as it involves breaking traffic laws. However the race has been attempted over 20 times and none have done it in as fast a time until now.
Arne Toman, (right), Doug Tabutt, (left), and Berkeley Chadwick, (seen in the backseat), broke a record for competing a Cannonball Run which involves driving cross-country from New York to Los Angeles in the shortest amount of time possible
The trio made the cross-country drive in a custom-built 2015 Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG Sedan and following hundreds of hours of preparation
Ed Bolian and Dave Black were the last group that broke the Cannonball record when they made the drive in 28 hours and 50 minutes in 2013, Road and Track reported.
And the latest trio made the cross-country drive in a custom-built 2015 Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG Sedan, which came after hundreds of hours of preparation.
Toman told the outlet: ‘I didn’t want to break the record by minutes. I didn’t want anyone else trying and I didn’t want to do it again.
The trio drove at an average speed of 103 mph and had two dash-mount Garmin GPS units.
One was being monitored by by a third party and they also had a CB radio to track their speed and their time which turned out to be record-breaking.
They set off from the Red Ball garage on the east side of Manhattan at 12.57 am on November 10.They eventually reached the Portofino Hotel in Redondo Beach in the South Bay area of Los Angeles in a time of 27 hours and 25 minutes.
The boys took the Northern Route – the I-80 through Nebraska, I-76 down to Denver, I-70 to the middle of Utah and I-15 until they reached Los Angeles for a total of 2825 miles.
The time took into account stops for fuel, which they managed to keep to at a 22 minute total.
Arne Toman, (pictured), said that thankfully there were were no accidents and they didn’t run into trouble during the 2,825 mile drive
Toman and Tabbutt are pictured before they took off at the Red Ball garage on the east side of Manhattan at 12.57 am on November 10
The pair took turns driving and had help from friends who helped them navigate their way through parts of the country and also to spot police.
Tabbutt told the outlet: ‘There were a lot of phone calls where I’d say, ‘Hey how’s that car I sold you three years ago? By the way, what are the cops like where you are?.”‘
‘There’s no replacement for boots on the ground and we had lots of information from people everywhere—stuff you can’t get from the Internet.’
Chadwick was given the task of using binoculars in the back of the car to search for police and to keep an overall check on their performance, according to Road and Track
The trio had a Waze, which is a traffic-avoiding and hazard-detecting app, which they operated from an iPad and an iPhone as they navigated the route
The car was also fitted with upgraded turbos, inter coolers and software which can pick up highway patrol aircraft along the route
Chadwick was given the task of using binoculars in the back of the car to search for police and to keep an overall check on their performance, according to Road and Track.
The trio had a Waze, which is a traffic-avoiding and hazard-detecting app, which they operated from an iPad and an iPhone as they navigated the route.
Toman has worked in the performance car business for several years and operates an Illinois CNC machine shop. He said that thankfully there were were no accidents and they didn’t run into trouble during the 2,825 mile drive.
The trio set off from the Red Ball garage in Manhattan at 12:57 a.m. on November 10. They eventually reached the Portofino Hotel in Redondo Beach in the South Bay area of Los Angeles in a time of 27 hours and 25 minutes
The trio drove at an average speed of 103 mph and had two dash-mount Garmin GPS units
He told Fox News: ‘Anyone who’s done it realizes how safely it can be done. We’re not passing on the shoulder. You try not to negatively effect anybody on the road. Drawing attention just gets you called into the police.’
He added: ‘Probably the most trick thing I had was a thermal scope on a roof-mounted gimbal that could be operated via remote control by the back seat passenger.
‘We picked up a cop warning on Waze and we were able to see the heat signature of the car sitting on the side of the road.’
The boys claimed they had one moment where they were almost caught by police in the Midwest doing 120 mph, when a patrol car was nearby. However the officer did not detect them and they continued on their route.
Chadwick was given the task of using binoculars in the back of the car to search for police and to keep an overall check on their performance, according to Road and Track
For years, daring drivers vied for the title of what became known as the Cannonball Run. A 1981 comedy starring Burt Reynolds and Farrah Fawcett immortalized the name
The origins of the Cannonball Run aren’t entirely clear, but the death defying and hugely illegal race from New York City to Los Angeles is named after Edwin ‘Cannonball’ Baker.
Baker made history in 1933 when, apparently just to say he did it, he raced from coast to coast in 53 hours 30 minutes in a car called the Blue Streak.
Fast forward to the 1970s, when cars could go far faster than Baker’s Graham Paige, and Car and Driver editor Brock Yates created the Cannonball Baker Sea-To-Shining Sea Memorial Trophy Dash.
For years, daring drivers vied for the title of what became known as the Cannonball Run. A 1981 comedy starring Burt Reynolds and Farrah Fawcett immortalized the name.
