New York Start

Saturday July 28th
Pre-event Parties

Drivers started arriving and meeting at The Millennium Broadway Hotel in New York City during Saturday afternoon.  The atmosphere was electric with the drivers buzzing with excitement.  The party started in the bar later that evening and continued on with VIP entrance to Cain nightclub for a great night where most partied in to the small hours.

Sunday July 29th
The Race Begins

At lunchtime drivers started pulling up to the starting line at Tavern On The Green.  The Great American Run film crew helicopter was hovering above, film crew and cameras hanging out of the sides capturing the spectacle of the Supercar line up and excitement below.  The beautiful Bugatti Veyron had arrived with the rest of the Team Durham cars including a Lamborghini, Bentley, Rolls Royce Phantom and Porsche Carrera GT.  All of the cars looked spectacular in their full race liveries with six of the limited edition Bad Boy Saleens that were build exclusively for the event. The weather was turning rapidly with the rain moving in fast whilst the cars continued to arrive until the car park was almost over flowing.

Entrants checked in at Registration to receive their own Great American Run goody-bag filled with their official event merchandise and other cool items kindly donated by the sponsors.  This was the first glimpse of the Mission Packs that would only be fully completed by the hardiest of competitors that made it through all stages. The heavens opened at about 3.30pm and luckily stopped in New York just 5 minutes before the first car crossed the line.  The Miami start wasn’t quite so fortunate where the heavens opened, the thunder roared and the lightening cracked!  With a good sprinkling of  Porsche, Ferrari, European exotics, together with the pure American muscle of Mustangs the flags dropped for the first time at 6pm in both destinations.

With the film crew helicopter still hovering overhead the first to cross the New York start line was car 01, a Porsche Turbo driven by sponsor Tim Grant of Performance Outfitters Group.

The race to win the car was on.  The first legs of this monumental trip were underway.

Destination Indianapolis

As the cars sped away from the start line, some fell foul to the complexities of getting out of New York City finding that they had taken a wrong fork throwing them off course by 50 miles, adding to the challenge ahead.    The route continued on a superb drive up and through the Catskill Mountains where fortunately all drivers managed to miss the Moose and other large animals that share the roads in these regions.                   
The all-girl team of Ashley and Aimee Perlinger in their Bentley Continental GT were amongst the first to receive a speeding ticket and soon after the police were everywhere as all ears tuned in to the scanners.  Several other cars were stopped and fined for minor violations with one police officer overheard saying that he would have a fun night chasing all of the cars with stickers on....we aim to please!!

During the night drive the Team Durham Porsche fell foul to a burst tyre however managed to get underway again to make it to the checkpoint, luckily the only car to have any problems.  The less experienced drivers started to tail off from the leading pack shortly in to the mountainous stage.  The drive through Pennsylvania was very fast without a police car being seen all night and with very little traffic.  It was foot to the floor all the way. On arrival in to Indianapolis we had a surprise lap of the Indy 500, a track steeped in history and not normally open to the public so those not already exhausted and/or asleep lined up behind the pace car for another once in a lifetime opportunity. 

Thanks to US Customs the Jupp brothers were held in New York whilst trying to release the infamous Cannonball Supra, putting them one day behind the rest of the pack.  Whilst out of the timings competition they drove relentlessly and caught up in Indianapolis to enjoy the rest of the event.

The party started at Harry and Izzy's and moved in to the night at Club 6.
The Stage One winner went to car number 315, Tim Hampel and Mike Shultz in their Mustang GT who averaged just over 1/10th off of the target mileage over the entire 927 mile route.

Tuesday 31st
Destination Tulsa

Most cars were up and out early through the checkpoint to receive their Day 2 Missions and instructions for the 633 mile journey to Tulsa.
Reports started being received that a black Lamborghini, Ford GT 40, and one of the Bad Boy Saleen cars were allegedly doing some 180mph + heading out of Indianapolis.  State troopers were powerless to catch them.  Rumours were flying that they had caught the Lamborghini driver and that he'd been sent to jail but luckily these turned out be nothing more than rumour as the cars were miles out of the State. 

A Fox News helicopter also joined us for some awesome footage of cars 01 and 02 that can be seen on our Press Room page.
With a few exceptions the stage kept within the law as the majority of drivers strove to complete it within the designated timings.

The rain came in the afternoon and again the Jupp brothers with their Vanishing Point Supra were seen having a fuelling problem and ended up breaking down on the side of the road 40 miles from the Tulsa checkpoint.  In true Cannonball spirit other teams stopped to help them out and tow them on to the checkpoint where the Saleen support truck came to the rescue.
The Tulsa 66ers cheerleading team were on hand to  give a massive greeting to the arriving teams at the checkpoint.  The evening continued on with great food and many stories of the days events.

Stage Winners were once again Tim Hampel and Mike Shultz in car number 315

Wednesday 01st
Destination Denver

The checkpoint opened early in Tulsa with another long drive ahead to Denver.  The police were out in force issuing tickets for minor infringements and speeding tickets for just a couple of miles over the limit.

Car 13 received a ticket for 129mph and managed to talk their way out of spending the night in jail. Lucky guys - that would have cost them the win!

This proved to be an eventful stage with the Bugatti Veyron being booked for driving too slowly and the luggage van taking a wrong turn and ending up sinking the truck up to its axels in deep mud.  As well as receiving a citation for crossing the median they also had to pay the $150 to be helped out by a tow-truck.  Despite this the luggage still managed to get to Denver before some of the drivers!  The cars all arrived at the Hyatt Regency to a cold chill and rain but spirits were still running high and there seemed to be nothing that could dampen the event so far.

The stage winner for a 3rd day running was Tim Hampel and Mike Shultz in their Mustang GT, car 315.

Thursday 02nd
Destination Las Vegas

A long drive through the Colorado mountains and in to the Utah desert tested the drivers abilities and stamina to the full.  A 200 mile stretch of desert included with no fuel stops made the drivers planning and preparations essential.

The arrival in to Las Vegas took the cars through Euro Tech before checking into the palatial Venetian Hotel on the famous Vegas strip.  Dinner was served high over the Las Vegas Skyline in the panoramic Top of the World restaurant located in the Stratopshere followed by the infamous Tao Nightclub..

Stage winner was car 22 Ron Paasch and Gary Dattner in their Porsche 911

Friday 03rd
Willow Springs Raceway and the run to LA

The morning sun in Vegas shimmered as we got ready to depart for the traditional track day event.  The run from Vegas to the track would only be 238 miles. A mere breeze for the Cannonballers.

By the time the cars arrived at the track the temperature track had sawed to a stifling 108 degrees but the day went without a hitch, with only Car 01, the Performance Outfitters Porsche ending up with light damage after spinning off or the track.

Stage winners on the New York Run were Mike Jones and Steve Games car 13, Saleen.

The non- timed section down to The Millennium Biltmore Hotel in LA was nice and easy with some of the cars converging on the infamous freeway for some pictures and banter.

The evening black tie bash was superb with the New York entrants meeting the Miami entrants in a more social environment. The evening was nicely rounded off with the announcement of the overall winner and lucky recipient of the main prize…a special edition Ultimate Bad Boy Saleen Mustang.

Congratulations to Steve Games and Mike Jones who took the Bad Boy Saleen Grand prize with an overall mileage variance of -0.009 and to car 34 Des Sellmeijer and Hece Kestilla in their Corvette who took 2nd place with an overall average of 0.017

Written by Tim Porter, CEO and Event Driver

Miami Start

Saturday July 28th
Pre-event Parties

Cars were already lined up outside of the Hard Rock Seminole Hotel when the Great American Run staff arrived on Saturday morning.  Some choosing to have their cars cleaned so that they were pristine for the start of the event and others just choosing to show them off to the crowds.  The evening took everyone up to the Pangaea Lounge and Gryphon Nightclub where 8 especially selected Great American Run cars were on display outside of the nightclub.  The entrants started arriving at the club to find the original Cannonball Run Movie playing just for us on the large screens outside.  Most partied until the small hours whilst others never made it back to their beds at all!!  

Sunday July 29th
The Race Begins

By lunchtime all of the cars had arrived, all fully stickered with event and sponsors logos and the Candy Pink Mustang belonging to the legendary Steve Saleen's daughter Molly standing out like a sore thumb.  The drivers spirits were running high and the excitement was mounting.

Entrants checked in at Registration to receive their own Great American Run goody-bag filled with their official event merchandise and other cool items kindly donated by the sponsors.  This was the first glimpse of the Mission Packs that would only be fully completed by the hardiest of competitors that made it through all stages. The heavens opened at about 3.30pm and luckily stopped in New York just 5 minutes before the first car crossed the line.  The Miami start wasn’t quite so fortunate where the heavens opened, the thunder roared and the lightening cracked!  In the UK we’d all be running for cover, not so with the intrepid Great American Run drivers!  With a good sprinkling of  Porsche, Ferrari, European exotics, together with the pure American muscle of Mustangs….oh and one Evo on the Miami Run (more about them later) the flags dropped for the first time at 6pm in both destinations.

Car number 109, a Corvette driven by Mark Ayers and Stuart Hunt was the first car to cross the start line whilst the rest of the pack tussled, hooted and revved their way in to position.  Not letting the rain dampen their mood Gareth Stephenson and Sam Churchill were the only car to brave the rain and keep their roof down as they pulled up to the starting line.

The race to win the car was on.  The first legs of this monumental trip were underway

Destination New Orleans

The Bad Boy Rally roared out of from Fort Lauderdale in a cascade of brake horse power at 6pm to dice with the horrendous road conditions and the Florida Police.  A gut churning 908 miles had to be covered in the first stage, taking some drivers almost 16 hours.  However one Molly Saleen in her Saleen Mustang (aka Molly-Pop) managed to arrive in just 10 hours...On arrival in downtown New Orleans at the Astor Crown Plaza Hotel the cars were checked in by the glamorous American ‘Checkpoint Chicks’. It’s always good to bring the traffic to a halt and New Orleans did come to a stuttering stop as all the cars grunted up to the checkpoint.
Sleep beckoned for the majority as they hit the sack.
The evening Dinner was awash with booze and great food and the first yellow Jersey of the event (stage winners) went to Rob Blackwell and Allan Heritier in… wait for it…a Jaguar. Rule Britannia I hear you cry. Well not quite, cos this piece of British engineering actually stalled at the start.

The only car that was missing from the pack was Car 06, a Dodge SRT8 driven by Eric Marascio and Scott McPherson who worked feverishly to get their suspension fixed and made up the 4 hours that they were behind to catch the pack shortly after their arrival in New Orleans.  The very famous Bourbon Street got a proper ‘bashing’ that night as the ‘Cannonballers’ hit the drink, hit the town and then the pavement!  What a first day and as usual anything Tim Porter and the team plan is utterly awesome, very edgy and downright exhausting! Oh, and some cars already had their first speeding tickets…hurrah!!

Tuesday 31st
Destination San Antonio.. and gay astronauts?

So, up at the crack of dawn to set off for San Antonio some 544 miles away.  Now don’t take this the wrong way but some of our ‘Cannonballers’ did look a bit rough. I suppose that was just lack of sleep and had nothing to do with beer?  Hey ho, the checkpoint got under way and the cars ‘smoked’ their way out of New Orleans through some very heavy traffic.  I have to say the weather did start to pick up and the cars were able to get a proper ‘lick’ on for this section.  The arrival at the San Antonio Marriot checkpoint was loud, hot and very welcoming, as the checkpoint girls made a beautiful job of doing the ‘necessary’.  The two intrepid European drivers managed to stop off en- route at Houston for a wee visit with NASA. Unfortunately for them some wise ass managed to sell them two ‘mock’ spacesuits which had the effect of making them look like gay astronauts.  Anyway, these two ‘visions in orange’ joined the melee for the evening dinner at a fab restaurant (Boudros) for a truly delicious meal.  The Corvette car number 121 of father and son team Tommy and Tom Tarlton took the stage win and were honoured with the yellow t-shirts then it was time for Pat O’Briens and bed…you work it out!!!

Wednesday 01st
Destination Tucson.. Way down Mexico way and pass me a tequila!!

An even earlier start as the ‘Cannonballers’ checked out from the San Antonio Marriott. Interestingly the event shared the hotel with the 82nd Fertiliser convention. So that explains the men in very dodgy suits, dyed hair and the smell!
Well, Tucson Arizona was beckoning some 872 miles away (yep you read right, 872 miles away). The look on some of the driver’s faces being presented with the mission packs for this section was historic. Come on, it’s only another 14 hours of hot, difficult driving!
The run down to Tucson was very hot and the temperatures soared well into the 90’s. More tickets and more jousting with the cops with one of our UK Cannonballers in a red Mustang (you know who you are) managed in anger to throw his Rolex at a State Trooper. The run also passed through what must be the pits of America…El Paso!
And yes you guessed it more tickets from the cops.
Now it’s here that our Evo rears its ugly head again, as we found out that the UK driver had been arrested, handcuffed (I know people who pay for that) and had been given a court date of 21st August. Wonder if he will appear…perhaps not eh?
Anyway the rally managed to roar through this dust hole and onto what was an absolutely magnificent location…The JW Marriott Starr Pass up in the hills behind Tucson.  What a brilliant location this was and the checkpoint team did an incredible job of welcoming everybody with a cold beer and even some Guacamole.
The evening meal at the hotel was very good and the Cannonballers were at this point starting to really bond with each other.  The drivers were also treated to a Mexican guitar quartet (four fat blokes in hats) while we eagerly awaited the tequila!!!!
In Tucson we had the feeling that the Miami run was producing something really special. The bar stayed open late and the drivers all had a cup of cocoa!!!  Bedtime!!!
For the first and only time on the event Car 21, BJ Meierhofer and Justin Bartlett in a Saleen managed to equal the exact MPH with a variance of 0.000, taking the stage win.

Thursday 02nd
Day 4…viva Las Vegas and don’t get married!

Well you know the form by now. Up at the taint of dawn and breakfast out by the cars. It’s well worth noting that none of the cars had by this time had any mechanical failures.  That’s really a testament to modern engineering. Ten years ago they would have fallen apart!
So the run down to Vegas across  the Hoover dam was under way…only a mere 412 miles.  I think by this time some cars were up to four speeding tickets. Well done boys, that’ll show them darn cops!!  The drive across the Hoover dam was truly incredible. The winding road down to the dam presents you with one of the most incredible sights on this Earth.  Most of the drivers stopped just to take this in.
The arrival in Las Vegas was noisy affair as the cars swept in to the Euro Tech car park before checking into the palatial Venetian Hotel on the famous strip.  By this time we were truly a ‘band of brothers’ and in no mood to take prisoners.
It seemed that the rooms in the hotel were thirty days camel ride away as the vastness of this huge hotel engulfed all of us.
The evening dinner was ‘perfect’ in every way. The Stratosphere restaurant high in the sky provided an unbelievable venue for a sumptuous dinner and Vegas provided the back drop of glitz, glamour and pure bling and quite a lot of fat people in shorts!
After a flutter on the tables at the casino or a visit to Tao Nightclub, we were all ready for bed…some very tired, some not so tired and some quite skint.. oh and I never did see Elvis!

Stage winners on the Miami Run was car 26, Brian and Andrew Sneed in their BMW M5

Friday 03rd
Day 5…Willow Springs track day and the run to LA.

The morning sun in Vegas shimmered as we got ready to depart for the traditional track day event.  The run from Vegas to the track would only be 238 miles. A mere breeze for the Cannonballers.
The temperature at the track was 108 degrees. That’s hot enough to cook a pizza (which is how some of the drivers looked like after a few hours).
All of the drivers gave their cars a proper thrashing…especially the hired car mob.  Anyway the track day went off without a hitch, with only one car ending up in the kitty litter.

Stage winners on the Miami run was car 34 a Corvette driven by Des Sellmeijer and Hece Kestilla (aka gay astronauts).

The non- timed section down to LA was a real stroll in the park. Nice and easy with some of the cars converging on the infamous freeway for some pics and banter.

Once the cars arrived at the Millennium Biltmore it became apparent that we were missing one of our young British drivers, Jamie Chapman.  Upon investigation it appeared that one speeding warning wasn't enough so after two more within the same state he had spent Thursday night sampling the delights of a US jail (luckily being released in time to make it to the Final Night Party celebrations).

The evening black tie bash was superb with the New York crowd meeting the Miami mobsters in a more social environment. The evening was nicely rounded off with the announcement of the overall winner and lucky recipient of the main prize…a special edition Saleen Mustang…what a whopper of a car!!

The Great American Run proves a number of things…our American cousins love their cars and their parties as much as we do!!!

Congratulations to Steve Games and Mike Jones who took the Bad Boy Saleen Grand prize with an overall mileage variance of -0.009 and to car 34 Des Sellmeijer and Hece Kestilla in their Corvette who took 2nd place with an overall average of 0.017.

Written by Eric Barton, Presenter, Comedian and Event Co-driver