The Return of the Cannonball Run Steve Goldfield an avid rallier along with three of his friends who are big ralliers in their own right, have officially launched Cannonball Run Rally which will go from Massachusetts to Havana Cuba in October of this year. Before we explore what’s to come lets dive into the rich history of this legendary road rally.
It all started In 1914 when Erwin “Cannonball” Baker set the first cross country record on his Indian Motorcycle accomplishing his transcontinental trip in 11 days. Soon after he would switch from motorcycles to automobiles and in 1933 he set a record traveling from New York to Los Angeles in a Graham-Page Model
Story // Scott Oshry + Photos //Scott Martin
57 Blue Streak 8, the record that would stand unchallenged for 40 years, the drive became known as the “Cannonball Run” and thus gave birth to the car rally. It would not be until 1971 when Brock Yates a reporter for Car and Driver Magazine would bring back the Cannonball legend hosting five runs in total. The most famous of them being in 1972 when Dan Gurney and Brock Yates driving a Ferrari Daytona accomplished the run in 35 hours, 54 minutes forever changing the landscape for what modern car rallies are about. His famous quote still synonymous with irreverent rallies today “at no time did we exceed 175 MPH.” Cannonball Run has just passed its 100-year anniversary and is the oldest rally in