The Cannonball Podcast

In our final episode, the journey comes full circle in Minerva, Ohio, at Cars Are the Stars—the largest gathering of Cannonball vehicles, record-holders, and movie legends. Alongside this celebration of speed and story, we dig into the bigger questions: Is the Cannonball Run something uniquely American? Why has the community struggled to attract more diverse participants? And with safety always un...

In 2021, a group of college students set out to make history—driving a homemade solar-powered car from New York to Los Angeles. It was called The Cannonball Sun. I was there for their first attempt, documenting their journey mile by mile as they chased a nearly impossible dream. In this episode, we follow the Solar Car team as they build, break, and rebuild their way across the country—proving tha...

Long before Brock Yates, there was George Erwin "Cannon Ball" Baker, a man who set the stage for it all with his cross-country record-breaking rides in the early 1900s. In this episode, we dive into the origins of the race, connecting with historians who shed light on Baker’s incredible feats, and meet the driver who recreated his run 100 years later. We also explore how today’s Cannonball races a...

When Ed Bolian shattered the Cannonball record in 2013, he didn’t just make history—he made it searchable. With the launch of VinWiki, Ed helped turn outlaw runs into viral stories, sparking a new era of digital mythmaking. Then in 2019, Arne Toman and Doug Tabbutt upped the ante with a record so fast it felt untouchable… until COVID hit. With traffic-free roads and lockdown conditions, a string o...

After the Cannonball Run’s last official race in 1979, a short-lived successor called the U.S. Express quietly took the torch. In 1983, an astonishing cross-country record was set—then nearly forgotten. That is, until filmmaker Cory Welles uncovered the story two decades later. Her quest to verify the lost record led her to Alex Roy, and together, they not only proved the past but rewrote it—launc...

Burt Reynolds. Farrah Fawcett. Jackie Chan. Dean Martin. The Cannonball Run movie had it all—fast cars, famous faces, and not a single rule in sight. But what started as Brock Yates’ passion project quickly spiraled into something far bigger—and far stranger—than he ever imagined. Critics tore it apart, but audiences made it a box office hit. In this episode, we dive into the wild making of The Ca...

Just as Cannonball was gaining momentum, the 1973 oil crisis brought it to a screeching halt. Gas lines snaked around city blocks, and suddenly, high-speed protest felt out of step with the national mood. But Yates wasn’t done. By 1975, his rebellious road race was back—this time aimed squarely at the newly imposed 55 mph speed limit. This episode explores how the Cannonball evolved from an inside...

It started with one wild idea: drive across the country as fast as possible—and make it a protest. In the early 1970s, amid anti-war marches, civil rights uprisings, and a new wave of environmental regulation, Car and Driver’s Brock Yates declared war on what he saw as government overreach. This episode dives into the political tensions that lit the fuse, his opposition to the Clean Air Act and EP...

This isn’t just another car podcast. This is the never-before-told story of the Cannonball Run—the unsanctioned, undeniably American road race from New York to Los Angeles that has defied the law, technology, and time for over a century. From chaotic cross-country runs to movie stars and modern record-breakers, this series takes listeners straight into the heart of the Cannonball Run. Created by M...