On July 1st at 11:30 pm PT, two friends, Jordan Hart and Bradly D’Souza, left Redondo Beach, California, in a 2015 midnight silver Tesla Model S, and proceeded east. Fifty-one hours and 47 minutes later, they arrived at a garage on E. 31st Street in New York City, claiming to set a new record for the fastest transcontinental drive in an electric vehicle. They say they bested the previous record holder by a little more than four hours.
They tweeted and posted photos to Instagram throughout the trip, both to document the experience and verify locations and the route along the way. Notarized witnesses signed official arrival and departure documents at both the start and end of the trip. Date and timestamped time-lapse video footage was taken of the entire run, as well as timestamped photos at both locations.
That said, there were numerous challenges, such as when to stop and eat, and how use to the car’s air conditioning without draining the car’s battery. (This was especially difficult during the stretch of the trip that took them through the desert, which in direct sunlight hit temperatures of 115 degrees Fahrenheit.)
“We were also VERY focused on our run and only stopped to eat once,” Hart told The Verge in an email. “Even then we told the staff what we were doing and were in and out of the restaurant in about 15 minutes. The rest of the time was healthy low glycemic snacking and a strict nap schedule for whoever wasn’t driving.”