Good place to "hammer down:" US Highway 50 near Ely, Nevada

Long distance, "get-outta-Dodge" journeys aren't for everyone, but they hold undeniable appeal for a certain subset (you know who you are!) of roadtrippers. Here are just a few of the more interesting high-velocity odysseys we've run across recently.

Flat Out on a Public Highway! And it's legal! Road races run on public highways in Nevada. Events are typically in May and September. (2/6/05) (Updated June 14, 2019)

Alcan 5000 Rally: This is an annual nine-day, time/speed/distance endurance event that starts in the Seattle area, heads north into British Columbia, zig-zags into Alaska a couple of times, swings out to Yellowknife in the Northwest Territories and finishes up in Jasper, Alberta.(Link updated June 14, 2019)

Gumball 3000 Rally: Those goofy Burt Reynolds films of the 1970s, "Gumball Rally" and "Cannonball Run," were inspired by a real but illegal road race known as the "Cannonball Baker Sea-to-Shining Sea Trophy Dash." In its heyday, daring hotrodders sped from Times Square, New York, to Long Beach, California. In 1999, entrepreneur Maximillion Cooper launched the current version of the Gumball, which features a 3,000-mile, six-day road "rally" which has been held in Europe as well as the United States. Gumball 3000 takes place on public roads, where racers rack up speeding tickets (and worse) all day and then spend the night partying at predetermined watering holes along the route. The last United States event occurred in April, 2003, beginning in San Francisco and ending in Miami.