World’s fastest road race set for Sunday on remote Nevada highway
LAS VEGAS ( KLAS ) — The sun will rise on a Nevada slice of heaven when Highway 318 closes Sunday morning at 5 a.m., signaling the start of the Silver State Classic Challenge — the fastest road race in the world.
For drivers, the 90-mile race on a rural highway less than two hours north of Las Vegas is a celebration and an exercise in precision. For top-end drivers in the unlimited class, it's a chance to take a shot at the 219.6430 mph record — the average speed posted in 2017 by driver Robert Allyn and navigator David Bauer.
There's a little more to it than just showing up. Drivers must progress through divisions — Touring, Grand Touring and Grand Sport — and they have to go through a course before they're allowed to compete.
Ken Rees has been part of the event since 2002, starting as a course volunteer. He's competing in the Grand Sport class this year in a 2015 Corvette.
"I had seen this race on one of the TV channels ... Discovery or something. And I was just amazed that they would allow us to close down a road and do this," Rees said.
As a member of the Las Vegas Corvettes Association , Rees jumped at the chance to get involved. Now he's competing in six road races a year.
While drivers in the unlimited class are chasing that record, Rees and others are driving cars you might see on the street.
"It's a timed event, and how you win in your speed class is get as close to the perfect time for the average speed that you need to be in," Rees said.
Rees, an Air Force veteran, is now retired after years as an instructor in the aviation program at Rancho High School. He said some drivers are in it for the adrenaline rush, but flying an F-16 was all he ever needed.
He knows the course well, and he knows exactly how fast he wants to be going as he zips past the mile markers.
"There's a section of the course that's about 70 miles into the course, and it's what they call The Narrows. It's specifically the White River Narrows, and there was a creek or a river that ran through it. It's about 21⁄2 miles of road, which the recommended speed limit is 60. Generally, I'll go through that between 110 and 120." He laughs, "And it's fun. It really is fun."
Today in Ely , registration, inspections and a parade of cars are keeping participants busy. On Saturday, it's meetings for drivers, navigators and course workers. All the cars entered in the race will be on display in Broadbent Park. It's quite a sight each year with Lamborghinis, Ferraris and other exotic cars on display alongside muscle cars like Dodge Chargers and Corvettes.
A caravan on Sunday morning is scheduled to leave Ely at 6 a.m., with all cars at the start — around mile marker 9 south of Lund — at 8 a.m.
Cars leave the start spaced a minute apart. Highway 318 is scheduled to reopen at about 4 p.m. Sunday.
Will the record be broken this year? Rees says many have tried, but there are very few cars that turn in an average above 200 mph.
