Yes, the 1975 Cannonball Run was real. It was the third of five unofficial, unsanctioned automobile races run in the 1970s from New York City and Darien, Connecticut, on the East Coast of the United States to the Portofino Inn in the Los Angeles suburb of Redondo Beach, California. The races were called the Cannonball Baker Sea-To-Shining Sea Memorial Trophy Dash.
Conceived by car magazine writer and auto racer Brock Yates and fellow Car and Driver editor Steve Smith, the first run was not a competitive race as only one team was running. The run was intended both as a celebration of the United States Interstate Highway System and as a protest against strict traffic laws coming into effect at the time. Another motivation was the fun involved, which showed in the tongue-in-cheek reports in Car and Driver and other auto publications worldwide.
The initial cross-country run was made by Yates; his son, Brock Yates, Jr.; Steve Smith; and friend Jim Williams beginning on May 3, 1971, in a 1971 Dodge Custom Sportsman van called the “Moon Trash II.” The race was run four more times: November 15, 1971; November 13, 1972; April 23, 1975; and April 1, 1979.
The 1975 Cannonball Run was won by Jack May and Rick Cline in a Ferrari Dino 246 GTS, with a time of 35 hours and 53 minutes, averaging 83 mph (134 km/h). This beat the previous record set by Dan Gurney and Brock Yates in 1971 by one minute.
The Cannonball Run races were controversial, as they were illegal and posed a danger to both the participants and other motorists. However, they were also popular, as they captured the public’s imagination with their sense of adventure and rebellion.
The Cannonball Run races inspired the 1981 film of the same name, starring Burt Reynolds, Dom DeLuise, Farrah Fawcett, and Sammy Davis Jr. The film was a box office success and spawned a sequel, Cannonball Run II, in 1984.
While the Cannonball Run races are no longer officially held, they remain a part of automotive history and continue to inspire people to this day.