The Cannonball Sun: A Race Across the Country this Summer!

Hi everyone, my name is Will Jones and I am currently building a solar car to complete the Cannonball Sun, a race my friend Kyle Samluk and I have come up with. The Cannonball Sun is our version of the Cannonball Run, but with solar cars.

The Cannonball Sun is a new style of solar car racing. There is no set route, there are no control stops, there is no scrutineering, and there are no start and end dates. Driving during the night, exotic battery chemistries, and large solar panel arrays are not only allowed but encouraged.

The Cannonball Sun begins at the Redball Garage in New York City and ends at the Portofino Hotel in Los Angeles. There are two primary rules:

1. Sunpower only

2. No law-breaking

There is further clarification of the rules at the end.

www.thecannonballsun.com will serve as the official scorekeepers. In order to participate, all a team must do is provide adequate proof of their journey. Our current car, Pink Skies, is the only known car being built for this race and we are hopefully looking forward to several other cars/teams competing. Several collegiate teams have already expressed serious interest in competing in the event.

The goal of the event is to build a solar car to drive across the continental US as fast as possible. Beyond racing, we hope the Cannonball Sun will encourage the awareness and use of clean energy. With the cancelation of the World Solar Challenge and other solar car racing events, we view this event as an exciting alternative that can be safely completed, keeping COVID-19 guidelines in mind. There is no registration fee, and we encourage anyone to compete in the challenge, whether it be high school, collegiate, individual or professional teams.

If anyone is interested in competing please email me and let me know I will create a page for teams interested to communicate with one another.

Email me at wbjones@umich.edu

To follow along for more updates check out our Instagram or Facebook page @thecannonballsun

Rule Clarification:

• Cars must be powered solely by solar energy collected from the sun. Cars are allowed to start with a fully charged battery. Cars must carry all powertrain components, including the array, with them at all times once the journey is started. No source other than solar energy collected from solar panels is allowed to move the vehicle.

• Cars must be legally registered for on-road use and follow all rules of the road.

Failure to follow any of these rules will result in an automatic disqualification. Additionally, it is at the discretion of the Cannonball Sun organizers to disqualify any team/car that is believed to be interpreting the rules unfairly or breaking any of the rules. Will Jones and Kyle Samluck are encouraging others to compete in this event with us, but can not be held responsible or accountable for any stupid decisions that result in injury or damages.