Mark R. Madler
Nearing El Paso, Texas on his cross- country drive from a beach in
Florida to a beach in San Diego, the fatigue finally got to Peter
Musurlian.
The Glendale resident had done detailed planning for his attempt
to break the coast-to-coast driving record of 32 hours, seven
minutes, but fell short due to making stops to catch up on sleep.
"The only thing I underesti- mated was that I would get tired,"
Musurlian said Monday. "I didn't think I would have to pull over and
sleep."
Musurlian, who is station manager and senior producer for Burbank
BTV 6, the city's cable channel, arrived in San Diego in his 2005
Toyota Camry LE at 10:14 a.m., some 37 hours after he left
Jacksonville, Fla., where his drive had started at one second after
midnight Sunday.
The drive was documented with video cameras in his car and he even
paid a notary $75 to come out to the beach to notarize his departure
time, Musurlian said.
His strategy for the drive was not to call attention to himself by
not going in excess of 100 mph, swerving in and out of lanes, or
tailgating, Musurlian said. The weather cooperated with predominantly
clear conditions, he added.
For most of the drive his speed was maintained to keep up with the
flow of traffic, he said.
"I wasn't sticking out like a sore thumb," the Torrance native
explained. "I knew I could do this reasonably and rationally and not
endanger myself or anyone else."
Musurlian's effort has its roots in the "Cannonball Run" races of
the 1970s, where teams of drivers went from New York City to Redondo
Beach in the fastest time. In 1983, Newport Beach resident Doug
Turner set the record of 32 hours, seven minutes, in a drive from New
York to Orange County.
When Turner passed away last spring, Musurlian saw the obituary
mentioning the driving record and decided to try and break it.
Loretta Turner, Doug Turner's widow, had her doubts that Musurlian
would break the record, especially making the drive by himself and
making stops, whereas her husband made his record-setting drive with
a partner in a car equipped with an extra gas tank.
Still, she applauded Musurlian's effort to beat the record her
husband believed could not be topped.
"I compliment him," Turner said. "I think he did quite well in
doing it in 37 hours. That's a feat."
