How I Became the Real Bandit: Southern Classic Beer Run

The Southern Classic Bandit Run

• 🚗 The Southern Classic Bandit Run is an event inspired by "Smokey and the Bandit," where participants drive from Atlanta to Texarkana, Texas, to buy Coors Banquet beer and race it back to Atlanta.
• 💡 The race requires participants to use a car that is period-correct for the "Smokey and the Bandit" movies.
• 🤝 The narrator, with his father as co-driver, participated in a Volvo 240, a car not typically associated with the movie's era, but accepted by the organizer.

An Unexpected Head Start

• ⏰ To avoid waiting until the 7:00 a.m. state law in Texarkana, the narrator and his father decided to leave Atlanta at 11:00 p.m. to get ahead.
• ⏳ They arrived in Texarkana before 7:00 a.m. and, through a series of events including a distracted clerk and a manager helping another customer, were able to purchase the beer before the official time.
• 📹 They documented the purchase with a video and receipt, which was later accepted by the race organizers, giving them a significant head start.

Race Dynamics and The "Professor Rule"

• 🗺️ Using the "Joiner" app, other participants noticed the narrator's car moving backward and realized they had found a way to legally obtain the beer early.
• 💨 This led to other competitors speeding up to get their beer, but the narrator's Volvo 240 maintained its lead for a considerable distance.
• 🚦 A traffic jam in Mississippi allowed other cars to catch up, and a Mercedes with a radar gun was used to playfully slow down competitors.

Finishing Second and Earning the Bandit Award

• 🏁 The narrator and his father finished second overall in the "outlaw class" in their Volvo 240, closely behind the Mercedes.
• 🏆 They were awarded the "Bandit Award" for being the closest to the spirit of bootlegging, as they were the only ones to legally acquire the beer before the designated time.
• 📜 Following this event, a new "professor rule" was implemented for future Bandit Runs, prohibiting the purchase of beer before 7:00 a.m., regardless of whether it's offered.

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