L.A. to San Diego in just 5 3/4 hours

July 24, 1907: Harris Hanshue shattered the speed record for driving between Los Angeles and San Diego, The Times reported.

“Hanshue covered the 140 miles of the coast route in 5 hours and 45 minutes. He left the Hotel Alexandria at 4:30 o’clock and arrived at the Hotel Brewster in San Diego at 10:15,” the newspaper said.

Driving a two-cylinder Reo, he knocked nearly 1 1/2 hours off the previous record of seven hours and 10 minutes.

“While the average pace set during the run was a little over 24 miles an hour, at the beginning of the journey the roads were better, and Hanshue reeled off 63 miles in the first two hours,” The Times said. “After this he found the going very rutty and was compelled to slow down.”