Scott Mortara attended Ford's official launch of the 2013 Ford Shelby GT500 in Atlanta, Motor Trend photographers Brian Vance and Mike Shaffer picked up the keys to the red GT500 you see here and blew out of town. At dawn. Why so early? Our two road warriors needed to meet the rest of our crew two days later at Chrysler's Proving Grounds, in Kingman, Arizona.
Why there? Ford claims the GT500 will break the 200-mph barrier, but we want to find out for ourselves. A rep tells us the Shelby needs about 17,000 feet of tarmac to hit top speed, and that the SVT team used one of the world's largest test tracks, the Nardo Ring in southern Italy, to confirm the 200-mph claim.
After researching a number of test tracks, military bases and airports across the country, we decide on Chrysler's Arizona Proving Grounds, which recently reopened after a $10 million overhaul to its 5-mile oval track. By our calculations, this facility's mile-long straightaways of freshly laid asphalt, upgraded guard rails, and professional staff would give us the best -- and safest -- shot at hitting 200 mph on this side of the Atlantic. The only knocks on the facility are temperature and elevation -- we saw triple-digit air temps by midday, and the thin air at nearly 2000 feet above sea level will hurt even the GT500’s blown V-8.
Some 41 hours and 1900 miles after rocketing out of Atlanta, Vance and Shaffer pull into the In-N-Out parking lot in Kingman, for Animal-Style Double Doubles and pats on the back. The biggest, most difficult piece of the puzzle to obtain has arrived safe and sound. We’ll try for 200 mph the very next day.
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