Men take electric vehicle for record-breaking 35,770-mile trip

Feb. 24 (UPI) -- A pair of adventurers set a new Guinness World Record by taking a 97-day, 35,770-mile journey across the United States in an electric vehicle.

Rainer Zietlow, a professional long-distance driver from Germany, and Derek Collins began their journey on July 13, 2021, at Volkswagen's U.S. headquarters in Virginia.

The men drove their Volkswagen ID.4 through 49 states before ending their journey on Oct. 18 back at the Volkswagen building.

Guinness announced Wednesday that the trip officially set the world record for longest journey by electric vehicle in a single country.

Zietlow and Collins said they visited more than 600 Volkswagen dealerships during the trip and made more than 200 stops to charge the vehicle's battery.

"The record not only documents the reliability of the ID.4, but also to the actual readiness status of the charging infrastructure in the U.S.," Zeitlow, founder of event agency Challenge4, told Guinness.

Zietlow and Collins were supported during their trip by the HARTING Technology Group.

"We're here to prove that an electric vehicle is a decidedly viable solution, whether you're only driving short distances or off on a road trip across the country. The technology is there. The infrastructure is in place," said Jon DeSouza, managing director of HARTING Americas.