People love a race. They began to race cars before any of the kinks in such an undertaking were worked out. Consider the 1903 Paris to Madrid road race:
But that was just one race. Things got considerably worse in the next, when locals shot at passing vehicles! Read all six stories at Cracked. Link -via Buzzfeed
As a result of the constant, unremitting horror that unfolded on the first day, the race officials just drew a new finish line in Bordeaux.
Given the nascence of car manufacturing, not many people understood yet the inherent danger of traveling that fast in a wood and steel shell filled with explosives. All day, cars crashed into trees, burst into flames, careened into groups of spectators or just straight up disintegrated. Out of all the hundreds of racers that started, more than half crashed out in that first day, at least eight people died including one of the founders of Renault.
But that was just one race. Things got considerably worse in the next, when locals shot at passing vehicles! Read all six stories at Cracked. Link -via Buzzfeed
More like highly entertaining.