Sand Hill Road 13
The McLaren F1 has no traction control because the car
is designed for maximum performance, so the car began to
spin after a lane change. Elon did what he could to avoid the
other cars driving on the same road while he at the same
time tried to control the spinning car. After some terrifying
seconds, the McLaren F1 slammed into the embankment of
the road. The car lifted from the ground and began rotating
like a discus flying through the air. They finally crashed
down on the ground.^328
When the dust cleared, Thiel heard how Elon laughed.
Thiel asked him why he laughed when he had just wrecked
his new dream car. “You don’t know the funny part, it
wasn’t even insured,” Elon replied.^328 It’s unclear exactly
why he laughed. One reason might have been the shock
from the traumatic event that had just happened. Another
reason can be explained with the new word “muskitude,”
defined as a supercilious attitude caused by having made
too much money too young.^301 It might have been a com-
bination of both.
Elon and Thiel survived the crash without any major
injuries. “The first woman who saw us thought we were
dead, and the whole thing felt like a roller coaster gone a
little bit out of control,” Thiel said.^8 Before the emergency
services arrived to the scene, Thiel opened the gull-winged
door, stepped out of the car, and hitchhiked a ride to not
miss the meeting with Sequoia Capital. Elon also hitch-
hiked a ride to the meeting once a tow truck arrived to the
scene.
Despite the dramatic accident, the McLaren factory