Watch Colin Powell and Joe Biden drag race their Corvettes during the 2016 presidential campaign

published 19 October 2021

Remembrances poured in for former Joint Chiefs chairman and Secretary of State Colin Powell after his death Monday morning, including from President Biden. The president called Powell "a good man" and a "a patriot of unmatched honor and dignity" who "will be remembered as one of our great Americans." But "above all," Biden said, "Colin was my friend. Easy to share a laugh with. A trusted confidant in good and hard times. He could drive his Corvette Stingray like nobody's business — something I learned firsthand on the race track when I was vice president."

Jay Leno convinced the Secret Service to let Biden drive his 1967 Corvette Stingray in 2016, when Biden was still vice president, for his show Leno's Garage. In the show, Biden — who admitted he likes "speed" — was overtaken by a 2015 Corvette. "I wonder who that cowboy is?" Biden asked. "Where were you?" Powell ribbed Biden when he pulled up beside him. "I kept looking in the mirror and I didn't see you." Before they raced each other, Powell added, "Try to keep up as best you can, Mr. Vice President."

The Secret Service was already on edge because Biden was speeding around the facility, Leno told NBC's Today, recalling the moment. And then "Colin Powell pulls up in his Corvette, and they really start trash-talking each other, and they both peel out, and the Secret Service was, um, well, upset with me."

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Most of the show was about Biden and his car, a wedding gift from his father. You can watch the part up to Powell's arrival below.

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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.