Originally Posted by ldxar1

Since the point is that the Falcon can evade imperial ships and the boasting also contained claims such as "I've outrun imperial starships", the point is that the Falcon is fast AND manoeuvrable.

I don't think it's ever been established why the asteroid field on the far side of the Maw is there. It says in the Hutt Gambit - where the Kessel run is outlined - that the asteroid field, known as the Pit, is a large and sparse field of asteroids "encased inside the wispy arm of a nebula... [T]here was always the chance that when a pilot zigged to avoid one asteroid, he'd zag right into another' (90).

In Rebel Dawn it's suggested that Han flew faster through the Maw than he should have done as well - presumably again, shaving closer to the black holes than would be usual, thus also cutting the distance (p. 362-3).
On one occasion he was "sheering so close that the engines strained in protest" (363).

My theory regarding the relationship between speed and distance is confirmed in the book:
"Han's eyes narrowed. 'Hey, this is weird', he said. 'It says we actually shortened the *distance* we travelled, not just the time. Less than twelve parsecs!'" (Rebel Dawn p. 370)

Although it's apparently not the Pit but the Maw which is the problem: the cost in distance, and thus in fuel and time, increases the further one loops around the Maw to avoid the black holes (The Hutt Gambit p. 91).

The shorter the distance, the closer the ship has shaved black holes and asteroids. Thus, the boast is about the speed AND manoeuvrability of the Falcon - although Chewbacca apparently suspects that the boast is based on faulty measuring equipment on the Falcon, a suspicion Obi-Wan would probably have picked up through the Force.

Originally Posted by ToSeek

So you're telling me that smugglers hold carefully planned contests that happen at a particular time and a particular place and involve the actual transportation of illegal goods? How realistic is this? How long do you think it would take the authorities to figure this out? Why would they bother?

It's about as believable as trying to convince me that drug runners have a contest to see how fast they can get cocaine from Colombia to Florida, with the restriction that you have to use the exact same starting point, route, and ending point each time, plus you have to announce your attempt to independent parties so it can be properly timed.

It's not going to happen: these guys are businessmen, not recreationists. They're not going to waste time competing for anything other than their customers' money, and they're not going to risk their livelihood in such a pointless and risky way.

Originally Posted by bulletfoss

Of course it is realistic - clients may want to use the "best smuggler" in the galaxy. This race is something that allows a smuggler to charge more for his services, in a similar way to the recruitment methods used in the new Fast & Furious film.

George Lucas also said the following in the DVD extras: -
"in the Star Wars universe, traveling through hyperspace requires careful navigation to avoid stars, planets, asteroids, and other obstacles, and that since no long-distance journey can be made in a straight line, the "fastest" ship is the one that can plot the "most direct course", thereby traveling the least distance."

Originally Posted by stutefish

It is my personal policy that a) Lucas made an elementary astrophysics mistake in scripting that line of dialog the way he did; and b) any excuse--however specious--that redeems that line of dialogue and permits it to be interpreted--however tenuously--as a legitimate and impressive boast, is infinitely superior to the position that line of dialogue is irrevocably wrong as delivered in the movie.

Originally Posted by DonM435

Maybe everybody in that time and place says "parsecs" when they really mean "parsecs per standard day" or something like that. (That's assuming that they'd be speaking English so far away and long ago.) If a cop tells me that I was going sixteen miles over the speed limit, I'm not going to say "You're using a unit of distance as if it were a unit of time . . . you dummy!"

Originally Posted by Buttercup

Okay, confession time: I dated Han Solo.

He's prone to exaggeration and hyperbole. Handsome guy and a good kisser, but you've got to take 48% of anything Han says with the proverbial grain of salt. He talks and talks; likes to hear himself talk. Chewie frequently gets fed up, dons ear phones and listens to music to drown him out.

Why did we break up? I was abducted by a Norlo. Han's response? "Better her than me!" I found that out after being rescued (no one you know). Han wanted to reunite but no way.
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