85th
Annual PPIHC
Pikes Peak International Hill Climb
Colorado Springs, CO
July 21, 2007
|
|
Michael Ell
& Steven Tutt are King of the Mountain
| Pikes
Peak International
Hill Climb - Links |
|
| |
|
Colorado Springs, CO - The 85th running
of the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb was held this
past Saturday on July 21st, which is the second oldest
motorsports event in the United States. Pikes Peak International
Hill Climb attracts nearly 150 race entries a year with
vehicles ranging from 250cc motorcycles, 450cc ATVs, Trophy
Trucks, and all the way up to big rig trucks. The “Race
to the Clouds” began in 1916, and it has captured
the hearts of racers around the world that compete in
the event annually, which is like no other race course
in the world.
| PPIHC
Race Quick Facts |
| Race
Length: |
12.42 Miles |
| Track Width: |
20 - 50 Feet |
| Surface: |
Gravel/Asphalt |
| Start Elevation: |
9,402 Feet |
| Finish Elevation: |
14,110 Feet |
| Elevation Gain: |
4,708 Feet |
| Average Grade: |
7% |
| Turns: |
156 |
|
Pikes Peak International Hill Climb race begins at a staggering
9,400 feet and the finish line is at the top of the mountain
at 14,110 feet. The race to the top of the mountain covers
12.4 miles and drivers face 156 turns on the path to the
clouds. The road narrows down to only 20 feet wide in
sections, and it goes from pavement to gravel at the top
of the mountain, and one false move along the way could
send a racer tumbling thousands of feet down the mountain
with a one drop-off over 6,000 feet.
The annual pilgrimage to Pikes Peak for ATV racers
didn’t begin till 1992 when Dirt Wheels Magazine’s
Dennis Cox led the charge up the mountain on a Trinity
Racing Banshee and secured the first ever ATV PPIHC
Crown in an ATV exhibition class. In its freshman year,
the event only attracted 4 racers, but today the event
attracts nearly 30 ATV racers, and there are two ATV
classes (450cc and 500cc). The 500 Class is the Big
Bore Class, which is dominated by the Yamaha Banshee,
and the 450 Class is designed for the new era of 450cc
4 stroke ATVs.
|
|
| Pikes
Peak Hill climb attracts a large crowd of spectators
that cover the mountain side like a heard of goats
to catch a glimpse of the racing action |
The ATV entry list may not compare to other national
events, but it partly due to the incredible challenge
of preparing to start a race at over 9,000 feet with
the finish line at over 14,000 and the incredible risk
along the way to the top of flying off the side of the
mountain. The elevation change alone robs engines of
30% of their power at the summit, which plays havoc
on carbureted engines, but with the increased production
of fuel injected ATVs, the event may begin to attract
even more ATV racers to attempt and conquer the mountain.
For the 85th PPIHC running, the mountain belonged to
Michael Ell (500 Class) and Steven Tutt (450 Class)
as they each took home the win in their respective division
with Michael Ell and his Yamaha Banshee recorded the
fastest time to the top with a 12:25.599. Ell finished
just 4 seconds ahead of Mike Tollett on his Suzuki QuadRacer
500. Rounding the top three in the 500 Class was Yoshimune
Shirai also on a Yamaha Banshee.
|
|
|
#131 Michael Ell
|
#7 Steven Tutt
|
Steven Tutt and his Area 51 Honda 450R not only won
the 450 Class by 58 seconds over Craig Kilday in second
place, he also broke the 450 Class record by over one
minute with a 12:55.347. It was an incredible accomplishment
for Steven Tutt as this was also his first year of racing
at Pikes Peak, and his time was good enough to have
finished in the top ten of the 500 Class. Kilday’s
second place time of 13:52.986 also broke the existing
450 Class record, and he was followed by Victoria Behmer
also breaking the old record with a 13:54.20, which
earned him the final Podium spot.
|
