Technical insight meets driving passion — let’s dive into the wild, breath-less ascent of what many call “The Race to the Clouds.”
magine you’re strapped into a purpose-built machine, the engine already humming, its output adjusted for the altitude that lies ahead. The air is thin, the sky an uncommonly deep blue, the mountain rising ahead of you in sweeping green forests that quickly give way to barren rock and switchbacks carved into the steep slopes. The road is narrow, unforgiving — on one side sheer drop-offs, on the other rock walls that echo every gear change, every intake roar. You launch from the start line, acceleration propelling you towards the summit at 14,115 ft, at speeds touching 200 km/h, with 156 turn-after-turn demanding razor-sharp precision. Welcome to the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb (PPIHC).
The race began in 1916, when entrepreneur Spencer Penrose converted an old carriage road up Pikes Peak into what would become the Pikes Peak Highway and launched a daring test of man-and-machine. From that first climb, which crowned Rea Lentz as winner in roughly 20 minutes, the event grew in myth, in danger, in scope. Over the years the surface changed—from gravel to fully paved by 2011—yet the mountain itself resisted taming.
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There are so many memorable chapters here. For example:– In the mid-1980s, European rally stars like Michèle Mouton and Walter Röhrl made their mark, showing that the mountain wasn’t just for American hot-rods. In 2013, the master of rally, Sébastien Loeb, smashed records driving a specially built Peugeot 208 T16, taking the time down to 8m 13s. Then, in 2018, came the electric shock: Romain Dumas in the Volkswagen ID R electrified the record books, going 7m 57.148s to the summit. Each of these moments rewrote what was possible, redefining the mountain’s very character.
The climb is 12.42 miles (≈ 20 km) long, with 156 turns and an elevation gain of about 4,720 ft (≈ 1,432 m) from the start to the finish at 14,115 ft. At altitude, every engine loses power. As some engineers point out, internal-combustion cars can lose as much as ~30 % of output because of thinner air.
The surface transition from gravel to asphalt in 2011 also changed the dynamics—you no longer had loose gravel launching you off cliff edges, but instead ultra-fast tarmac where precision is everything. Designing a car for Pikes Peak means mastering aero, cooling (because the altitude reduces air density and hence cooling effectiveness), engine breathing, turbo sizing, and chassis setup that can handle steep climbs, switchbacks and high speeds in thin air.
For example, Bentley threw down a twin-turbo V8 tuned specifically for altitude. In short: this isn’t a normal circuit. It doesn’t even feel like one. It’s a vertical sprint where both driver and machine are pushed to the limit.
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Today, PPIHC continues attracting world-class talent, not only from auto racing but from electric mobility, rally, and prototype racing. The event has multiple divisions—including Unlimited, Open Wheel, Time Attack—so you’ll see everything from production cars to bespoke rockets.
The fully paved route means the speeds are higher than ever; machines and drivers are reaching the summit faster, and the challenge has shifted from “can you survive the gravel chaos” to “can you extract every millisecond at 14,000 ft.” Spectators attend from early dawn (some viewing points open before 3 a.m.) and the atmosphere mixes the serenity of mountain morning with mechanical aggression.
Even as climate, technology and regulations evolve, the mountain continues to impose its own rules: altitude, wind, temperature swings, thin air—all still potent adversaries.
Why does this climb remain legendary? Because it is fundamentally unlike almost every other race.
There are no identical lap repeats; there are no long pit strategies; there is simply one driver, one car, one mountain, one mission: go up, as fast as possible, against nature and gravity. The elevation, the switchbacks, the thin air—they all conspire to make this a pure test of will and engineering. The heroes who have conquered it—Loeb, Dumas, Mouton, Röhrl—did so not just by being fast, by being supreme at adapting and daring.
The Pikes Peak International Hill Climb is more than a race: it’s a rite of passage.And like any true legend, it reminds us that speed isn’t just about straight lines or circuits—it’s about climbing, battling gravity, chasing the clouds.
