Peak performance
Posted by Sam Philip at 2:00PM on Friday 25 July, 2008 6 Comments
I'm scrabbling for grip on the very edge of a Pikes Peak hairpin, a 1000-foot cliff just inches from my right front wheel. I'd feel like a driving hero, but in truth I'm doing about eight mph. I'm in a hired Chevy 4x4. And it's not even race day on Pikes Peak.
See, we're out in Colorado with Monster Tajima, Pikes Peak legend and all-round good bloke, covering his attempt to break 10 minutes on the hillclimb.
You'll be able to read all about Monster and his magnificent Suzuki in an upcoming edition of Top Gear magazine, but for now I just wanted to give you an idea of just how scary the course is.
Really, really scary. You've probably seen the legendary Ari Vatanen video on Youtube (if you haven't, google it now. It's far more exciting than this nonsense) but even that doesn't convey how bloody vertical some bits of the hillclimb are.
On the upper section, the road - which alternates between dirt and tarmac, between slight grip and no grip at all - has literally been chopped into the face of the mountain. There's a corner called 'Bottomless Pit', and it's hardly an exaggeration.
Crawling up the hill at single-figure speeds is worrying enough - there are no barriers to save you from the gaping chasms, no nets to break your fall - but Monster will soon be taking on this section at 100mph-plus. I have literally no idea how.
In my defence, part of the reason for our slow ascent isn't my fault. There's just no air up here: the Chevy's V6, which was pulling at least reasonably well at low altitudes, has been sucked of all its power. The top of Pikes Peak is a mile above the start line, and racers reckon the lack of oxygen up here chops engine power by about a third.
It also makes it bloody difficult to breathe. Photographer Byrne jumps out of the car to take a couple of shots, and when he gets back in, he's panting. I'm about to admonish him for being unfit when I realise I haven't got enough breath to speak. Some of the racers have oxygen pumped into the cockpit of their cars. Most just hope they can get enough air into their bodies to see straight at the top.
Despite all this, though, Pikes Peak is an incredible road. One of the best in the world, I reckon. And the best bit is that you can drive it too - apart from race day, the Pikes Peak course is simply a toll road running through a national forest.
Pay a few dollars and go and drive it. Do it. In any car, no matter how battered and wheezy. Just please, please don't fall off.
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6 Comments for "Peak performance"
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Looking forward to reading the feature. Oh, and well done for mentioning the Ari Vatinen video, which surely has to be a contender for greatest automobile video on the internet!
That video of Ari Vatanen would actually make you ill it's so amazing fast and the drops are so huge. What's with all the mad aero kits on those Pikes Peak? Monster Tajima's car looks like some German tuners have gone berserk in a faszination kind of way! Is it because the air is so thin that they need such huge wings?
The guy WOULD be japanese, wouldn't he? The Japanese are fanatical of this kind of motorsport and call it 'Touge battling'. There's even an animation series dedicated to it.
Make sure you also do Mt Evans - just as glorious, paved (a relative term, I assure you) to 14,125 feet.
And to think that this was started and created by an American.
One of the last races left in the world with a true 'unlimited' class. No restrictions on engine size, type, aerodynamic tricks etc. The race *begins* at an altitude of 2,800m, high enough to give you altitude sickness (ask me how, I know!), and goes all the way to 4,300m.