— The Pikes Peak International Hill Climb rich with racing tradition —
Can you imagine racing up a mountain that has 1,000 foot drop-offs? That's exactly what daring drivers have been doing since 1916. That was the year mining magnate Spencer Penrose announced the first Pikes Peak National Hill Climbing Contest to publicize his new mountain auto highway. The first sinner, Rea Lentz, sped to the summit in 20 minutes and 55.6 seconds. The Hill Climb is the second oldest race in the United States behind only the Indianapolis 500.Many of the races champions have come from the Unser family. Louis Unser, the "Old Man of the Mountain," raced in 36 Hill Climbs. His last race was at the ripe age of 71. Bobby Unser claims the most victories with 13 Hill Climb records. In all, eleven Unsers from three generations have challenged Pikes Peak.All drivers race against the clock over the treacherous 12 ½ mile course. They may face rain, fog or snow between the starting line at 9,390 feet in elevation and the checkered flag at the 14,110-foot summit. Drivers must also maneuver around 156 turns. Today, the fastest racers zip up the mountain in about ten minutes. That's approximately 25 minutes faster than the average traveler. Think about drivers racing 120 miles per hour as you enjoy your leisurely trip up the peak!HM Number | HMUU4 |
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Tags | |
Placed By | City of Colorado Springs |
Marker Condition | No reports yet |
Date Added | Sunday, September 14th, 2014 at 1:57am PDT -07:00 |
UTM (WGS84 Datum) | 13S E 493661 N 4302970 |
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Decimal Degrees | 38.87556667, -105.07306667 |
Degrees and Decimal Minutes | N 38° 52.534', W 105° 4.384' |
Degrees, Minutes and Seconds | 38° 52' 32.04" N, 105° 4' 23.04" W |
Driving Directions | Google Maps |
Area Code(s) | 719, 303 |
Closest Postal Address | At or near 9060-9114 Pikes Peak Toll Rd, Woodland Park CO 80863, US |
Alternative Maps | Google Maps, MapQuest, Bing Maps, Yahoo Maps, MSR Maps, OpenCycleMap, MyTopo Maps, OpenStreetMap |
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