“It’s what first got me into rally when I discovered the race as a teenager back in the ’80s. “Just like F1 has Monte Carlo, rally and hill climbs have Pikes Peak, with its own unique story and tradition,” he said. “Unfortunately, in the U.S., we only have NASCAR and drag racing as our staples.” “In the world of motorsports, rally is second only to Formula 1,” said Ken Block, a 54-year-old American rally driver.

It’s crazy.”Īs the hill climb celebrates its 100th running this weekend, it finds itself in a peculiar situation: a celebrated global race that remains a niche curiosity in the U.S., where hill climbs and rally racing - in which drivers set fast time trials on dirt, gravel and paved public roads - have never quite caught on at a mainstream level. “Then you meet people from Japan, Germany and France who absolutely idolize this place. “There are people who have lived here their whole lives - they even like motorsports - but if you mention the hill climb to them, they’ll say, ‘Oh, is that the thing where you run up the mountain?’” said Tommy Boileau, a 28-year-old Colorado Springs native who will drive in this year’s race. But for many people in the United States, and even some in its host city, Colorado Springs, the race is hardly known at all. Across the world, the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb is known as one of the most prestigious car races, a treacherous 12.4-mile sprint up one of the highest summits of the Rockies.

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