Car of the Week: 1969 Ford Torino Pikes Peak Hill Climb race car

[mongooz]

[OH YEA......BAAAAAABY!!!!]

Steve and Ethel Baker, of Warsaw, Ind., have had a secret for years, but are now ready to blow the cover off of it: They have been hiding a unique 1969 Ford Torino Pikes Peak Hill Climb race car. According to Steve, the car has been sitting undercover in its current location for more than a decade, but out of the public eye for even longer.

The Pikes Peak International Hill Climb (PPIHC), aka “The Race to the Clouds,” is an annual automobile hill climb to the summit of Pikes Peak in Colorado. The track measures 12.42 miles and has more than 156 turns on grades averaging 7.2%, climbing 4,720 ft. from the start at Mile 7 on Pikes Peak Highway, to the finish at 14,115 ft. The track once consisted of both gravel and paved sections, but as of August 2011, the road is fully paved; as a result, all current racing events now take place on asphalt from start to finish.

read more: https://www.oldcarsweekly.com/featu...69-ford-torino-pikes-peak-hill-climb-race-car

 

[tiger roach]

They should do a race where you have to go all the way up and then back down again. That would be terrifying.

 

[mongooz]

They should do a race where you have to go all the way up and then back down again. That would be terrifying.

all the way up in a car......then all the way back down on a motorcycle !!!

 

[Lerxst]

all the way up in a car......then all the way back down on a motorcycle !!!

Shame they banned motorcycles from competing after Dunne's fatal accident in 2019.

 

[Denverdave]

They should do a race where you have to go all the way up and then back down again. That would be terrifying.

They do actually, but it starts at the base of Pikes Peak in Manitou Springs. And it's a running race (like on foot). Athletes run from Manitou to the summit, then back down. Yes, they are insane. We live close enough now I will probably go watch the start this year (almost walking distance).

 

[tiger roach]

They do actually, but it starts at the base of Pikes Peak in Manitou Springs. And it's a running race (like on foot). Athletes run from Manitou to the summit, then back down. Yes, they are insane. We live close enough now I will probably go watch the start this year (almost walking distance).

Yeah, my knees hurt just picturing that...

 

[DinoMikeSr]

That’s a lot of car to Wrangle up there. I know there are many classes that race up there but that’s a lot of car.

 

[mongooz]

That’s a lot of car to Wrangle up there. I know there are many classes that race up there but that’s a lot of car.

yep, and back in the 60's that was a class, like these:

 

[Bob411]

Curios if the Cog train car slowly putt putting but in a straight line would make it up faster.

 

[mongooz]

Curios if the Cog train car slowly putt putting but in a straight line would make it up faster.

where the fun in that ??
and besides....there was never a cog train class

 

[Bob411]

where the fun in that ??
and besides....there was never a cog train class

I'm guessing the cars are faster.

How long does it take to reach the Summit? It takes 1 hour and 10 minutes to reach the summit, with 40 minutes on top and then 1 hour and 10 minutes back to the Depot. The round trip is approximately 3 hours.

Best time I see for the race is under 6 minutes but, they don't start at the bottom?

 

[mongooz]

I'm guessing the cars are faster.

How long does it take to reach the Summit? It takes 1 hour and 10 minutes to reach the summit, with 40 minutes on top and then 1 hour and 10 minutes back to the Depot. The round trip is approximately 3 hours.

Best time I see for the race is under 6 minutes but, they don't start at the bottom?

yes, it's an uphill race. always has been.

 

[Lerxst]

The audio is garbage but this gives you a sense of what it looks like to do the run in under 6 mins