In 2019, the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb announced the halting of its motorcycle classes, after the death of Carlin Dunne highlighted the high-speed perils of racing on the 156 turns of the all-asphalt course.
Completing a two-year review on including motorcycles back into the Pikes Peak racing program, the race organizers have concluded that bikes will indefinitely be absent from the Race to the Clouds going forward.
The future of motorcycles competing at the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb continues to be a precarious situation after this year’s death of Carlin Dunne.
As such, the Board of Directors for the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb recently convened and decided that for next year’s event, no motorcycle racing will take place as part of the hill climb.
In a press release, the race organization says that it needs to “gather data and analytics to review more thoroughly the impact on the overall event in the absence of this program.”
The future for motorcycles racing at Pikes Peak is under question, according to local reports about the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb.
The news comes from the Colorado Springs Gazette, which says that Executive Director Megan Leatham told the city and US Forest Service in an email after the crash that she thought the race would be the last for motorcycles on the mountain.
As one would expect, the discussion about the future for the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb, and whether motorcycles would continue at the event, is far from a definitive conclusion, but the possibility of the motorcycle race ending is very real.
This video of Rennie Scaysbrook (resident fast man at Cycle News) racing at the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb is insane and must be watched, as his Aprilia Tuono V4 1100 Factory summits in a time of 9:44.963.
This video showcases what it takes to set a new Heavyweight motorcycle record and the fastest time ever for a motorcycle at the iconic Race to the Clouds.
Be sure to watch all the way to the end though, because Rennie’s elation at finishing the race in record time is easily worth the price of admission.
Episode 18 of the Brap Talk podcast is now out for your two-wheeled audio pleasure, and this is another topic-packed show that runs the gamut of the motorcycling experience.
Before we get into the show’s details, it should be noted that this episode was recorded during the practice week of the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb.
So, we talk a bit about Carlin Dunne during the show, and are of course unaware of what would happen later that weekend. We deeply miss our friend Carlin, and plan to talk about his amazing life in our next podcast.
The 97th edition of the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb has finished for the motorcycle riders, and with it comes a new outright two-wheeled record at the iconic race.
Rennie Scaysbrook took the heavyweight class win, and along the way (we interviewed Rennie on the MOTR Podcast just a few weeks before the race), he pushed the outright motorcycle record at Pikes Peak to 9:44.963 on his Aprilia Tuono V4 1100 Factory.
In Episode 6 of the MOTR Podcast, I sit down with Rennie Scaysbrook, the road test editor at Cycle News magazine, and also one of this year’s competitors at the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb.
In this short show, Rennie and I discuss what it is like to ride on “America’s Mountain” and what goes into creating a successful Pikes Peak racing program.
Shot on location in the Pacific Northwest, we finally get to see the Ducati Streetfighter V4 in its natural element: rippin’ and tearin’ on the asphalt.
At the helm is Pikes Peak racer Carlin Dunne, who aims to take the Streetfighter V4 to the summit of Pikes Peak faster than any motorcyclist has ever gone before. That means a time of 9:45.624 or faster.
There are 156 turns between Carlin and this goal though, along with thousands of feet in elevation change. As the Santa Barbara native once told me, you don’t race your fellow competitors at the Pikes Peak – you race the mountain.
Episode 17 of the Brap Talk podcast is now out for your two-wheeled audio pleasure, and this is another topic-packed show that runs the gamut of the motorcycling experience.
As such, this show is full of highs and lows, and we start out with a conversation about a motorcycle that is near and dear to both our hearts, as the Ducati Streetfighter V4 prototype has finally broken cover. Ready to race at the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb, we speculate about what the production version could look like.
From there we talk about racing at the Bol d’Oregon – a six-hour endurance race outside of Portland, Oregon that is put on by the Sang-Froid Riding Club. An event we highly recommend, there is nothing more fun than riding a slow motorcycle fast.
When men name their motorcycles, it is usually with a feminine name. This is a tradition that dates back to early mariners, who were often away from their loved ones for incredibly long periods of time, and remembered their wives and girlfriends by naming ships after them.
It is an interesting tradition we do now though – this naming of motorcycles – especially as the horsepower figures have climbed higher and higher and the curb weight measurements have dwindled lower and lower.
Names like “Heartsbane” or “Widow’s Wail” would seem more appropriate for modern motorcycles, especially if you feel the night is dark and full of terrors.
So, when you consider the hours that Michael “Woolie” Woolaway has spent in his workshop slaving over the next iteration of his Pikes Peak race bike away from his loved ones while creates the ultimate motorcycle for the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb, the name “Beastie” seems far more appropriate than something like “Samantha” – our apologies to the Samantha’s in the crowd, of course.
Episode 16 of the Brap Talk podcast is now out for your two-wheeled audio pleasure, and this is another two-hour show to sooth your two-wheeled aches.
We start the show off when Shahin’s trip out into the Washington BDR trails, on his Ducati Multistrada 1200 Enduro. The Shah also got a chance to throw a leg over a Walt Siegl Ducati adventure bike, which made him giddy with delight.
Meanwhile, Jensen was busy at the Barber Motorsports Park, riding the 2020 BMW S1000RR superbike. Giving his thoughts on that new machine, and the general state of the liter-bike category, you won’t want to miss his review. Additionally, the “Yensen” score for bikes is progressing nicely, which leads to a fun conversation.