COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – Sixty-two drivers from seven nations are part of the opening lineup of competitors announced for the 98th running of the Broadmoor Pikes Peak International Hill Climb on June 28.
Drivers from the United States, France, Sweden, South Africa, Australia, Japan and the United Kingdom will be on hand at America’s Mountain for the Race to the Clouds, with additional competitors to be announced in the weeks to come.
The world’s toughest auto hill climb and second-oldest American motorsport race behind the Indianapolis 500, featuring a course with 156 turns over 12.42 miles to the summit of 14,115-ft. Pikes Peak, will feature a trio of accomplished drivers who have their sights set on winning.
Robin Shute, a native of the United Kingdom, will return after taking top honors in the Unlimited Division last year with a clocking of 9:12.476, the fastest time in the race. His win last year earned him the coveted King of the Mountain title and he is hoping to notch back-to-back triumphs.
Tommy Boileau, 26, will be entered in the tough Pikes Peak Open Division, where he took fourth place in 2019. He’ll be driving a 1967 Chevrolet Camaro this time as he attempts to take home a victory for his fans. He was the SCCA T4 Divisional Champion last year and was named Rookie of the Year at Pikes Peak.
Shawn Bassett will be driving a 1972 Datsun 240Z in the PPIHC Exhibition Division in his rookie appearance on the Peak. Bassett explained that he first laid eyes on the car he’ll race at Pikes Peak at a local race track.
“I was there with my prerunner [race truck] competing in a rallycross class,” he recalled. “I saw a little yellow Z on the nearby road course. I had to have one, and three days later, I was the proud owner of the cheapest possible Datsun from Miami Craigslist.
“I had always wanted to run the Pikes Peak Int’l Hill Climb. Being a longtime professional motorcycle racer, I thought it would happen on two wheels, not four,” he explains. “But I realized it was time to finally put to use all the fabrication and composite skills I’d learned over the years to give this beat-up car a purpose and make that dream a reality for me at the same time.”
Ten former Pikes Peak champions are on the first list of competitors announced by event organizers on Thursday. They include Shute, seven-time champion Jeff Zwart, 10-time winner Paul Dallenbach, who won last year’s crown in the Open Wheel Division, and veteran Layne Schranz.
Other former winners in the field are Raphael Astier, last year’s Time Attack 1 champion and record-setter David Donohue, the 2018 Time Attack 1 winner James Robinson and Fumio Nutahara, who won the Electric Modified title in 2012.
Two former Vintage Division champions are also looking to add wins in new divisions; two-time champion Ralf Christensson returns in the Pikes Peak Open Division and Chris Lennon moves to the Porsche Pikes Peak Trophy by Yokohama Division.