Postponed by wildfires that ravaged Colorado in early July, the annual Pikes Peak Hillclimb will take place this Sunday on the famed mountain outside of Colorado Springs. Early buzz for the 90th running of this famed "Race to the Clouds" – and the first to be contested on a fully-paved venue — centered on some very potent electric-powered entries. However, there will be no shortage of serious players in the other 15 categories, including the anything-goes Unlimited Division. One of the favorites to bring the absolute record back to America is a Lola-based entry owned by Leonard Arnold and driven by Paul Dallenbach, a 3-time overall winner of the event.
Dallenbach Racing’s mid-engines ultracar carries a 442 cu-in methanol-burning Chevy V8 fitted with a Gale Banks Twin-Turbo force-feeding system that bumps output figures to 1,400 horsepower and 1,301 lb-ft of torque – both numbers roughly 100 more than those developed by the 2011 engine. Early testing showed the new car to be significantly faster in a straight line as well as even quicker through corners. That should be good news for Dallenbach as he attempts to shatter the 9 minute 51.278 second mark set in 2011 by Japan’s Nobuhiro "Monster" Tajima in a Suzuki racer.
