[Keith Seymore]

I loved the time I spent at Pikes Peak.

We did a lot of engine calibration work going up the Hill (powertrain guys) and brake development going down the Hill (me). We would wave at each other as we would pass half way.

You would see all the major auto manufacturers there, with their vehicles all camo'd up, doing various tests. We even saw Rolls Royce there, in case you ever want to take your Rolls all the way to the top (they used Suburbans as chase vehicles).

I loved the history there, and the GM garage in Manitou Springs was especially laid back. We would drive there from Phoenix so often my family would come along. The data input ladies would keep an eye on my young son in the garage while I made passes up and down the Hill (I can't imagine that happening these days).

The roadway has a lot of excavation work to help with water runoff, including little ditches on either side. Those racers would actually hook their inside front tire into the ditch and use it to swing themselves around the turn, just like you or I would grab a post and swing around it. No guardrails either.

K

[Keith Seymore]

Originally Posted by Keith Seymore

No guardrails either.

When we were doing development for the S10 chassis postal vehicle we had one test car LITERALLY blow off the top of the hill. Big gust of wind came up and blew it off the roadway. It tumbled only a short distance before being stopped by a boulder; otherwise it would have been a long (long) ways down.

Truck was totaled (no biggie, plenty more where that came from) but fortunately the brake engineer driving it was ok.

K

[Keith Seymore]

Two more and then I'll quit:

It's 14,110 ft at the top. Not only does the altitude wreak havoc on an engine's ability to make horsepower, it wreaks havoc on a person's ability to make personpower.

A lot of people get light headed from the thinner air. We drove to the top one time and my boss (a smoker) hopped out of the car. He made it about half way to the visitor center and promptly passed out.

One of the things the powertrain guys would do (not us, of course) is follow a newbie to the top and then park as far away from them as possible. When the new guy got out of the car they'd yell "FIRE!" and then laugh as the guy would start running across the parking lot carrying the fire extinguisher, running slower, then s l o w e r, then s l o w e r....

K