[h=2]PPIHC: Dumas claims second Pikes Peak win[/h] Sunday, 26 June 2016


RACER Staff / Image courtesy of Norma Auto Concept








Fresh from his triumph last weekend at the 24 Hours of Le Mans as part of the overall winning Porsche trio, Romain Dumas claimed another win going solo in the 100th running of the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb.
Dumas' victory with his Unlimited class Norma M20 RD Limited – which was converted to four-wheel drive this year to improve its traction through the 156 turns that mark the road to the summit – went into the record books for the centennial race as the second-fastest run ever up "America's Mountain" in Colorado, at 8m51.445s. Sebastien Loeb's extraordinary run of 8m13.878s en route to victory with his factory Peugeot in 2013 remains the fastest for Pikes Peak's first century of competition, but the win enabled Dumas to one-up Loeb by making him the first two-time Pikes Peak winner from his country, as he had previously won in 2014.
Appropriately, 100 competitors assembled at the starting line: 67 cars and 33 bikes. Last year's overall champion Rhys Millen finished second overall to Dumas and again won the electric-powered class. Only one incident was reported, with local station KRDO reporting motorcyclist Joseph Connor Toner was hospitalized with unspecified injuries after suffering an accident during his run.

 

Links tying some racing history together:

see last post in thread

 

1985: Michelle Moutron drives an Audi quatro 4wd to overall win at Pikes Peak
learn more here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p10m0Jdk8tc

 

Acura onboard cam at Pikes Peak

North American Racing - Pikes Peak video: Acura TLX GT on-board

 

[h=2]Dumas confident of Pikes Peak chances with upgraded Norma[/h] Friday, 23 June 2017


By RACER staff / Image courtesy RD Limited

Romain Dumas is exuberant about his prospects for a repeat of his 2016 and 2014 victories in Sunday's 95th Pikes Peak International Hill Climb with his Norma prototype – and maybe a shot at the all-time speed record of 8m13.878s set by Sebastien Loeb and his Peugeot in 2013.
Following qualifying on the lower section of the course, in which he scored pole position, Romain Dumas continued his preparation for the "Race to the Clouds" with five runs on the middle section on Thursday and two runs on the top sector on Friday before the day was cut short due to fog.
The Frenchman has been fastest in every session thus far, an endorsement of the progress made to his Norma MXX RD Limited. Since last year, the car has been upgraded with an aggressive new aero package, including an all-new front splitter, as well as significant mechanical revisions. The all-wheel drive system incorporates a completely revised braking system with a switch to carbon and a new disc/caliper/pad package. Other work has focused on improving mechanical grip, while the car now rides on Michelin tiress. The four-cylinder 2.0l Honda will still power the French prototype, but has been augmented by a new turbo and intercooler.
"We feel good heading into the race. We made progress run after run, and day after day," said the two-time overall winner at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. "We’ve come a long way in a short amount of time. Like every year, we wish we could have more time to practice, but the team did a good job. On every level, we’ve made progress: the chassis and engine, top-end performance, and driver comfort."
As is typical with the unpredictable nature of Pikes Peak, certain external factors made their appearance for the final day of practice. Fog shortened the Friday running for competitors practicing on the top portion of the 12.42-mile road to the 14,110ft summit. And according to some predictions, the weather could be a factor in this 95th edition.
"Our last day of prep didn’t go as planned because of the fog that kept us from running," Dumas conceded. "That’s a big factor when it comes to such an important sector of the mountain road, and it’s a little glimpse of what we could see on Sunday. I had that bitter experience in 2012 and I hope we have good conditions for the race in order to show what our potential really is.
"Pikes Peak is a unique event. We try to prepare as best we can, but year after year, it’s a whole new adventure that is best experienced rather than told. Despite that, it’s up to us to write a new chapter in the history books."
The 95th edition of the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb will start Sunday at 8 a.m. local time. Dumas will make his run following the motorcycle classes. Also entered by the RD Limited is Laure Many, who will be taking part in the event for the first time in the Pikes Peak Open class (in which Dumas holds the record) with a Porsche 911 SC 3.0l Gr4. Laure will be the only woman driver to compete in 2017.
The race will be available via live stream on the organizer’s website: www.ppihc.com.

 

The video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fJg0vd95TDA




Dumas repeats at Pikes Peak

Sunday, 25 June 2017

Romain Dumas (above) has won the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb for the second straight year, and third time in his career. The Frenchman, a two-time overall winner at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, fell short in his quest for a new all-time record for the 12.42-mile run to the top of the 14,110ft summit of Pikes Peak, Colo., but easily took overall honors once again in his Norma MXX RD Limited prototype with a time of 9m05.672s. Watch his run below:


Dumas was attempting to best all-time record of 8m13.878s set by Sebastien Loeb and his Peugeot in 2013.
"Third one in four years but frustrating due to engine cutoffs early on my run," Dumas said. "We expected much better. The crew did great. Thanks to my guys and all of you for the support. It's a strange feeling but we should not forget the win.
Finishing second overall and winning the Open class was Pirelli World Challenge veteran Peter Cunningham, making his Pikes Peak debut in a RealTime Racing Acura TLX GT. Cunningham ran a 9m33.797s – a course record for the class – and took home the event's Rookie of the Year award six days before his 55th birthday.
Other class winners included Pikes Peak veteran Clint Vahsholtz, setting a 9m35.747s in Open Wheel; Rhys Millen (9m42.747s) in Time Attack 1; Trevor Stewart (10m18.325s) in Unlimited; and Honda engineer Nick Robinson (10m28.820s) driving a production all-wheel-drive Acura NSX in Time Attack 2.

Weather - including fog and hail - hit the summit around 2 p.m., forcing race officials to cut the 12.42-mile race in half for the final five racers.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nucMh-HMyFo
by Colon3l 5and3rs

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ke9svHItwEY
by 777 777

 

2017 drivers parade
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J1_7YMOxD98

 

Official video
Nick Robinson

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UMjjIjLPT5A