Jeff Zwart's Pikes Peak Diary – Race Day is never predictable

After a long week of practice and qualifying, race day was finally here. Driving up to the mountain in pitch dark, you could see the single summit light shining bright. When you see that light, you know that the top of the mountain is clear. There was huge back-up of cars all trying to get up the single-lane road to get to the starting line. When Sebastien Loeb ran here a few years ago it really reignited the event as a spectator destination.

Our team arrived at the pits and started unwrapping the car for the day. We were next to Rhys Millen, who had qualified fastest in his amazing electric car. Just down the road was another long-term competitor, Nobuhiro Tajima, in a spaceship-looking electric car. Across the road was Paul Dallenbach in his impressive winged open-wheeler. And quietly right next to us was David Donner in his basically stock Porsche Turbo-S, which was the fast qualifier in Time Attack 2. One thing I love about the eclectic nature of Pikes Peak is how diverse the cars are that compete in this event and our neighbors were proving that again.

I had qualified second, so I actually got to be the second car off the line. I had never started so far forward so I was really looking forward to having such a clean road to race on. Also being that Rhys was driving an electric car, there was no possibility of him dropping fluids on the course ahead of me.

The weather was perfect for the spectators and crews, but I was slightly concerned that it was getting too warm, too early in the morning. The expectations on a car are pretty phenomenal at this event. Climbing a mile into thin air and trying to deliver horsepower all the way to the top really tests the cooling system. The good news was that there had been very few delays during the motorcycle classes and we were now ready to go.

Pulling up to the line following Rhys and looking in my mirror and seeing Paul Dallenbach – two of my great friends who I have raced and worked with so many years – was truly a special moment.

Once Rhys left the line, I pulled up to take the green flag. The whole week of turns and conditions played over and over in my head. There was not much of a gap between Rhys and I when the flag was dropped. I always try to read the feedback in the first 4-5 turns to feel what the road conditions will give me. Race day temperatures are usually 30-40 degrees hotter than any of our early morning practices. Today was no different and right off the track felt a little greasy.

I pushed very hard up to the switchback section. The radio commentator had reported that I was 135mph through the picnic ground. Just beyond that in another section, I saw speeds of over 140mph. But now I was in the switchbacks where it’s a race from one hairpin to another.

In our class, there had been a couple quick cars and wanted to make sure that I could put enough time on them so if we had any problems near the summit we would still be covered. The David Rowe Mitsubishi had been quick all week and Justin Law had continued to improve in his flawless Jaguar; both of these teams were over from England and were putting on a good show.

As you crest over a small ridge aptly called Devil's Playground, I always breath a sigh of relief. From here to the summit it's fast and flowing and I know this section well. My temperatures had climbed quite a bit up through the switchbacks, so it was time to short shift a bit and just work on carrying speed. My oxygen bottle was empty and I needed to remind myself to breathe deep in the rarified air.

I crossed the finish line a little crossed up, trying to get the last horsepower out of this epic BBI Autosport-prepped car. I felt like we had a solid enough run to win, but you always have to wait and see how the other cars ran. Rhys welcomed me and we both described how slippery the course had been.

It was a good day for Porsche as both David and I had won our classes while former Indy car and sports car driver Dominic Dobson won the Rookie of the Year award for topping the Unlimited class. I tried to congratulate my team down below but without cell service I would have to wait for the drive down. One car after another arrived on the summit as the sky went from blue to black. Lightning started hitting everywhere around us and the rangers were warning everyone to get inside.

In mere minutes we went from perfect weather to a full hail/sleet/snowstorm. When the lightning subsided, we walked out of the summit building to find our cars deep in snow. The organizers had to make the difficult decision to shorten the race for the last of the competitors. We were a bit trapped at the top with all of us on racing slicks and 4 inches of snow around us. It was an epic scene and a somehow fitting finish to a wild week of competition.

Never was it clearer that we race this mountain and it is an ever-changing living organism. As snowball fights broke out and impromptu snowmen were built on rear wings, it was clear that we are all part of a racing family and Pikes Peak is completely unique in the world of racing. The road was plowed and we headed down to share success of just making it to the top – and for me my eighth class win.