MONSTER IN HILL CLIMB

What's the Hill climb

Not so long after the birth of automotive industry, in 1897, the first hill climb event was held near Nice in France.
Hill climbing is one of the oldest forms of motorsport.

This competition where drivers run their cars up to the top of a mountain
attracts men and women of all ages because of its simplicity.
Hill climbing events are often held at beautiful locations where you can enjoy magnificent landscapes. The races are usually runned on public roads. These races have a unique and friendly atmosphere despite their toughness.
Though it is not popular in Japan, there are many events of this kind held in Europe or the USA and these events are very popular among the public.

The most famous hill climbing event in the world is Pikes Peak International Hill Climb, also known as the "Race to the Clouds", which is held on the scenic road of the Pikes Peak mountain in Colorado Springs, US.
This competition began in 1916 and gathered competitors from all over the world, and it has become the hill climb event which attracts most people.
It is also the second world oldest motorsport event after the Indy 500 which started in 1911.

Drivers run their cars for about 20km to the goal at 4300 m above the sea level.
The difference in height between the start and the finish line is over 1400 m.
Many internationally famous drivers including rally champions have challenged this peak.

The real rival of those challengers who recorded supreme time in spite of
tough weather conditions and q rough road might not be the other drivers or but the peak itself.

"Monster" Tajima's Passion

Pikes Peak International Hill Climb, held in Colorado, U.S.A, is the biggest and most famous hill climb event worldwide.
Drivers run their cars climbing to the finish line at 4300 m above the sea level. The course length is 19.87km and the vertical drop between start and goal is over 1400m.
This ultimate motor sport attracted "Monster" Tajima.
SUZUKI SPORT started challenging in Pikes Peak in 1989.
It has never been easy and we met a lot of problems on the way but our technology was sharpened and improved through those tough experiences in Pikes Peak.
We started challenging for the "Race to the Sky" in New Zealand in the late 1990's, when we thought that the performance of our car was good enough. "Monster" Tajima showed his overwhelming speed and toughness in both events. And the mountain where occurs the race even got the nickname of "Tajima's mountain"!

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26th July 2011, the finals of Pikes Peak international hill climb race was held, Monster Tajima “Team GoPro Monster Sport with BC" set world new record (9:51.278)!
He broke his old record 10 minutes barrier (10:01.407) by shortening 10 seconds, also achieved sixth consecutive overall wins.

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