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Pikes Peak Hill Climb
1980 Canepa

Second — 1981 Pikes Peak, Open Wheel Division

Chassis: Paul Newman
Team: Canepa Racing
Driver: Bruce Canepa
Engine: 3.0 liter flat-6 twin turbo porsche
Horsepower: 450
Weight: 1000 lbs

Fastest qualifier — 1981 Pikes Peak Hill Climb

In the early 1980’s the Pikes Peak Hill Climb was experiencing a renaissance. In the past the hill had been dominated by front engine sprint cars. The new sport of off-road racing was flourishing with high tech dune buggies, and it was only natural that they would want to challenge the hill. Bruce Canepa teamed up with fabricator Paul Newman to create a car that combined the best of the new off-road racecars with the best of a sprint car.

Powered by a normally aspirated Porsche 911 engine the car ran well but was hurt by a loss of power as it climbed into the thin air of the 14,110-foot summit.

The team inproved the car with a twin turbo Porsche 930 engine in 1981. Even with the extreme elevation change of the race, the turbo would keep horsepower constant all the way up the hill. The car ran flawlessly and Canepa qualified on the pole with a record time.

Crowd control is limited in a race that covers 12 miles of open road and would prove to be Canepa’s undoing. In the race, Canepa was on pace to win the event and set a new hill record when he rounded a turn to find a spectator standing right in front of him. He spun the car, missed the spectator and stalled the engine. Canepa was so far ahead that even after he restarted he was still able to finish second.

The old guard led by Bobby and Al Unser were not happy with the new generation of cars because it would make their cars obsolete, not to mention putting their sons Bobby Jr. and Al Jr. at an extreme disadvantage. Bobby Unser protested Canepa’s car every chance he got but was unsuccessful. In the winter of 1981 he convinced the organizers of the race to adopt the USAC championship car rules for engine capacity and vehicle weight effectively banning Canepa’s car from the race.

The Pikes Peak Hill Climb
Also known as the Race to the Clouds, the hill climb to the summit of Pikes Peak in Colorado is a distance of 12.42 miles has over 156 turns and climbs 4,721 feet from the start at Mile 7 to the summit. The elevation at the start is 9,402 feet and climbs to 14,110 feet at the finish. The first race was held in 1916 to promote the Pikes Peak Highway.