Some Nice Shots Of Last Years PPIHC

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A Little La Carrera Fun

I sure regret not having been able to compete in last years Pikes Peak International Hill Climb but fortunately one thing I will never regret is the great friends I have been blessed with as a result of La Carrera Panamericana and already some other competitors from the PPIHC that have been so helpful even before we meet and there are many.

Personally, besides all the friends that form a racing community and a bond of sorts (and dont forget those awesome race fans) another very important reason to take part in PPIHC is two fold. One is simply the excitement and significance of being part of the historical value os this race. Secondly is simply because I'm a racer that loves an exciting and challenging race and if you can think of race more exciting than this one I sure would like to hear about it.

One thing I really enjoy about this specific race is that all the vintage cars run against each other no matter if they have a 6 cylinder, a big V-8 or even a bigger V-8. At the end of the day the last thing I want to hear is "I would have won but John Smith had a bigger motor than me." The truth is, in the good ole days of the PPIHC drivers "run what they brung" with every one of them doing every thing in their power (and budget) to build what they thought would run the best.

It's very important to remember that the car isn't worth a plug nickle if it isn't driven by a great driver. Pikes Peak by its self can be very intimidating and unforgiving and with so little margin for error, no guard rails and the Devil himself trying to take you back down the hill the wrong way, it really doesn't matter what size engine you have.

I cant wait to test and then race the mountain because this race is not about beating any other driver and God knows it sure as hell isn't about beating the mountain... It's all about the experience, the friendship, the camaraderie and the love of racing.

That said, I hope to hell I kick Doug Mockett's butt and after this years PPIHC is over I am hoping this photo will reassemble how Doug felt with me chasing him up the hill. LOL. (Anyone who doesn't know Doug, don't worry about the abuse. Doug is an exceptional gentleman racer with a great sense of humor and I am delighted to call him my friend.)

A good video of La Carrera cars at Pikes Peak

Here is some good footage of the Vintage/La Carrera cars attacking Pikes Peak. Looks like Kevin's Subaru was attacking the dirt like a pro.

Even MORE PPIHC Photos

My good friends over at ARTEMIS IMAGES invited me to post some more awesome photos. They also said they have put up almost 3000 images from this years race and practices and are in the process of getting the database updated with specific information on each car, bike and driver. And they also said, "We look forward to seeing more vintage racers next year." THANKS AGAIN ARTEMIS IMAGES! In case any of you haven't checked out their prices, I don't recall seeing such a great bargain.








Driver of the #145 1949 Cadillac Sedanette known as “Blena Azul” or blue whale, John Daniels, gets a kiss from his wife(?) after completing his rookie run in the newly inaugurated Vintage class at the Hill Climb. John and co-driver Bob Youngdahl, finished 6th in class with a time of 15:21.600. This Cady was designed by Carl Wells and was ‘rebuilt’ from the ground up for racing in Mexico. Competing in the La Carrera Panamericana three times so far reaching a top speed of almost 170mph. This image is part of the Anna Chevarria photographic collection.

A Fitting Video

Thanks to Kevin Jones I have a great video to share. What I love about this video is the La Carerra cars in the beginning and how it leads into racing in the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb. And after you are done watching that one CLICK HERE to watch Kevin's latest in-car video.

C.J. "Chip Johns" Cowboy Up

Thank you to John Coyle at CarDomain for the photos.


Yes sir C.J. "Chip" Johns gets around and if you think he looks unable to keep up with the younger crowd then think again. Chip raced with us in last years La Carrera and he and his entire crew were a lot of fun not to mention a wealth of knowledge due to their veteran status in La Carrera. In a previous post I wrote not only about Chip but also about some of his escapades. If they were not interesting enough I would like to remind those who may have forgotten or didn't know, just six short months ago Chip was hanging out at his cattle ranch down in New Mexico and in the process was directly in the path of a cattle stampede! I kid you not! And in the process he was beaten up pretty good. In Chip's own words he said, "I got stomped by several of my darling cows a week ago Friday. Broke the damn leg in 4 or 5 places crushed the knee cap etc. Am having some reasonably serious surgery tomorrow morning and expect to be in the hospital until wed or so. Then "only three months" on crutch's." It's hard to keep a good man down.

The next thing I know I am looking at his face standing on the top of Pikes Peak having a cold one! Anyone who has ever seen the inside of Chip's beautiful ranch house will know that rock sitting on the front of his car will find a spectacular resting place along with countless other keepsakes.

Thanks Artemis Images!

The guys over at Artemis Images just notified me that they have been working over-time to get these photos up for us to look at. They apologized for taking so long and said it had to do with some damn mountain. "The mountain can be tricky, as there is very limited connectivity and it has been terrible." These guys run a first class operation with some great photos so be sure and contact them to order yours. That mountain didn't stop them from getting some awesome shots.









First Place; Doug Mockett and Angelica Fuentes. (La Carrera Veterans)



Second Place; Keith Davidson 1963 Falcon




Third Place; Joel Jantzen 1965 Mustang




Fourth Place; Mike Jones and Doug Coffey 1966 Mustang




Fifth Place; Jess Neal 71 Plymouth




Sixth Place; David Daniels 49 Cadillac




Seventh Place; Douglas Allen 65 Mustang





Eighth Place; David Cooper 51 Chrysler




Ninth Place; Jim Linton 69 Mustang




Tenth Place; Chip Johns 64 Falcon (La Carrera Veteran)




Eleventh Place; Todd Landon and "Geezer" Stewart 67 Mustang




Twelevth Place; Ralph Carungi and Bill Richert 54 Lincoln (La Carrera Veterans)
Coincidentaly Ralph and Bill finished 12th in last years La Carrera Panamericana.




Thirteenth Place; Richard Morrison and Richard Hamlin 58 Mercedes (La Carrera Veterans)




Fourteenth Place; Dean Smith and Ashley Akey 61 Chrysler (La Carrera Veteran)




Fifthteenth Place; Christopher Salyer and Carlile Wiley 54 Corvette (La Carrera Veterans)


The only car that had a DNF was the fast and beautiful 66 Mustang owned by Bob Hill. Sadly Bob crashed near the starting line which resulted in a flat tire and stuck on a bail of hay. Unfortunatly fast and beautiful dosen't win races.

Not Until The Fat Lady Sings

Talk about an exciting finish! While I was keeping an eye on the overall results it appeared that Marty Roestenburg, New Zealand's famous rally champion of some 25 years who was kicking some butt in the final stage of the Open Division was about to take away another position from Kevin. But like that old saying goes... Not until the fat lady sings as Roestenbug will have to walk back to New Zealand with a big DNF on the final seconds of the race.