Cycle News

Cycle News Issue 27 July 11, 2017

Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles

Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/847300

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FEATURE 2017 PIKES PEAK INTERNATIONAL HILL CLIMB P132 race morning, cutting any form of specta- tor line that was in our way. The morning of any race is a little tense, a little ner- vous, but there's always a tangible buzz in the air. Yet it's different at Pikes Peak. It's like we're all just motorsport gypsies, some with million dollar machines and others you'd pick up for a grand off Craigslist. We don't race each other but the mountain. And we all want that cold beer that's waiting for us at the Summit. It all happened so fast. Chris' HMC fac- tory KTM technician Uli, my tech Nate and Tom Moen from KTM North America got the bikes warmed up, Oscar had the Pirelli SC1 slick tires ready and after a quick race morning brief, we were sitting in the Ducati Hot Grid. Compared to last year, however, I felt great. No nerves, no worries, I was totally calm. A few hits of the oxygen canister every couple of minutes, and any nerves that would rise in my gut were quickly quashed. The only hint that nerves were getting to me was I had to pee every 10 minutes. But before I knew it, Bruno Langlois had his helmet on and was firing up his Kawa- saki. That meant I was next. Bruno and his green weapon roared off into the abyss, and it was time for me to go. It's amazing the feeling you get when you know things are working as they should. Within three corners of the green light, the Pirellis had worn in, the bike was Cliff Racer II — The Return to Pikes Peak Racing Pikes Peak is one thing; going there for revenge is quite another. Cole Kirkpatrick tells the story of this year's race in this epic short film as Rennie heads back to the mountain to confront some of his demons. Your 2017 top three from left: Scaysbrook, Fillmore and Langlois.

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