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Updated with final results - posted by @hturnerfamily
Romain Dumas recovers from early deficit to win fifth Hill Climb title
https://gazette.com/pikes-peak-hill...cle_7ad23b5a-31aa-11ef-952a-8b28b43f8524.html
June 23, 2024
Romain Dumas had to play catch up to win his fifth Broadmoor Pikes Peak International Hill Climb on Sunday.
After the first section of the 12.42-mile track up America’s Mountain, the French driver’s time stood well behind leader Christian Merli. A stop on the track forced him to pause for roughly 20 seconds, seriously slowing down Dumas’ pace.
But the 46-year-old more than made up for his slow, confusing start.
Dumas overcame an 18-second deficit after the first section to win the King of the Mountain title with a time of 8:53.533 in the Pikes Peak Open classification.
“(It was) the most stressful one so far,” Dumas said. “We recovered after that. It was tough, and it was a lot of stress.”
Dumas never panicked. Despite a hefty gap between his time and Merli’s, the driver kicked into another gear and quickly ate away at the deficit.
“It was a little bit of confusion,” Dumas said. “I said OK, I just need to push, and I should be OK.”
He shaved five seconds off at the halfway mark. Dumas then cut nine seconds off Merli’s pace after the third section, trailing Merli’s time by just four seconds.
And in the final push, Dumas delivered.
Dumas posted a lap 15 seconds faster than Merli’s to win the race by more than 11 seconds.
“I was calculating (how to win),” Dumas said. “I needed to really push to be in front of him. I made the run.”
Dumas is a staple in the PPIHC. He holds the course record, 7:57.148, which he set in 2018 while racing in the Unlimited class.
But that was his last win before Sunday.
Dumas had raced just twice since 2018 at the PPIHC. He won his classes (Time Attack and Pikes Peak Open) both times but finished second overall to Robin Shute.
“To win again, it’s been very nice,” Dumas said.
Shute didn’t compete in the 2024 race for unspecified reasons. While Shute had gotten the best of Dumas in their previous two duels at Pikes Peak, Dumas was bummed not to see his rival.
“We respect each other a lot,” Dumas said. “It’s always very good (racing against Shute).”
| P | No | CLS | PIC | Name | LapTime | Speed | Section 1 | Section 2 | Section 3 | Section 4 | Chassis | Hometown |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 150 | WINNER: [FORD LIGHTNING] | 1 | Romain Dumas | 8:53.553 | 80.967 | 1:52.514 | 2:04.882 | 2:28.009 | 2:28.148 | 2024 Ford F‑150 Lightning SuperTruck | Arzier ‑ Switzerland |
| 2 | 313 | Unlimited | 1 | Christian Merli R | 9:04.454 | 79.346 | 1:34.550 | 2:09.264 | 2:37.620 | 2:43.020 | 2024 Wolf Aurobay GB08 2.0 HP | Fiavé ‑ Italy |
| 3 | 198 | Exhibition | 1 | Dani Sordo R | 9:30.852 | 75.676 | 1:41.238 | 2:16.761 | 2:44.892 | 2:47.961 | 2025 Hyundai Ioniq 5 N TA Spec | Torrelavega ‑ Spain |
| 4 | 23 | Open Wheel | 1 | Cole Powelson | 9:33.222 | 75.363 | 1:42.570 | 2:17.857 | 2:45.601 | 2:47.194 | 2021 Sierra Alpha | Cottonwood Heights UT ‑ USA |
|
| 25 | Unlimited | 2 | Don Wickstrum | 9:40.512 | 74.417 | 1:41.246 | 2:18.188 | 2:46.483 | 2:54.595 | 2016 Axel Riley Ave LMP3 | Monroe WI ‑ USA |
| 6 | 17 | Pikes Peak Open | 2 | Jimmy Ford | 9:40.660 | 74.398 | 1:41.634 | 2:16.995 | 2:49.617 | 2:52.414 | 2017 Ford Mustang | Georgetown CO ‑ USA |
| 7 | 911 | Time Attack 1 | 1 | David Donohue | 9:49.429 | 73.291 | 1:41.837 | 2:22.974 | 2:52.611 | 2:52.007 | 2014 Porsche 911 Turbo R | West Chester PA ‑ USA |
| 8 | 49 | Exhibition | 2 | Randy Pobst | 9:55.551 | 72.538 | 1:47.504 | 2:23.171 | 2:48.705 | 2:56.171 | 2025 Hyundai Ioniq 5 N TA Spec | Gainesville GA ‑ USA |
| 9 | 35 | Unlimited | 3 | Duncan Cowper | 10:03.973 | 71.526 | 1:49.001 | 2:25.947 | 2:52.279 | 2:56.746 | 1998 Dax Pikes Peak Cowper Special | Bishopsstortford ‑ United Kingdom |
| 10 | 8 | Unlimited | 4 | Henry Hill | 10:07.787 | 71.078 | 1:45.847 | 2:24.590 | 2:55.022 | 3:02.328 | 2021 Wolf GB08 F1 | Cedar City UT ‑ USA |
| 11 | 65 | Open Wheel | 2 | Rodney O'Maley | 10:15.446 | 70.193 | 1:47.908 | 2:25.041 | 3:01.185 | 3:01.312 | 2018 O'Maley Special Spec VIII | Colorado Springs CO ‑ USA |
| 12 | 69 | Open Wheel | 3 | Yuri Kouznetsov | 10:19.245 | 69.762 | 1:49.011 | 2:26.697 | 2:59.792 | 3:03.745 | 2014 Apexocet | Manvel TX ‑ USA |
| 13 | 72 | Unlimited | 5 | Dominick Tapia R | 10:20.479 | 69.624 | 1:46.278 | 2:24.783 | 3:04.567 | 3:04.851 | 2008 Mitsubishi Evo X | Colorado Springs CO ‑ USA |
| 14 | 22 | Pikes Peak GT4 Trophy by Yokohama | 1 | Laura Hayes | 10:20.487 | 69.623 | 1:51.365 | 2:28.108 | 2:58.648 | 3:02.366 | 2022 Toyota Supra GT4 | Greenville SC ‑ USA |
| 15 | 77 | Pikes Peak GT4 Trophy by Yokohama | 2 | Nuno Caetano | 10:23.034 | 69.338 | 1:49.681 | 2:28.400 | 3:04.280 | 3:00.673 | 2023 Porsche 718 GT4 RS Clubsport | Lisbon ‑ Portugal |
| 16 | 29 | Unlimited | 6 | Brett Dickie | 10:27.940 | 68.796 | 1:56.354 | 2:29.167 | 2:58.535 | 3:03.884 | 2001 Honda S2000 | Melbourne ‑ Australia |
| 17 | 178 | Unlimited | 7 | Tom Tang R | 10:31.372 |
Romain Dumas recovers from early deficit to win fifth Hill Climb title
https://gazette.com/pikes-peak-hill...cle_7ad23b5a-31aa-11ef-952a-8b28b43f8524.html
June 23, 2024
Romain Dumas had to play catch up to win his fifth Broadmoor Pikes Peak International Hill Climb on Sunday.
After the first section of the 12.42-mile track up America’s Mountain, the French driver’s time stood well behind leader Christian Merli. A stop on the track forced him to pause for roughly 20 seconds, seriously slowing down Dumas’ pace.
But the 46-year-old more than made up for his slow, confusing start.
Dumas overcame an 18-second deficit after the first section to win the King of the Mountain title with a time of 8:53.533 in the Pikes Peak Open classification.
“(It was) the most stressful one so far,” Dumas said. “We recovered after that. It was tough, and it was a lot of stress.”
Dumas never panicked. Despite a hefty gap between his time and Merli’s, the driver kicked into another gear and quickly ate away at the deficit.
“It was a little bit of confusion,” Dumas said. “I said OK, I just need to push, and I should be OK.”
He shaved five seconds off at the halfway mark. Dumas then cut nine seconds off Merli’s pace after the third section, trailing Merli’s time by just four seconds.
And in the final push, Dumas delivered.
Dumas posted a lap 15 seconds faster than Merli’s to win the race by more than 11 seconds.
“I was calculating (how to win),” Dumas said. “I needed to really push to be in front of him. I made the run.”
Dumas is a staple in the PPIHC. He holds the course record, 7:57.148, which he set in 2018 while racing in the Unlimited class.
But that was his last win before Sunday.
Dumas had raced just twice since 2018 at the PPIHC. He won his classes (Time Attack and Pikes Peak Open) both times but finished second overall to Robin Shute.
“To win again, it’s been very nice,” Dumas said.
Shute didn’t compete in the 2024 race for unspecified reasons. While Shute had gotten the best of Dumas in their previous two duels at Pikes Peak, Dumas was bummed not to see his rival.
“We respect each other a lot,” Dumas said. “It’s always very good (racing against Shute).”
