The Broadmoor Pikes Peak Cycling Hill Climb Gran Fondo and National Championship
Hundreds of cyclists will come to Colorado Springs to compete in the inaugural USA Cycling Hill Climb National Championships and Gran Fondo on Saturday morning, August 13, racing Pikes Peak's grueling course that ends at the summit of America's Mountain.
June 3rd, 2016, Colorado Springs - Cycling racing to the summit of Pikes Peak was renewed in 2010, and this year marks the 7th consecutive year for The Broadmoor Pikes Peak Cycling Hill Climb, an annual event of the Colorado Springs Sports Corporation, and the debut of the USA Hill Climb National Championship. The 2016 USA Cycling Hill Climb National Championships will engage elite athletes competing in Pro Categories and will not require athletes to pre-qualify for the event.
In addition to the timed and sanctioned competitive race, The Broadmoor Pikes Peak Cycling Hill Climb Gran Fondo events will be hosted concurrently as an opportunity for recreational riders to test their skills on the peak too.
National Hill Climb Championships
USA Cycling and the Colorado Springs Sports Corporation are proud to announce Pikes Peak - America's Mountain as the premier course for the 2016 USA Cycling Hill Climb National Championships set for Saturday, August 13.
This is a brand new event and the first ever cycling hill climb national championship to be hosted on Pikes Peak - America's Mountain. USA Cycling has named the Colorado Springs Sports Corporation as the primary organizing body to execute the inaugural event and both parties expect cycling's most elite national and international athletes to compete to challenge Pikes Peak - America's Mountain in 2016.
Colorado Springs Sports Corporation (The Sports Corp), a 501(c)3 non-profit professional event management company, owns and operates the annual Broadmoor Pikes Peak Cycling Hill Climb and was integrally involved in the organization of past Colorado Springs stages of the USA Pro Challenge among many other major events in Colorado Springs. The Sports Corp is thrilled to be selected to organize and execute the event as it complements the company's underlying mission of attracting high caliber events and increasing the economic development of Colorado Springs.
The inaugural USA Cycling Hill Climb National Championships is a USAC National Championship race. The difficult course outlined for the national championship contenders is the exact course of The Broadmoor Pikes Peak International Hill Climb (PPIHC) - America's second oldest auto race. Like the PPIHC, the USA Cycling National Championship will take stage on the 12.42 mile public toll-road boasting 156 turns and climbing 4,720 ft. from the 9,390 ft. start line at the mile 7 marker on the Pikes Peak Highway to the 14,115 ft. finish line at the mountain's summit - an average grade of 7%.
Colorado Springs, Olympic City USA, is the home of USA Cycling and the United States Olympic Committee. USA Cycling or USAC, is the national governing body for bicycle racing in the United States. It covers the disciplines of road, track, mountain bike, cyclo-cross, BMX, and collegiate racing.
At an elevation of 14,115 ft., Pikes Peak - America's Mountain is one of Colorado's 54 fourteeners, mountains that rise more than 14,000 feet (4,267.2 m) above sea level, and the highest summit of the southern Front Range of the Rocky Mountains of North America. The mountain is named in honor of American explorer Zebulon Pike and is a designated National Historic Landmark, making this event even more unique. Reportedly, the Pikes Peak Highway hosts 5.9 million visitors a year, making it the number one tourist attraction in the State of Colorado and the second most visited mountain in the world next to Mount Fuji.
Previous Broadmoor Pikes Peak Cycling Hill Climb competitors tamed the mountain with an impressive men's overall course record of 1:08:36 (LeRoy Popowski, Colorado Springs, CO) and women's course record of 1:28:46 (Suzanne Crespo, Golden, CO), both during the 2015 event.
The Sports Corp's President and CEO, Tom Osborne, says "the national championships are another opportunity to showcase our great sports community and bring people to town. We are excited to work with USA Cycling on this event and look forward to another successful and unique event on the Pikes Peak Highway."
Cyclists can register for the USAC Hill Climb National Championships here.
Gran Fondo
The Gran Fondo features non-competitive fun rides that give cyclists of all abilities a truly unique experience on Pikes Peak - America's Mountain. This race, held on Saturday, August 13, attracts the top cyclists and recreational cyclists from across the nation and around the world who dare to challenge Pikes Peak - America’s Mountain!
Competitors will ride in a fully supported event and have the following options:
Summit Gran Fondo - 12.42 miles/20km - 4,725 ft elevation gain
Glen Cove Gran Fondo - 5.5 miles/9km - 2,050 ft elevation gain
Halfway Picnic Grounds Gran Fondo - 2.2 miles/4km - 570 ft elevation gain
All participants will receive:
Food, Hydration, Bike and Medical Support Stops
Clothing transport to finish areas
Medals for the top 3 finishers for each distance
Electronic Time
All riders who make it to the summit within the time limit will receive a Summiteer medal. You do NOT need to purchase a USAC license for this event.
Riders can sign up for the event now at: PikesPeakCyclingHillClimb.org
Stage 1 - Le Perray-en-Yvelines
