wrap it up, put a bow on it and make it pretty

2025 Colorado Hill Climb racing season is a wrap. The 5th and final race of the year was Temple Canyon right out side of Canon City. I managed to break my old Motorcycle class record 3 times throughout the weekend and went even a couple seconds faster in the car. The road is one of the most fun bits of road I have ever driven. The 2025 season will be one I remember; Qualified P1 and won all the rounds in the Motorcycle class and took the Super Sprint championship with three wins and two 2nd places. Only the one mechanical issue with the rear end at the first round so I couldn't be more happy. I am really truly over the moon that I was able to do this with the Hayabusa Homebrew car. Built it from scratch with a fish bone budget. My abilities to scrounge things out of trash cans and re-use old worn out bits continues to take me places. I could not have done it without help from lots of good friends. Thanks to all of you. Looking forward to next season!

Operation Coyote commence

 

When this John Wells built Coyote chassis #13 dream car more or less fell into my lap almost two years ago I was just completing my Homebrew Hayabusa car so I made my self promise to not touch it until my Homebrew was ironed out. A smarter man than me would perfect the homebrew but a ball chasing border collie is a ball chasing border collie. After Land's End, with one race left in the season, and the points lead, I repaired an axle and loaded up Homebrew into the trailer. I un-tarped the Coyote and pushed it into the shop. I was so eager to un-box the adaptor kit I ordered almost two months ago and fit the ebay Porsche transaxle to the SBC power plant I built and ran in my Pontiac Grand Prix that I couldn't believe I was not 7 years old but this is the dream car I envisioned when I was 7 so I got right to it.

It did not just pop right together but after some grinding, some cutoff wheel, wome very colorful bits of vocabulary, and my big red fucking hammer; it went together. More impressive was how it fit into the chassis.

Again, it didn't just fit right into the old chassis... I am used to working with motorcycle engines and I am at the age where physical limitations are starting to be yielded to. The pain is real. But after some creative use of jacks, hoists, and my beloved two post lift I got it. I was sure I was going to need to cut something but to my amazement it fit perfect. Well better than OJ's glove anyways!

I feel like a proper penniless white trash version of Colin Chapman! I think this thing is going to be the complete fucking savage race vehicle of my dreams!!! 

Pikes Peak Hillclimb 1975 "Tame The Tall Mountain"

Lands End Hill Climb 2025 - Livin in America

 Welp, the biggest race of my year has come and gone. It was everything I have been dreaming about for a whole year and more. What do I have left in my teeth to chew on but the savory meat of enjoyment. While children starve to death, power mad dictators of the world spew bullshit, and the poor brain washed masses consume the bullshit being shoveled down their gullet every screen filled spoonful by soothing dopamine pixelated spoonful.

It rained friday night for the first time in the Grand Valley in a long hot dry windy blue moon of a burning summer. The track was wet and fast for saturday's practice/qualifying. The new motocross tread atv tires were hooking up like velcro. For the first time ever I felt I could get the car to turn when and where wanted with out the under steer that I have been trying to rid the homebrew hayabusa. On only my second run I ran a 4:22 on the 5.5 mile course. I was even yellow flagged on the run and slowed after catching the car in front of me, following for a couple corners, and then passing them. Getting me the 3rd fastest run of the day overall. 4WD rally turbos lancers, 800 hp open wheel cars and all. Not bad for a rage cage built here at home in the metropolis of Mack CO. amoungst a pile of ol dirtbikes and toddler trikes. The track dried out and the hero dirt turned to a slower but magically fun dry slick. The Peat brothers came from California with their proper European Semog cross karts. They are from the UK and have national rally championship experience and cars waiting for them over the pond. They raced Lands End last year and were smoking me. This year they had some problems including one of them having a massive scary crash off the edge into some trees. I managed to beat the other brother by 2 seconds with a smoking 4:20 -Duuude! In the Motorcycle class I struggled with times almost 20 seconds off my best. Lord Mick was pushing me like a pacific north west hobo with a shopping cart full of Colt 45 on roller skates. I managed to drop down to a 4:28 for a race run giving Mick 4 seconds and another year to think about de-throning me next year. I have won the Motorcycle class at every Lands End since 2016. I found myself thinking how much I wanted to trade my bike runs for another run in my car. I don't know what is happening to me but I knew from the get go that the two too many wheeled virus was not fucking around with me... I reckon it's not what you eat but rather how you eat it. It is not the size of the peanuts in the poop but the poop in the pants. The mysteries of the universe. The leftovers from the Indian restaurant. The warm last horse fly infested margarita after the ice melts. Yum.

Dog days

 

The Monarch hill climb was very fruitful. More winning and best of all was having my girls there with me. Even got our pit crashed by the lovable Warren who is keeping it real over on the Church of Choppers blog. Don’t tell his lady but I think I infected him with the race bug bad enough that he traded his ol widow maker YZ490 for a midget race car to come tear up the hill climbs! The guy I sold my old Pontiac to had a fun rookie race. Lost it after crossing the finish line but he already has the car back in good enough shape for the next race.

I came across another Hayabusa deal that was too cheap to pass up. Not sure what to do with it but I have a few ideas...

The old Goldwing had been put on mothballs since fatherhood. Unfortunately the carbs did not like the hibernation. After rebuilding the carbs I found the fuel pump not working. After replacing the fuel pump I found the fuel pump power supply circuit faulty. I pulled up my sleeves and soldered a new transistor onto the mother board inside the ECU. When the solder smoke cleared I took the family for a ride on the old Blue Whale.

Alex flew over from Norway to do some testing on Moped Dick. Good times were had and Bonneville looks promising this year. Although I am not going to be the piloting space monkey, or at least not the main one. Tomorrow I pick up Alex and his buddy Peir from the Airport. I might just sneak out there on the Goldwing if I can get the time off from work...

The little chip off the old block has her first couple of races under her belt. The pride I feel is out of this world. Her world is becoming a lot bigger and mine is becoming much more concentrated. The good stuff.

Here comes...

2025 PPIR Hill Climb Top 5

Rnd 1 and 2 of Colorado Hill Climb Racing update.

 The count down to the beginning of the 2025 race season went from months, to weeks, to finally days. Having finished the past two races with a 3rd and then a 2nd had me eager. The first practice run had the car feeling a bit like a ride on Elvira's vibrator from hell at anything over 4th gear. An inspection found the rear center spool axle was wearing out. It had lasted most of the 2024 season after the first one wore out quicker than a pair of flea market chuck taylers. (After only one race.) It sure would have been cool if it had failed at the end of the 24 season with time to re-engineer a better rear end but me and my honky ass pto tractor shaft rear end... Im sure there is a pun there somewhere... Anyhoo, I skipped a practice run on the motorcycle and found a nice fella with a welder to tack weld the rear end back together with a hope and a prayer. It managed to do the job and I ended up getting my first Super Sprint class win. Even better yet I got the Motorcycle class win on the ol trusty XR650R tracker, setting a new class record and the only record set that weekend. One month later and I had a new rear end put back in the Hayabusa Homebrew with parts from Protolite Racing, my first car sponsor. Woo-hoo! Rnd 2 was at Pikes Peak International Raceway where I ended the season last year. It is not so much a proper hill climb on an actual road but a 3.5 mile dirt road race style course. It is very tight and seems to cater to the small cross karts and dirtbikes. In saturdays practice/ qualifying runs I managed to break the Motorcycle class record twice and first in class in Homebrew by only a couple seconds in fornt of an Aussy engineered Baracuda cross kart and a very poper put togethter cross kart driven by Ryan Cheek who was in the neighbor hood getting ready for Pikes Peak. In Sunday's first run I broke the Super Sprint class course record and on my second Motorcycle run I managed to break the course record again. Two class wins and 2nd overall vehicle a few seconds behind the legend Spencer Steel and his V8 powered Wells Coyote. Leaving me on father's day with my daughter feeling more proud than fat bastard leaving the pie eating contest.

The Rangely hill climb course is my favorite with it's high speed flowing sections.

Imagine something I engineered and built failing...

Racing is loud. I love sharing it with my little one. She loves her race friends. The Colorado Hill Climb Association is like our 2nd family.

For Rnd 2 at Pikes Peak International Raceway. I opted to race my good ol trail bike Molly.

I love flogging Molly

Building this car from scratch and finishing 2nd overall is a huge accomplishment for me. Time to find some sponsors and go tackle Pikes Peak Hill Climb on four wheels....?

Meow Meow Massacre 2025

 Over a month ago many great friends made the pilgrimage to what has become an annual damn mighty fine fun time. This year there were not even any casualties, bikes or bodies. The prayers to the moto gods were granted. We even had a cute little kitty cat pinata that we didn't end up smashing so next year we will sacrifice it. Until then I will fill it with various paraphernalia. Mark your 2026 calendars now around the first of May and may all your dreams be fruitful.

Meow