COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — Qualifying and practice for the 102nd Running of the Broadmoor Pikes Peak International Hill Climb, brought to you by Gran Turismo continued on Thursday morning.
The Time Attack 1 and Open Wheel divisions were able to post their qualifying times on the lower section, but continued inclement weather higher up prevented the upper section from running once again and cancelled running in the middle section as well.
With wet weather persisting as teams unloaded, there was a chance that running for all three sections could have been cancelled for today. Veteran drivers Codie Vahsholtz (Open Wheel) and David Donohue (Time Attack 1) were among those tasked to scout the section and make a determination whether or not drivers should run today, or risk waiting until tomorrow with a possible rescheduling.
Shortly after the driver’s meeting, Vahsholtz and Donohue returned to the start line and gave their blessing. While the running would be slightly delayed and teams would start on wet tires, these divisions would at least have the certainty of posted times by the end of the morning. And as the track dried out, drivers would be able to eventually switch to dry tires and set more representative times.
In their first running since Tuesday’s middle section, Vahsholtz and Cole Powelson would once again go 1-2 throughout the day. Vahsholtz would set the benchmark on wets at 4:09.088 to Powelson’s 4:26.840, and he would become the first Open Wheel driver to break four minutes on the second run. Finally, on the third and final run of the day, both drivers broke the barrier, with Vahsholtz’s 3:53.022 and Powelson’s 3:59.048 first and second overall.
Donohue’s 4:05.327 topped Time Attack 1, nearly 16 seconds ahead of Kathryn Mead in the division. Jim Hall and Katherine Legge were the top two rookies of the day.