Hill climbing is one of the most thrilling motorsports disciplines, widely popularized in many countries. The competition involves a short distance racing on a specific automobile or motorcycle over an uphill mountain course. Generally, the route of racing is 350 m long from the starting line. The competition has a minimum course length of 5 km (3.1 miles), and the participant is required to cover at least 10 km (6.2 miles).
Hill climbing is one of the oldest motorsport disciplines. The first hill-climbing event was conducted on 31st January 1897 at La Turbie near Nice, France. It is widely popular in the U.S., followed by France and Austria. Another famous hill climb event includes offroad motorcycling where the winner is the one who can reach the top of the steep hill in the minimum time or the fastest.
Hill climbing was originated from the basic idea of testing the new cars against a rough road surface. The FIA European Hill Climb Championship (FIA EHC) is a popular hill-climbing competition, conducted in Europe. The competition is widely organized on closed public road crosses.
The participants are required to cover a minimum distance of 2 km (1.2 miles) and a maximum of 6 km (3.7 miles). In the U.S., the Pikes Peak race is annually organized since 1916.
Objective
The primary objective of the sport is to climb a steep uphill mountain. The riders are required to cover the maximum distance in the minimum duration to gain the winning title. If multiple riders complete the uphill course at the same time, then the participant with the shortest time is declared as the winner.
History of Hill Climbing
The hill-climbing dates back to the testing of the new models of Indian motorcycles to present their potential and capabilities in front of curious onlookers. Most of the climbing practices used to be performed at the steepest hills of Springfield, Massachusetts.
In 1897, the hill-climbing was performed publically for the first time in the French Riviera, La Turbie. In 1905, hill-climbing became an official competition along with time deadlines.
By the early 20s, the sport widely popularized. At that time, Herbert James 'Burt' Monro tried his hands in hill climbing in 1926 and later became the fastest rider in history. Post a few years; hill-climbing started losing its charm until in 2008, the Daytona Motorsport Group encouraged the re-emergence of the sport with the Great American Pro Hill Climb.
