Known as the‘ Race to the Clouds’, Pikes Peak Hill Climb sits alongside Monaco F1, Le Mans 24hr and the Indy 500, as one of the biggest and toughest motorsport tests. The 12.42- mile, 156-turn route snakes relentlessly up a 4,300m-high mountain, covering almost twice the total distance of every British Hill Climb Championship venue put together.

The equivalent of two Mount Snowdon ascents, at the summit the air is so thin both humans and machines struggle to breathe. Many of the cars fail to reach the finish line due to the high altitude, and conditions are so extreme the competition rules permit – and even encourage – the use of supplementary oxygen for drivers.

This June, UK Hill Climber Damien Bradley will become one of the latest British drivers to take on the challenge. Driving what he describes as the“ world’ s fastest Subaru Legacy” he has set his sights on simply reaching the top with a smile but admits:“ if I could become the fastest Subaru to ever climb it, that would be a dream.”

It is just over 15 years since Bradley started out in motorsport, when his interest in the Japanese performance car scene led to occasional track days in his brother Adrian’ s Subaru Impreza.

“ I liked the Impreza, but where I was in South London, they were the kind of car that attracted quite a lot of attention,” he recalls.“ The Legacy was a lot more understated, a bit cheaper and had the same underpinnings. A friend took me for a drive in his and I fell for them immediately. I had a couple of turbos then bought a base model GL for around £ 500.”

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Revolution- June 2025