Today is day 5 of Pikes Peak Race Week. Officially it is a rest day, but the truth is that while the competitors and crews might get an hour or many two more of sleep; it is not really a ‘rest’ day. There are tires to scrub in, chains to lube and many small little things that need to be done to the race bikes that have been ridden hard for the past three days. For us though, we had a built-in chance to get our heads out of race prep – the Ducati VIP ride up Pikes Peak.
Greg and Carlin led the crowd – I’m not sure how many Ducati motorcycles came along – it was a lot though! Perhaps 75-85 – maybe more, and many Multistradas – including several Pikes Peak Specials!
We had a wonderful ride up the mountain, with a couple stops on the way. Greg and Carlin told us something about what it is like to ride at over 140mph on this course, and I think that all of us have a new and very deep appreciation for the risks that they are taking on race day.
Once we got to the top, it was a bit like a flash mob. The tourists must have noticed that suddenly there were a lot of people in riding gear. And a lot of red motorcycles. Then came the best touch – the guys from Ducati started handing out state and country flags! We did a photo with the sign where we all had our flags waving – what a fun time!
And now – the sun is low and tonight there is an air of anticipation at the Mecca. Tomorrow is Race Day! Our boys will go to do battle with the hill. We will send them off with the very best motorcycles we can give them, along with our love and prayers. You can follow along – there will be live streaming at the Pikes Peak website. Motorcycles run first – the race starts at 9:00am. Join us there! www.ppihc.com