Pikes Peak

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Model T Ford Forum: Forum 2012: Pikes Peak
Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Chris Paulsen on Saturday, July 07, 2012 - 11:29 pm:

Yesterday a group of about 12 of the cars on the HCCA tour in Colorado Springs climbed Pikes Peak. Here are a couple pictures of us with our 1910 and the Memmelaar's with their 1912 at the top. Both cars ran perfectly-up and down.

It was an absolutely phenomenal experience.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Steve Jelf, Parkerfield KS on Sunday, July 08, 2012 - 12:08 am:

When Lieutenant Zebulon Pike was exploring the region, the governor of New Mexico had him arrested as a spy. Pike was being transported to Mexico City when he finally persuaded the Mexican government to release him, and he returned home by way of Texas. He was so annoyed by his experience that in a fit of temper he vowed never to return to the area. This is where the term Pike's Pique originated.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Dan Haynes on Sunday, July 08, 2012 - 12:26 am:

We were set to go on the tour and had been looking forward to it for months, but cancelled due to the fires, evacuees, smoke, air quality, etc., etc. I'm glad to see you made it to the top and back down.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Chris Paulsen on Sunday, July 08, 2012 - 10:16 am:

Dan, You were not the only one to cancel. I'd guess about 1/3, maybe more cancelled. We still had about 90 cars (my guess). We had no trouble with the fires, smoke or air quality. I'd say the local residents and businesses were grateful to have us tour the area and bring back some normalcy.
Here's another picture. Note the slightly blurred foreground-evidence of our great speed (probably about 12 MPH)


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Larry Smith on Sunday, July 08, 2012 - 10:52 am:

I understand it is now paved, at least that is what it looks like in the above photo.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By michael grady on Sunday, July 08, 2012 - 11:06 am:

Chris,

At what altitude did you start? I see you arrived at 14,000 ft. Anyone get a touch of mountain sickness?

Michael


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Chris Paulsen on Sunday, July 08, 2012 - 11:22 am:

Larry, yes, it is paved all the way to the top, but I would have done it if it was still dirt-grin-easy to say now, huh?

Michael, the 19 mile Pikes Peak Highway starts at 7400 ft. We started the morning in Colorado Springs which is around 6000, I believe. We had one person in our group have chest pains believed to be caused by the elevation.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Dick Lodge - St Louis MO on Sunday, July 08, 2012 - 11:24 am:

Steve, don't think that bit of history went unnoticed....


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Norman T. Kling on Sunday, July 08, 2012 - 11:33 am:

In the pictures at the peak, it looks cloudy. Is that fog or smoke from the fires? I tricked my wife one time when we were in Colorado. She didn't want to go up Pike's Peak, because it was so high, so I took her up Mt. Evans. The engine on my Toyota Pickup kept missing and I would slow down the RPM it would run smoothly. Finally finished in low gear. It ran fine until we got into Utah, and then started doing the same on the main highway until we limped into Green River. I found an auto parts store and replaced the fuel filter and the fuel pump. Never had any more trouble with it after that.
Norm


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Steve Jelf, Parkerfield KS on Sunday, July 08, 2012 - 11:44 am:

Colorado Springs, the nearest big town, is a little over 6000 feet. The town of Cascade, where the Pike's Peak road starts, is at 7380'. An interesting thing the satellite view shows is that the road and the railway follow totally different routes to the peak.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Timothy Kelly on Sunday, July 08, 2012 - 01:23 pm:

My wife and I joined the twelve other cars on the summit of Pike's Peak. It was quite a challenge in our 1909 Model T.

As Chris pointed out, one lady in our group became ill on the summit. The paramedics believed she was having a heart attack, and was air lifted off the mountain. Fortunately, in the end the issue was determined to be altitude sickness.

The cog train (the drive track has significant teeth) travels in a much straighter line up the peak than does the road. There are areas where the road is steeper than 7%. SummitAir lift


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Timothy Kelly on Sunday, July 08, 2012 - 01:25 pm:

The haze on the summit was fog......not smoke.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Chris Paulsen on Sunday, July 08, 2012 - 06:14 pm:

Great photo Tim. Agreed on the fog. We didn't see any smoke all week except in the distance on the mountains. It certainly helped put things into perspective.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Aaron Griffey, Hayward Ca. on Sunday, July 08, 2012 - 07:45 pm:

Head ache is another slight problem some people have when they go up that high.
We went up Pikes Peek in 2006.
While at the top I noticed I had a slight head ache. I had not had on in several years and have not had one since.
I think I read a warning in something that that may happen.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Walt Berdan, Bellevue, WA on Sunday, July 08, 2012 - 08:19 pm:

Probably 8 or 10 years ago, I climbed Mt Evans in my speedster. The car did fine as did a couple other stock T's that went up the same day. I could feel the thinner air as just a little exertion seemed to demand more air but I felt fine otherwise. My wife felt quite uncomfortable and short of breath just riding up and walking around just a bit at the summit. Back down at a lower elevation all was just fine again. We normally live close to sea level and had only been in Colorado a couple days when we did the drive up the mountain. We've done a few tours with Dave Huson and then Colorado crew crossing the divide several times. Never felt anything untoward on those tours but we didn't stay real high for very long. Those tours are great if you have the opportunity.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By John Memmelaar Jr on Sunday, July 08, 2012 - 08:32 pm:

I just got home from the tour and will be posting a bunch of photos this evening. The trip up pikes peak was a highlight of a lifetime. It was just as much a test of your ability to prepare a car for a challenge as well as maintaining your full concentration for the 2.5 hour ascent and 1 hour descent


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By John Memmelaar Jr on Sunday, July 08, 2012 - 09:00 pm:


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By John Memmelaar Jr on Sunday, July 08, 2012 - 09:01 pm:






Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By John Memmelaar Jr on Sunday, July 08, 2012 - 09:04 pm:






Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By John Memmelaar Jr on Sunday, July 08, 2012 - 09:33 pm:

Here is a couple of videos. Excuse my kids in the first one


http://youtu.be/HiNzedgq1OE


http://youtu.be/NN-XIRkg5Fo


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Dick Lodge - St Louis MO on Sunday, July 08, 2012 - 11:05 pm:

When I drove up Pike's Peak in our modern car (2003 Ford Explorer, R.I.P.) in 2007, I was stopped - along with everyone else - at a ranger station about a third of the way back down. Because many flatlanders ride their brakes instead of using the transmission to slow down, brakes for those folks tend to heat up. The ranger has a heat sensor that he points at the car's left front wheel. If it's too hot, then there is a mandatory 20-minute rest period before continuing.

Shortly after that, I talked to a Model T participant in the 2007 Rocky Mountain Tour, who said that he had driven up Pike's Peak on his way to the tour. I asked if they had checked the temperature of his brakes on the way down by measuring the temp at the left front wheel. He said that they had and that he had passed.... :-)


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Steve Hughes, Raymond, NE on Sunday, July 08, 2012 - 11:28 pm:

I am glad to hear that Pike's Peak is open for business. I am currently driving from Lincoln, NE to San Diego, CA. I had planned to do the Pike's Peak climb on my return trip. I had thought that I was going to have to omit that part of the trip. It is now back on the agenda. Thanks to all who posted pictures. I would probably have been on that tour if I had not scheduled this drive to CA.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By John Memmelaar Jr on Monday, July 09, 2012 - 11:52 am:

Here is another video


http://youtu.be/NIY0SVLtxi4

Sorry about not having any sound, but my kids were would up to see their uncle Chris coming down the hill


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Rob Heyen - Nebraska on Monday, July 09, 2012 - 07:35 pm:

Steve didn't mention he is driving his Model T to San Diego and back to Nebraska. I hope he'll start a thread and keep us posted.

Rob


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Lance Sorenson, Minnesota on Monday, July 09, 2012 - 07:59 pm:

I'm thinking the Pierce Arrow had little difficulty on the climb up.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Kirk Peterson on Monday, July 09, 2012 - 08:01 pm:

I want to wish Steve the Best on his round trip to SoCal.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Mike Vaughn on Monday, July 09, 2012 - 08:44 pm:

Steve has a web page where you can follow his daily progress. He has been successful on his first two days of driving.
http://modelts.rsomuchfun.com/


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Chris Paulsen on Monday, July 09, 2012 - 09:28 pm:

Lance- Two Pierce-Arrows made the trip to the summit. The 1913 Model 48 had a little trouble, but made it. The 1915 Model 38 had no trouble at all.

Best of luck to Steve on his trip.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Steve Hughes, Raymond, NE on Monday, July 09, 2012 - 10:06 pm:

Thanks for all of the well wishes. I guess I should start a thread about the trip so as not to hijack this one. And thanks to Mike for posting the link to my website.

Steve


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Terry Woods, Katy, Texas on Tuesday, July 10, 2012 - 12:34 am:

I think the video can be viewed on YouTube. If not, at a site called NAPCO.org . The 10 minute video is a 1957 Chevrolet sales promotional film that chronicles Chevrolet NAPCO equipped 4X4 pickups climbing Pikes Peak without EVER using a road. They were simply driven right up the mountain through forests, etc. The only time that they didn't move under their own power was when they had to use front mounted winches to pull themselves over and through a area of Pikes Peak covered with large boulders.

The first 4X4 pickups offered by Chevy, Ford, and Studebaker were NAPCO conversions. This was in the middle and late 50's before the factories started bulding 4X4's that didn't require the NAPCO conversion kit. My Dad had a 57 Chevy 4X4, just like the ones in the video, equipped with a six cylinder engne, 4 speed "granny" transmission, 16" wheels/tires, and probably 4:11 gears (at least). The truck couldn't do much more than 65-70 top speed, but it could climb a grade so steep, until the tires lost traction, if you were Man enough to climb such a steep grade. That was one Chevrolet that I wish I owned again, today!


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Darren J Wallace on Tuesday, July 10, 2012 - 12:14 pm:

Chris, is your T a two pedal two lever T?


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Chris Paulsen on Tuesday, July 10, 2012 - 10:03 pm:

Darren,
No, it is a 2 lever, 3 pedal 1910. The extra lever you see is the Ruckstell shifter. I mounted it on the left next to the parking brake and used a parking brake handle just so it would look less modern than a standard shifter.


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