Pick a terrifying hill climb course, a crazy motorcycle, and then ask a former AMA Superbike racer to get to the top in record-breaking time. That’s what happened when Chris Fillmore swung his leg over a hooligan KTM Duke 1290 R and then scampered towards the crest like there just wasn’t any elevation. Riding at the very edge of the Pikes Peak course, Chris crossed the line in 9 minutes and 49.626 seconds, setting the world record for the quickest time up the mountain on a motorcycle.
Pikes Peak is the highest summit of the southern Front Range of the Rocky Mountains, in North America. Towering at 14,115 feet, the peak is located in Pike National Forest and has been named in honour of American explorer Zebulon Pike, who was unable to reach the summit. The Pikes Peak International Hill Climb is the second oldest auto race in the U.S and is also known as the Race to the Clouds. The 19.99 km long course has 156 turns, terrifyingly open drops to be dealt with, bumpy sections of tarmac, and involves climbing a height of 4,720 ft on grades averaging 7.2%.
Watch the video as Chris puts the 1.301cc naked machine through its paces, calling all of its 177 horses and 141 Nm of torque to reach the top. If you really want your heart to pop out of its place, wait until the 3:13 mark, where he almost overshoots a corner which opens up directly into the Almighty’s lap.