Carlin Dunne’s unfortunate and tragic demise raised questions regarding the safety of motorcycle racing at Pikes Peak. Soon after his crash, the concerned authorities announced that they are contemplating the future of motorcycle racing at Pikes Peak. And now, they’ve concluded.
As per the latest reports, the concerned authorities have confirmed that motorcycles will not be permitted to compete in the 2020 Pikes Peak challenge. As of now, the ban is just limited to the 2020 event and the organisers will analyse and look into the long-term viability of motorcycle racing at Pikes Peak and declare their final decision at the end of 2020.
“Motorcycles have been a part of the PPIHC for the past 29 years, and their history on America’s Mountain dates back to the inaugural running in 1916,” said Tom Osborne, Chairman. “That said, the motorcycle program hasn’t been an annual event. They have run 41 of the 97 years we’ve been racing on Pike Peak. It’s just time to take a hard look at every aspect of the race, including the motorcycle program, and determine whether or not the event may change.”
Till date, six people have lost their lives at the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb challenge ever since its inception in 1916. And out of those six, four deaths occurred in motorcycle racing.
The thing is, any kind of motorsport is dangerous. There is always a certain percentage of risk involved in racing a car around a circuit or jumping a bike in a rally. Perhaps, it is the near-death experience that’s one of the many reasons people continue to participate in such extreme motorsports.
We respect the decision of the authorities of PPIHC and we hope in their further analysis on this matter, they’d find motorcycle racing at the event safe enough to give it a green flag for the races to come after 2020.
