COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KOAA) — There will be 3 father-son teams racing to the top of America's Mountain this Sunday for 103rd running of The Broadmoor Pikes Peak International Hill Climb.
Organizers behind one of the most unique races in the world shared that Clint and Codie Vahsholtz, Dan and Trevor Aweida, and Craig and Zach Lumsden are "keeping the family traditions alive, building fire-breathing machines and bringing them to Pikes Peak for the ultimate challenge."
News5 had the chance to speak with Trevor, who is from the Boulder area, about the opportunity to once again get behind to wheel for the "Race to the Clouds" with support from Kumho Tire U.S.A.
"It absolutely is more than just a race," Trevor explained. "The way I kind of look at it is almost every competitor on the mountain is part of one family. Because it's a pretty small number of people that want to, and a pretty small number of people that get accepted... We're not out to get one another. We're in it together. Everybody knows how challenging the race is. Everybody knows that it's really scary and really difficult, and we're in it together. The father-son thing is interesting, but it's a little bit bigger than that, in the sense that almost everyone on the mountain is part of one family."
Trevor's father, Dan, has been part of the event for 11 years; however, one year he had a "did not start" according to Trevor. 2025 marks Trevor's fifth year racing to the summit. Dan recorded a personal best last year with a time of 10:48.870. As Trevor explained, he's getting more comfortable with the course entering his fifth year, but he never wants to be too comfortable.
"No matter how comfortable you feel on the mountain, you have to always be prepared," Trevor stated. "You can't treat it like it's a racetrack... Even if you start feeling that level of comfort, you have to take a step back and think about what might be different and how it can be different. And the mountain's always changing. So I'm feeling more and more comfortable every year, but to that point, you can never be too comfortable, or else you might get into some trouble."
Trevor and his father, Dan, have also had to overcome a tragedy. They lost their family home and eight of their vehicles in the Marshal Fire at the end of 2021, but the devastating blaze did not keep them from their passion.
"The word that comes to mind is just determination," Trevor said about the time after the fire. "No one's ever going to end up on a racetrack without some sort of perseverance to get there. It doesn't just fall into your lap. So when something horrible happens.. It kind of sparks this, like, what do we really care about? And it shows that we really do care about racing. And to my previous point, you have to really care about racing to even end up here in the first place. So I guess where it comes down to it is it's what we love to do it."
Trevor, his dad, and another racer from Colorado supported by Kumho Tire U.S.A, Jack Penley will be at Fan Fest Friday night. The event is expected to bring in more than 35,000 people in the heart of Downtown Colorado Springs to experience this 10-block street party.
When asked if Trevor was expecting to beat his dad's time this year, he only responded with "time will tell" and a smile.
Event Date: June 20, 2025
Time: 5:00pm – 9:00pm
Location: Downtown Colorado Springs
2025 Schedule of Events (Subject to change)
5:00pm – Event begins
5:30pm – FMX Freestyle Motocross Practice (Weather permitting)
6:00pm – 7:00pm – OPTIMA Batteries Fast 15 Autograph Session
6:30pm – FMX Freestyle Motocross Demo (Weather permitting)
8:15pm – FMX Freestyle Motocross Demo (Weather permitting)
9:00pm – Event ends
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