History of the Mt Evans Hill ClimbThe Mt. Evans Hill climb was run for the first time in 1962. The race has been held 44 times with only three years canceled, twice due to snow and once when the Race Director was working in Atlanta at the 1996 Summer Games. The race was renamed in 1981 in honor of five-time race winner Bob Cook, who died of cancer at the age of 23. The race is a climber's delight and the scenery cannot be beat by any other place in the world. Riders meet all kinds of indigenous Colorado animals including Mountain Goats and sheep as well as an occasionally marmot along the climb as well as run into all kinds of weather. Riders come from all over the United States and in the past the race has had riders from France, Switzerland, Germany, and Australia compete. The age range of the participants is from 9 to 85 years of age. The race includes categories for all levels of racing and encourages riders who are not racers to try their hand at challenging the highest paved road in the United States. The race starts at 7,540 feet in front of the Clear Creek Middle School and proceeds to Echo Lake where the race turns and climbs to the summit (14,264 feet.). Bob Cook held the course record from 1975-1980. The first three years he held the record he was a junior. The present record holder is Tom Danielson, set in 2004 with a time of 1:41:20. The Senior Women's course record is held by Jeannie Longo from France with a time of 1:59.19. The climb is 28 miles in length. WEB SITES: There are three web sites that give information about the Hill Climb:
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