18-year-old Hayden Bradley speeds through Pikes Peak International Hill Climb for first time, wins Porsche division
Hayden Bradley ran before he walked.
The upcoming high school senior has yet to graduate high school and walk across the stage to receive his diploma, yet he joined the fray at the 101st Broadmoor Pikes Peak International Hill Climb anyway and won the Porsche Pikes Peak Trophy by Yokohama division Sunday with a winning mark of 10:48.387. His time finished 25th among all classes.
Standing at the start line to wave the green flag was Hayden’s sister Hannah on her 16th birthday. She flew out to watch him race before being told she’d have the chance to start his inaugural run off.
It’s been less than a month since Bradley made the temporary move to Colorado Springs from Seminole, Florida with his mom, Lacy. On June 1, he began training to conquer the mountain, but it was the adversity he overcame before touching a steering wheel that spurred post-race emotions.
“I almost cried when I finished, because, even a month ago, it looked like this might not happen,” Bradley said. “Hell, I was born five months early, I wasn’t even supposed to live to see this day. It’s an unbelievable feeling to cross that finish line.”
His initial interest in the hill climb was sparked by veterans of the race.
He was competing in the World Racing League when he sparked up a conversation with Fred Veitch, David Donner and Cam Ingram. The trio was in the process of getting cars ready for the 2022 hill climb and their own excitement rubbed off.
Bradley started to call sponsors and worked with his team to put a car together that was worthwhile. Several of the meetings about the race forced the junior away from school to handle meetings — not the average day of school: homework, dinner and athletics, to be sure.
It’s also a long way from Bradley’s start. He played ball sports like soccer and baseball growing up before he convinced his parents to buy a used Go Kart to drive around when he was 13-years-old. He begged the two to invest in a cheap one and his parents pooled together his birthday and Christmas funds to purchase it.
The first two races he entered in the Go Kart, he won.
The newest superintendent at Bradley’s school district isn’t the biggest fan of his absences for racing. Bringing home hardware and a rookie win should soothe things — early success has worked out well so far in his racing career.
Porsche Pikes Peak Trophy By Yokohama division driver Hayden Bradley drives a 2020 Porsche Cayman GT4 Clubsport on Sunday.