By 10 a.m., middleweight biker Kris Lillegard – aka Krazy Kris – already had his evening plans laid out.

Following The Broadmoor Pikes Peak International Hill Climb, Lillegard and the other competing bikers and car drivers would ride down the mountain past a cheering crowd.

Then, the fun begins.

“I’ll probably take a little nap,” said Lillegard, who got first place in his class, “and then party like a rock star.”

In such a high-stress competition, many Hill Climb competitors go out with their crew after the day’s races. From eating contests to nights out on the town, the post-race party is always a lively one.

Lillegard got the nickname Krazy Kris from his time serving in the Navy and he said the craziest post-race party he heard of ended up with lost clothes and a lost sponsorship.

“I heard a guy lose his whole sponsorship because he got too drunk in front of the owner’s wife,” Lillegard said, laughing. “Not enough clothes on.”

But surely that’s not normal?

“No,” Lillegard said, refusing to name the reckless individual, “he’s a legend for being crazy.”

Crazy isn’t the norm for Pikes Peak competitors. Raymund Guerrero, who finished third in the Pikes Peak open class, said his team generally has a laid-back night after the stress and pressure of race day.

That meant a burger-eating contest at a local brewery last year. It did not end well.

“All the people at the table were very competitive,” Guerrero said. “I regretted it later.”

After weeks of working for the race, some teams take a different approach. Blake Fuller and his team broke the Electric Production Car class’ mountain record by over a minute Sunday.

He jumped out of his white Tesla and onto the roof, posing for pictures. Minutes later, he wondered aloud whether his team would be sober enough to greet him at the bottom of the mountain.

“Hopefully I don’t come back to a crew that’s completely passed-out drunk,” Fuller joked. “I’m probably going to have to pack up tonight.”

But he says his team deserves to take the edge off after such a strenuous competition.

“The amount of sleep the crew’s gotten this week is maybe an hour a night on average,” Fuller said.

He said his team may go out Sunday night in Colorado Springs. Beers will be consumed. Stories will be told.

But at the end of the day – and night – his love of cars trumps his love of partying.

“I don’t drink a lot of beer myself,” Fuller said. “But sometimes people have really nice cars and I like being the designated driver.”

The Broadmoor Pikes Peak International Hill Climb was hit by a sudden hailstorm at the summit at the end of the race. During the parade of racers, overall winner Romain Dumas heads down the hill, followed by a snow plow on Sunday, June 27, 2016. photo by Jerilee Bennett/The Gazette

Jerilee Bennett/The Gazette