The MGA With An Attitude
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Ghost Riders in the Sky
Pikes Peak Road

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A run up Pikes Peak in Colorado is not for the faint of heart. With sand roads and no guard rails, the MGA with an attitude took the hill in full stride. It was the second week of June, 1989, and the snow had just been plowed out the week before. Running nearly flat out in second gear most of the way, first gear in a few of the tighter turns, and tossing sand over the edges at every opportunity, the Attitude literally blew past everything on the road (30-40 mph) on the way to the top. At 8500 feet of altitude at the entrance it was cool and damp. At 10,000 feet it was wet with water running in the tracks. At 12,000 feet there was still lots of mushy snow lying around. At the summit, 14,110 feet, the MGA was still pulling strong (as well as one can with only half the normal air supply) and had never missed a beat. The driver and navigator on the other hand needed a five minute breathing rest on the curb before making their way into the summit restaurant for coffee and home made doughnuts. The drive back down took a much more leisurely pace with a few stops for the photo opp's. Had to leave the trailer behind for this run -- park rules. Afterwards it was a little strange to see the shiny black trailer being towed by a murky tan chameleon with a huge attitude.

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