Pikes Peak | USA | 1440m | 19.47 kilometres | KOM 1:08:24 hrs.
Pikes Peak is one of the toughest climbs in the world, with steep ramps leading to extreme heights. It is the second highest paved road in the USA after Mt. Blue Sky, and the highest point of the route is reached at around 4300 metres - around 1300 metres above the summit of the Zugspitze. A granfondo is held there every year, during which the road is closed to motorised traffic. The national US hill climb championships have also been held on this famous and notorious climb.
John Keller (27), Boulder| USA | Segment 1747567
John Keller rode for a Continental team for one season, but did not get a new contract. The struggle for financial support and the pressure to succeed in races became too much for him and he experienced a mental crisis. But after he left professional cycling behind, things went uphill in every respect: he dedicated himself primarily to KOM hunting and achieved better performance figures than ever before. He can now ride his racing bike for pleasure - he earns money as a software developer. He currently holds more than 460 KOMs on Strava: "When I left all the pressure of professional cycling behind me, I suddenly got better." Keller set up the KOM on Pikes Peak during the Broadmoor Cycle to Summit race. Conditions were tough that day, with rain and sub-zero temperatures. According to Keller, slipstreaming is not enough to break the record: "I've ridden the race in the past and knew that to achieve the fastest time, you have to accelerate from the start and set a fast pace instead of waiting for others to make the first move." Keller recalls: "In the second half, it was raining and I couldn't feel my hands and toes, but I kept going all the way to the finish line." There, snow had blanketed the landscape in white. Fortunately, Keller didn't have to freeze on the descent: A change of warm clothes was waiting for him at the finish.
*Because there are sometimes several segments on a rise, we name the number of the segment (example: 1747567 means www.strava.com/segments/1747567). We have taken the altitude data for all segments from Strava, even if they are imprecise.
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