MANITOU SPRINGS • Robin Shute exited his 2018 Wolf TSC-FS and darted to the race officials.

He’d just pushed through the fog and drizzle of the 2022 Broadmoor Pikes Peak International Hill Climb and captured the top time, but the Brit shook his head and flashed a thumbs down as he slowed after the finish line.

He was concerned, worried for the other drivers who would have to battle the same visibility concerns he did during the hill’s final stretch.

After the 16-mile marker, the visibility vanished. Newly paved stretches of road along the hill didn’t have lines — only adding to the tough stretches of fog where the lines and trees provided the only guidance for drivers.

“I enjoyed the road itself,” Shute said. “I was basically idling towards the top when the lines disappeared. These were some of the toughest conditions we’ve ever driven in, racing or not.

“It was just like driving to ski resorts in bad weather, you’re not racing anymore at that point.”

The conditions impacted Shute’s car in a unique way.

The chassis is one without automatic braking systems, power steering or any real computer systems — it’s simply built to go fast, on preferably dry roads.

There weren’t many changes made to the car with the forecast projecting wet conditions, but the tires were changed out before the race to allow for greater grip.

His 1:42.183 was the top split time, set by Shute in his opening stretch. Once the Hill Climb moved to higher elevation, the visibility and road conditions changed. Nearly every 10 minutes, seemingly, the road and fog were different.

“My car is set up to go fast, so when I’m just idling, my steering changes,” Shute said. “I have to brake harder into the front of the car for turns. My car is very low and stiff, and conditions like this call for a grippier, softer car. Even my tires are naturally designed for a track.

“I’ve driven it enough to have visual references and landmarks to go off of.

Rookies are kind of left to figure it out along the way.”

The King of the Mountain win marked the third in four years for Shute, and effectively his third in a row after sitting out 2020’s running due to COVID-19. His winning time in 2019 was 9:12.476, further illustrating the conditions racers dealt with.

Sunday’s iteration marked the 100th in the Hill Climb’s history, a fact not lost on Shute.

“I just found it frustrating to slow down, I love feeling this road,” Shute said. “I’m happy to be here. It’s always great to be up here, it’s a bummer with the conditions because you can’t even see how special this is.”