Virginia City's Best-Kept Secret

The Virginia City Hillclimb is, in its own peculiar way, one of Nevada’s best-kept secrets—a secret that was advertised, scheduled, and open to the public. And the public came.

On Sept. 19 and 20, 5.2 miles of Hwy 341 became a temporary racetrack, where powerful automobiles raced towards Virginia City while their drivers attempted to defy the laws of physics. The course began at about 5,000 feet and climbed to approximately 6,200 feet, with 21 numbered turns thoughtfully provided to separate the brave from the merely optimistic.

Unlike an ordinary racetrack, this was a public highway temporarily relieved of its usual traffic. The road was closed, the cars were unleashed, and the drivers were given the chance to discover precisely how much confidence could be squeezed into 5.2 miles of mountain pavement.

For many participants, however, the Hillclimb was about more than horsepower and elapsed time. It has become a family tradition.

Some people had attended as children with their fathers and later brought their own children. Others have returned year after year because they had discovered there were worse ways to spend a weekend than standing beside a mountain road watching expensive machinery outrun itself.

Between runs, the atmosphere was remarkably friendly. Drivers and spectators examined cars, discussed racing and offered opinions about how the competitors might have handled the previous turn.

The competition, meanwhile, was anything but casual. Drivers studied the pavement, learned the turns, reviewed video and data, and searched for fractions of a second.

Some merely hoped to finish a clean run without mechanical trouble. Others arrived determined to improve their times and perhaps reclaim a record.

The mountain was not especially interested in anybody’s ambitions. Engines, transmissions, brakes, tires, and suspension components were pushed hard during the climb, and a car capable of tremendous speed was not necessarily a car capable of surviving it.

That is part of the attraction. The Hillclimb combines modern performance automobiles with an old Nevada mountain road in a way that no permanent racetrack can quite duplicate.

And then there was the secret. Despite all the noise, speed and family tradition, the actual results remained strangely elusive to those who didn't enter a vehicle.

You could watch the cars roar uphill, admire the machinery and listen to everyone discuss the competition, but truly knowing who won, you might have better luck finding the original Comstock silver deposits. The Virginia City Hillclimb has therefore remained a magnificent Nevada tradition: fast cars, mountain roads, family memories—and results apparently available only to those who know the secret handshake.

Despite the final times, everyone had a great time. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have my pick and shovel ready to find those initial deposits.