Pike’s Peak International Hill Climb Announces Media Partnership to Livestream and Promote 2014 Edition of Its Renowned Race
Colorado Springs, Colorado (PRWEB) December 31, 2013 -- For 91 years, there have been engineering revolutions, course updates, and driver enhancements for the renowned Pike’s Peak International Hill Climb. And the USA’s second-longest running motorsports event will again be breaking down barriers with the newly announced partnership between PPIHC and Terra Firma Media Group, who will be both livestreaming the 92nd edition of the race on June 29, 2014 and creating a dedicated media portal that will include some of the stunning video archives that date as far back as 1916. The partners are working towards a February 2014 launch of the portal well in advance of the June 2014 livestream.
“We know the hill climb is truly an American icon,” explained Megan Leatham, Executive Director of the Pike’s Peak International Hill Climb. “And with that, we have to be selective with our media partners. When John [Duesler, Principal of Terra Firma Media Group] approached us about producing the livestream for the 2014 race, we has some lengthy discussions about their capabilities and their vision for the broadcast. It did not take long for us to decide that a partnership with Terra Firma was a great fit for how we believe our event should be handled.”
With the 12.4 mile course and over 8000 feet of elevation that the venue possesses, any kind of media production is certainly a challenge at Pike’s Peak. But covering it live on the Internet presents significant technical hurdles that Terra Firma Media Group will have to overcome to make this show a success.
“We have had the Pike’s Peak Hill Climb on our radar for two years now after a visit to the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs on an unrelated show,” John Duesler said. “For over four years now, we have been producing live sporting events in the field using a variety of transmission systems. Pike’s Peak will certainly be a challenge, but we are extremely confident that our bonded broadband field transmission system is up to the task. We had a good field test on the mountain in early December, and with the experiences we’ve had in very remote places, as well as the field success of the Iron Man livestream with the same systems in Hawaii, our focus will be more on producing an engaging show, with great storytelling and action from those 156 hairpin turns. We expect the technical side to be rock-solid.”
“One of the strategic approaches that PPIHC and Terra Firma will take to promote the launch of the streaming portal is to have serial releases of the video archives and media from the hill climb’s rich history,” revealed Megan Leatham. “These one-of-a-kind videos will provide a great perspective on how far the race has come over the last 10 decades, as well as attract fans from around the world to the PPIHC brand. Surprisingly, many sports fans may not even be aware of this renowned motorsports event, leaving room for significant growth. We believe our media strategy with Terra Firma will go a long way towards our race reaching the great potential we know it has.”
“Like any historic event, Pike’s Peak has come through the best of times and some of the toughest challenges in becoming the enduring American icon that it is,” smiled Duesler. “Our partnership with the hill climb is designed to bring the event back into the forefront of motor sports prominence. We believe that by mixing the historic relevance of the Pike’s Peak Hill Climb with the modern day look and feel of the race, our partnership with our friends in Colorado Springs will result in an increased awareness and a growing appreciation for how amazing this race really is.”
The PPIHC portal will be available on a subscription basis with multiple levels of entry and access. Privileges of subscribing to the 2014 Pike’s Peak International Hill Climb media portal will provide fans with exclusive access to many of the rare videos that have been archived throughout the history of the event. Additionally, subscribers will also be able to watch the live Internet broadcast. Additionally, all those who subscribe to the PPIHC media portal will be eligible to win prizes that will be given away throughout the pre-race promotion, as well as on race day.
The Pikes Peak International Hill Climb (PPIHC), also known as The Race to the Clouds, is an annual automobile and motorcycle hill climb to the summit of Pikes Peak in Colorado, USA. The track measures 12.42 miles (19.99 km) over 156 turns, climbing 4,720 ft (1,440 m) from the start at Mile 7 on Pikes Peak Highway, to the finish at 14,110 ft (4,300 m), on grades averaging 7%. It used to consist of both gravel and paved sections, however as of August 2011, the highway is fully paved and as a result all subsequent runnings will be on tarmac from start to finish. For more information on sponsoring the media portal and live Internet broadcast or any matter related to the Pike’s Peak International Hill Climb, you can visit http://www.ppihc.com or contact Megan Leatham, PPIHC Executive Director, at 719-685-4400.
John G. Duesler, Jr., Terra Firma Media Group, http://emergingsports.tv, +1 (215) 913-0569, [email protected]
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