From The Beach Boys’ “409” and Prince’s “Little Red Corvette” to “Drivers License” by Olivia Rodrigo, hot cars and cool music go together. Heck, one of the most iconic race tracks in America (Watkins Glen) hosted an epic 1973 concert featuring The Allman Brothers and The Grateful Dead.
Now imagine a car race going on during a massive concert. That’s what happens during the Gridlife Alpine Horizon Festival weekend, held at Pikes Peak International Raceway near Colorado Springs. We were there this year.
Fans spent the weekend reveling in music and motorsports, and took shelter from the elements beneath the big grandstands at Pikes Peak International.
Like other festivals organized by Gridlife, a massive stage is set up inside the racetrack, allowing racers and musicians to rock for the weekend and throughout the night. More than a dozen artists—including Taking Back Sunday, Sueco, and Xavier Wulf—performed on the stage near the road course’s final curves while racers sped by.
Fans took shelter from the elements beneath the big grandstands at Pikes Peak International. (Photos: Chris Tonn. Featured image at the top of the page: Rob Wilkinson.)
Formula Drift pros Vaughn Gittin Jr., Adam LZ, and Chelsea DeNofa, brought the RTR Mustang smoke show.
What Is Gridlife?
Spectators take their turns at drifting with a bit less horsepower than the cars on track.
Gridlife, presented by eBay Motors, is like a traveling motorsports circus. Rather than focusing on one type of racing, Gridlife lets car enthusiasts have fun with their cars how they like. As a traveling series, Gridlife visits a dozen or so venues across the country, alternating racing types.
Track Days
Gridlife added an off-road rally event to numerous racing events.
A Gridlife track day is like other low-pressure track events. It’s a low-key, low-impact way to take any safe street vehicle on a real race track—without the pressure of a clock. However, an instructor keeps an eye on the drivers and offers safety tips.
Track Battle
The Sundae Cup is a place for mildly-modified, low-powered cars to get on the track and compete.
Gridlife Track Battle is a time-trial event, with trophies awarded for the best lap times. Cars are on track at the same time, but they aren’t actively racing door-to-door. Some Track Battle groups form around set rules and car configurations. For example, wildly-modified machines sprouting high-tech aerodynamics might appear in the Track Mod and Unlimited classes, while the Sundae Cup features slower-yet-intense races against the clock in modest cars like the Honda Fit, Ford Escort ZX2, and Mazda 2.
Gridlife Touring Cup
Jeremy Swenson (Corvette) leads Tom O’Gorman (S2000) in a Gridlife Touring Cup race.
Gridlife Touring Cup is an intense wheel-to-wheel racing series pitting race cars equalized on a power-to-weight ratio against one another. The more power a car makes, the more weight it has to carry. This favors models like the Honda Civic and S2000s, Nissan 370Z, and Chevrolet Corvette. Most race weekends have at least four races—each lasting about 15 minutes.
Chelsea DeNofa drifts his RTR Mustang.
Other events, like the Alpine Horizon Festival, feature drifting and rallying. Saturday car show features some of Colorado’s coolest custom and classic cars.
At the arcade, participants can get away from the weather and the noise of the track.
Only two Gridlife events —the Alpine Horizon Festival in Colorado and the Midwest Festival in Michigan—offer music. With or without live tunes, the Gridlife vibe is addictive. Go to one of these events, and you’re likely to make it a habit.
