Lexington at its Peak

• 
• 

What we like most about this superb photograph is the sheer contrast. There’s the glitzy showroom on Connecticut Avenue in Washington, D.C. offering the latest from Lexington and Oakland at their shiniest. And then there’s the beast of a car in front of it, dirty, scratched and looking worn out from the race it competed in: the Pikes Peak Hill Climb, or the ‘Race to the Clouds’. A very atmospheric poster on the window (see detail shot) shows the beast in action in a drawing, too. But nothing beats the real thing, doesn’t it?

In 1920, two Lexington works cars finished first and second on the hill. One report about the historical hill climb mentions: “Lexington team members were their own worst rivals in the early years”. This must be one of the two cars. The model was somewhat oddly named the Minute Man Six, after the Minute Men soldiers of 1776 in Lexington, Massachusetts, and its six-cylinder engine.

The car is a survivor, too, or at least it was until not too long ago, residing together with its trophy in the El Pomar Pikes Peak Historical Museum in Colorado Springs. Have you ever visited?

Words: Jeroen Booij
Picture: Shorpy.com

Make a comment, ask a question, give your opinion, share additional information or start a discussion by filling in the fields below.