“Where can I get racing fuel?”

“Our tire warmers don’t work — does anybody have a generator?”

“I’m looking for two bolts for a Mustang transmission …”

In the final days leading up to Sunday’s 102nd running of The Broadmoor Pikes Peak International Hill Climb by Gran Turismo, requests from drivers and teams are coming in fast and furiously to a new private, internal information hub.

At this point in the game, everything is an emergency, as vehicles break down during qualifying, or a team decides to try a different mechanical approach.

Not only will other competitors step in to lend a hand, but locals do anything from machining car parts at the last minute to renting space for oversized haulers as part of the massive behind-the-scenes preparations.

“That’s what makes this event unique; it’s really you versus the mountain more so than you versus your competitor, so everybody has this incredible united spirit to help each other with whatever resources they have,” said Joe Brenner, vice president and general manager of Porsche Colorado Springs, which is sponsoring three Porsche teams this year.

During testing, practice sessions or qualifying for race day, some vehicles break an oil line, develop a suspension issue, experience an engine malfunction or wear out tires.

The Hill Climb is considered one of the hardest motor sports events in the field, Brenner said, not only for drivers but also for vehicles.

“It really taxes the cars,” he said.

Les and Christopher Wagner, owners of Wagner’s Metal Fabrication and Precision Welding shop in Old Colorado City and former Hill Climb winners, have been providing servicing participants for decades.

“Many are from out of town and need support, and they need it in a hurry, so we try to help them out,” Les Wagner said Wednesday.

Rush jobs can be related to safety measures; if a race car doesn’t have the proper tubing in a roll cage or adequate seat belt mounts, the problem must be fixed immediately, he said.

The father-and-son Wagner duo also rent out warehouses to teams on their west-side commercial property.

“When they come from overseas, we help them get through customs and get situated,” Les Wagner said.

That’s another unusual aspect of the Hill Climb.

“Unlike other races or tracks, we don’t have a big garage facility where they can set up,” said Pikes Peak International Hill Climb CEO Melissa Eickhoff. “That’s where a lot of the community support comes in.”

Fred Veitch, a former racer and chairman of the Hill Climb board, is among the many residents who open their personal garages to teams. Last year it was a group from France, the previous year one from Canada.

“We all recognize when you’re from out of town it’s difficult,” he said. “We do anything we can to make them feel welcome and comfortable.”

Some residents host dinner parties with team members as guests of honor. The Hill Climb association also offers a mentorship program, in which experienced drivers assist new drivers with learning the system.

“It’s really a family feel on Pikes Peak,” Veitch said.

Car dealerships like Porsche Colorado Springs and Winslow BMW of Colorado Springs work on race cars, and Porsche held a meet-and-greet Wednesday night for drivers, customers and the general public.

Local automotive garages, specialty shops and body repair businesses respond to appeals for assistance and sometimes don’t charge for the services, Veitch said.

“When things go wrong, a network that runs strong and deep here pops up to help get things fixed,” Eickhoff said. “I know of people driving parts in from California.”

The motorsports circuit on standby extends from Colorado Springs, Manitou Springs and Woodland Park to Castle Rock and Penrose, she said.

Pikes Peak International Raceway south of Fountain and La Junta Raceway to the southeast make their tracks available for Hill Climb drivers to practice, and many hotels, VRBOs and Airbnb vacation rental properties offer parking lots and garages to teams.

This year’s race is expected to generate an economic impact of $12.7 million, Eickhoff said.

And 275 volunteers — 150 for the three-day race weekend that starts Friday with Fan Fest in downtown Colorado Springs through Sunday’s race, and another 125 volunteer race officials — are necessary to make the race run as quickly and smoothly as nailing a straightaway.

Gearhead hobbyist and professional machinist Tracy Zentz has been fabricating and fixing car parts for Hill Climbers in his home machine shop for years.

“It’s always something they’ve got to get done in one day to be ready for the next day and that part of it is kind of fun,” he said. “The Hill Climb happens once a year, and it’s not like you can relax — you have to make it happen, or it doesn’t.”

Growing up in Cascade, a small foothills’ community that’s the gateway to Pikes Peak, summer for Zentz meant hearing loud revving motors and getting to know people who were trying to best the mountain.

“It was always fun to be around them,” he said.

Eickhoff said much of the feedback she receives today revolves around how the event has become more than a sport.

“It feels like a family not just because of how the organization treats the racers, but how everybody in the community treats the racers,” she said. “Whenever they go someplace as a team, to dinner or wherever, people ask them questions — the community helps them feel special — and I love that.”

Driver David Donohue, who lives in West Chester, Pa., and races in the Time Attack 1 division, has made Porsche manager Brenner’s residence his home base every June since 2017, when he began pitting his skills against Pikes Peak.

“The people are inviting and fun to be with, and that’s what keeps bringing me back every year,” he said. “It’s been such a great experience.”

Donohue said he’s never failed at finding what he needs when he’s here.

“It’s nice to have so many resources nearby, whether it’s nitrogen gas for working some of our equipment or machine shop work like having brake pads milled down, they were enthusiastic to help a race car for the mountain,” he said.

As Zentz said: “It is America’s mountain.”

Contact the writer: 719-476-1656.