Ultra4 Royalty Loren Healy Takes El Bandito To The Clouds At The 2026 Pikes Peak International Hill Climb

If you’ve followed King of the Hammers, Ultra4 Racing, or Baja competition over the past decade and a half, chances are you’ve watched Loren Healy do things behind the wheel that most drivers wouldn’t even attempt. The Farmington, New Mexico, native has built a reputation as one of off-road racing’s most versatile talents, collecting two King of the Hammers victories, five Ultra4 championships, and countless wins across some of the harshest terrain on the planet.

But on June 21, Healy will face a challenge unlike anything he’s tackled before.

No boulders. No silt beds. No desert whoops.

Just 12.42 miles of pavement, 156 corners, and a summit sitting 14,115 feet above sea level.

Healy is heading to the 104th running of the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb, making his first-ever attempt at the legendary “Race to the Clouds” aboard RTR Vehicles’ wildly modified Ford Bronco known as El Bandito. The effort marks a rare crossover between the worlds of Ultra4 and hill-climb racing, becoming the first official Ultra4-based entry at Pikes Peak in 15 years.

From The Desert To America’s Mountain

Founded in 1916, the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb is the second-oldest motorsports event in America. The race begins near the base of Colorado’s famous mountain and climbs more than 4,700 vertical feet before reaching the summit. Drivers get only one shot. No heats. No second chances. The clock starts at the bottom and stops at the top.

While the event once featured long stretches of dirt, the course is now fully paved, transforming it into one of the most technically demanding asphalt races in the world. Altitude robs engines of power, weather can change dramatically from bottom to top, and the lack of guardrails means mistakes can carry serious consequences.

It’s a venue that has attracted everyone from rally legends and IndyCar stars to factory-backed manufacturers chasing outright records. Now, an Ultra4 champion is adding his name to the entry list.

“I’ve always wanted to race at Pikes Peak,” Healy said. “Most years I have a conflict with the Baja 500, but once I saw the schedule allowed it, I knew I had to try.”

The Perfect Weapon? Maybe Not.

At first glance, El Bandito seems like an unlikely choice for a pavement-only mountain race.

The Bronco was originally conceived as an off-road exhibition machine, a collaborative project between Healy and RTR Vehicles founder Vaughn Gittin Jr. Built on an Ultra4 4400 chassis and wrapped in unmistakable Bronco sheetmetal, El Bandito packs roughly 1,000 horsepower and enough suspension travel to swallow obstacles that would stop most vehicles cold.

In its off-road configuration, the machine carries 20 inches of front suspension travel and an incredible 26 inches in the rear. It’s a vehicle built for desert abuse, rock trails, and high-speed dirt—not apexes and pavement grip.

That meant the RTR Off-Road team had plenty of work ahead of them.

For Pikes Peak, El Bandito underwent a significant transformation. The team swapped its massive 42-inch tires for 37-inch Nitto Terra Grappler G3s, trimming approximately 35 pounds of rotating mass at each corner. Ride height was lowered by roughly six inches. Engineers removed another 200 pounds from the vehicle, revised cooling systems for the sustained uphill assault, and adjusted the suspension package to better suit high-speed tarmac performance.

The result is still unmistakably El Bandito, but one tailored for a mountain road rather than Johnson Valley.

The RTR Connection

For many enthusiasts, RTR Vehicles is best known for its Ford-based performance machines, drift programs, and Vaughn Gittin Jr.’s tire-smoking exploits. Over the last 15 years, the North Carolina company has evolved into a design, engineering, manufacturing, and motorsports powerhouse responsible for everything from production-ready Ford upgrades to headline-grabbing projects like the Mustang RTR-X, Ken Block’s Hoonicorn, and the electric Mustang Mach-E 1400.

Off-road has become an increasingly important piece of RTR’s identity, particularly through its partnership with Healy. Together, they’ve used El Bandito as a rolling showcase for what happens when Ultra4 engineering and Ford performance collide.

Unknown Territory

Perhaps the most intriguing aspect of Healy’s Pikes Peak effort is that nobody really knows what to expect.

The learning curve is steep. Pikes Peak veterans spend years memorizing the mountain’s endless sequence of corners and elevation changes. Many drivers make multiple attempts before finding their rhythm.

Healy and the RTR team have been testing extensively, adapting their off-road mindset to a world where fractions of a second matter and every corner demands precision.

“The team and I have been extremely busy testing, modifying, and learning all we can about tarmac racing,” Healy said. “Not sure what to expect, but I know I’m going to have fun.”