Mary’s Peak Hillclimb ran 1978-1994 on the beautiful road that led up to Mary’s Peak Summit. It is located outside of Philomath, Oregon just off of OR 34 that goes to Waldport.
The hill was sponsored by Willamette Motor Club of Salem, Oregon. The hillclimb was 2.235 miles long, with two wide lanes. The actual course started almost immediately on Mary’s Peak road just after it began off of OR 34. The road was (and is) a well traveled road for tourists as it goes on several more miles from the finish of the hillclimb. There is a trailhead and park with wonderful views of the surrounding area.
The tourist traffic became too much for the club to manage as they had to open the road on a frequent basis for the tourists. If there was any problems with running the cars, they made little headway before having to open it again. I believe It was abandoned for that reason.
Visit my YouTube channel to see a run up Mary’s Peak Hillclimb. (Coming soon)
Statesman Journal article, 1979 July 01
Link: Valleys Queen of Vistas – History of Mountain
Check out the newspaper articles:
1990 Aug 12 Corvallis Gazette-Times “Mary’s Peak Challenges Racing Enthusiasts (Pg 1) (Pg2)
1990 Aug 15 Corvallis Gazette-Times “Husband and Wife Win”
1980 June 03 Albany Democrat Herald
1988 Aug SOSC Newsletter “Alumni Spin Their Wheels”(p1)
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