Lucas Bell 
If you have spent any sort of time binging car videos on YouTube, you have certainly come across the work of Ken Block, who is 52 years old now. The rally driver and drift aficionado has blown minds time and time again with his Gymkhana video series, which always feature amazing cars pulling off some unbelievable slides. Block’s sideways-and-smoky run up Pikes Peak dubbed Climbkhana back in 2017 has long been a fan favorite, in no small part due to the danger involved. Not one to be satisfied, Block has released Climbkhana 2, in which the racer takes on the most dangerous road in China in a Ford F-150.
Heaven’s Gate road located on the side of Tianmen Mountain might not be home to a motorsports event every year like Colorado’s most famous fourteener, but that’s not to say the road isn’t as harrowing. The near 7-mile stretch of pavement twists and turns 99 times, featuring a significant number of tight hairpins inches from sheer cliff-face. In order to drift his up the beautifully scenic mountain side, Block needed a serious machine for Climbkhana 2.
In steps the highly-modified 1977 Ford F-150 named Hoonitruck. While the truck might have started out as a vintage workhorse, it now features a Rally Bred AWD system, a racing sequential box, and a motorsport grade chassis. Powering this pickup truck is a twin turbo 3.5 liter EcoBoost V6 engine derived from Ford’s Le Mans-winning GTE Pro program. Free of FIA regulations, this tweaked motor features a trick direct metal 3D printed intake by Ford Performance, and produces a ludicrous 914 horsepower.
The idea of hustling a 900 + horsepower purpose-built Ford F-150 drifter around hairpin after hairpin might be anxiety inducing for some, but in the Climbkhana 2 video you’ll catch Block cracking a smile on more than one occasion. If you were a fan of the first Climbkhana, the sequel is a must see.
