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Shelley Osterloh ReportingA Utah man won a world championship title racing his motorcycle up the toughest hill climb in the world.
He's just returned from France where he won the Hillclimb World Trophy this month.
Sixty Riders from 12 countries competed on a treacherous 550 foot stretch of land the French call the Impossible Mountain. All but four riders tumbled back.
Jason Smith/ World Champion Hillclimber: "You come over the wall and it doesn't flatten off. It's steep, real steep with big ledges and boulders. It's nasty."
But it's what 20-year-old Jason Smith of Farmington likes. He sailed over the double jumps and the first wall, then hung on through the rocks and loose dirt to clear a 150 foot near vertical wall to become the 2006 World Champion Hillclimber.
Jason Smith/ World Champion Hillclimber: "This is my trophy I won. They gave us a medal."
Smith's win was big news in France, and some ten thousand spectators watched.
He started riding at age three and grew up watching video of his idols compete in the French Hill Climb. Now Jason and his Dad, Jeff, build the motorcycles from the ground up.
Most of Jason's competitors run on gasoline powered engines. But this one is powered by nitro methane Jason and his father have worked for years to fine tune the engine so it can handle the nitro and give him the boost of power he needs.
Hillclimbing is a family affair. The Smiths recently purchased a special trailer so they can travel the country for competitions. Jason's brother-in-law is also on his North American Hill Climbers Association team.
Judy Smith, Jason's Mother: "It's what our family does."
And winning the World Championship?
Jason Smith/ World Champion Hillclimber: "To see how happy my parents are when I come to the bottom of the hill, that alone is worth the world. It's awesome."
Smith hopes this win will draw more sponsors and help him to his next goal.
Jason Smith/ World Champion Hillclimber: "My dream is to be able to hill climb for a living."
Jason Smith won 12-thousand dollars when he captured the World Trophy. This month he's headed to New Plymouth, Idaho, for another Hillclimb competition.
