We knew from the second Red Bull announced Travis Pastrana’s record-setting Mt. Washinton run that video would soon follow. And here it is.

Piloting his Subaru WRX rally car, Pastrana not only claimed the record, but demolished the old time by 22 seconds with a 6:20.47 run – on his first try.

Check out the video after the jump for plenty of high production quality excitement as Pastrana races up the 100 turn 7.6 mile course, reaching the 6,288-foot peak.

GALLERY: Travis Pastrana’s Mt. Washington Record

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What hasn’t Travis Pastrana done in that little Subaru that could? If it wasn’t cool enough for him to fling across the Long Beach Pier for New Years, he’s gone and conquered Mt. Washington, setting a new record (by 22 seconds) that hasn’t been touched since 1998. And if the 6 minute and 20.47 second time isn’t impressive enough going up the 7.6 mile winding course, Pastrana did it on his first try.

Chilling on top of the 6,288-foot Mt. Washington probably felt much better after he realized how he destroyed the record. And to think he can probably best that time when the official Climb to the Clouds race takes place June 22-26th, 2011. The Climb to the Clouds features over 100 turns with an average gradient of 11.6%.

We’re hoping a video surfaces of the record setting run, but we’re sure there’s going to be plenty of people ready to witness Pastrana tackle Climb to the Clouds.

GALLERY: Travis Pastrana Record Setting Run At Mt. Washington

Some Formula 1 fans consider Spa to be on of the best circuits in the world. We’re not sure if Mark Weber is among those, but he certainly seems to be enjoying himself on this cool simulator designed to help him practice for upcoming races.

Weber walks us through the nearly 20 turns at the Spa circuit, showing us highlights like the famed Eau Rouge corner and the trackside hospital tent (which Weber points out with uncanny familiarity).

The video was designed as a companion to a print article available in the Red Bulletin. If you want to read it, you’ll have to go here.

[Source: World Car Fans]

Hit the jump to see the video

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The partnership between Volkswagen and Red Bull has always been an interesting one to us, given that high-energy isn’t exactly the first thing we think of when we hear Volkswagen. With the Beetle and the Bug being their staple vehicles for many years, VW has been working hard to change their brand image through exciting new products and partnerships.

Partnered up in 2004, Red Bull has been seen plastered all over Volkswagen’s Race Touareg team that we have to admit is highly successful. Starting this week at the upcoming Red Bull Air Race in Windsor, Canada, Volkswagen will in turn be plastered all over as a global sponsor with vehicles and logos. Perhaps Jorn Hinrichs said it best for Volkswagen’s expanded partnership, “At Volkswagen, we have a tradition of supporting attractive, customer-oriented and emotional events, such as the GTI meet at Wörthersee recently, which attracted around 120,000 visitors. Hence the Red Bull Air Race constitutes the ideal environment to present our brand and our sports models, like the Scirocco R, to a wider public.”

We can’t agree more with how great the Scirocco R is, and we’re happily inviting Volkswagen to confirm that it will be shown in North America for the first time soon. So whether it’s on the ground or up in the air, Volkswagen is on board with Red Bull in continuing to make their brand more exciting and less… punchy. Get it?

Here’s a story that is certainly going to get the rumors of Volkswagen‘s involvement in NASCAR started. Last week two-time DTM Champion Mattias Ekström was at Virginia International Raceway helping test a Red Bull Racing Toyota for the upcoming NASCAR race at Sonoma.

The reason for the odd match isn’t about NASCAR ambitions says Audi, but rather a driver’s dream and a sponsors request. That’s right, Red Bull Racing is the main sponsor for the No. 82 and No. 83 Toyotas in NASCAR, as well as the main sponsor for Ekstrom’s Audi DTM car. No. 83 driver Brian Vickers was ill and the car still needed to be tested, and according to Audi, Red Bull Racing USA remembered Ekstrom’s interest in NASCAR and made the request to Audi Sport.

“It’s no secret that the NASCAR series fascinates me and that it’s been a long-harbored dream of mine to drive such a car,” said Mattias Ekström, commenting after the test that, “The first hour of the test I was fighting the car a lot just getting used to the power, the weight and the fact that the car has little aero — all things that are very different for me. A few hours into the test I felt a lot more comfortable in the car and overall I think we had a really good test. I came into this test not having any experience in these types of cars, and also having never worked with the No. 83 team before, so it was really nice to see how well we all worked together. I really enjoyed my first Sprint Cup test and am glad to have had this opportunity.”

Er…. did he just say “first” test? We think so. Gentlemen, start your rumors.

[Source: Audi and RedBullRacingUSA.com]

Official release after the jump:

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Lotus has just announced that a of October 1st, former Ferrari executive Dany Bahar will take over at the helm of Group Lotus plc. Bahar moves into the position after former Lotus CEO Mike Kimberly retired in July due to health reasons.

At Ferrari Bahar worked as Senior VP of Commercial and Brand, where he oversaw not only the important job of road car sales, but also the lucrative merchandising aspect of the Italian automaker. Previous to to the position at Ferrari, he worked for Red Bull and helped organize the partnership between Red Bull Racing and Scuderia Toro Rosso with Ferrari, as well as the energy drink company’s NASCAR efforts.

“Lotus has a worldwide reputation for innovative engineering and superb sports cars that lead the world in efficiency, design and dynamics,” Bahar said in a  statement. “With the recent launch of the award-winning Evora, there is proof that Lotus is better placed than many to capitalize on the rapidly changing automotive market. I can’t wait to get my plans underway in October.”

One has to wonder if Bahar’s appoitment will usher in an era where Lotus returns its full efforts to the field of motorsports.

Hyundai continues defy doubters, setting a new world record at the world-famous Pikes Peak Hill Climb in a race-prepped Genesis Coupe. Driver Rhys Millen piloted his Rhys Millen Racing Red Bull Hyundai Genesis Coupe drift car to a time of 12:09.397 in the rear-wheel drive Time Attack Class, beating his nearest competitor by 1 minute, 23 seconds and besting even his own previous time by 22 seconds.

“Driving the Genesis Coupe for the first time at Pikes Peak in front of thousands of fans is an amazing experience,” said Millen. “Nothing compares to the pressure and thrill of Pikes Peak while competing against yourself for the record.”

Millen also said the Genesis Coupe performed superbly, even though by the summit the tires were worn down to their steel belts.

The Pikes Peak Hill Climb, which takes place annually on Pikes Peak in Colorado Springs, Colorado, starts at an elevation of 9,300 feet and finishes at an elevation of 14,110 feet – where the air is so think drivers’ reaction times begin to slow and their race car engines lose 30 percent of their power. Drivers drift around 156 corners, nearly missing guard rails and trees, while avoiding cliffs with 2,000-foot drop-offs.

2009 marks the 87th annual Pikes Peak International Hill Climb, the second-oldest motorsports event in America, second only to the Indianapolis 500.

GALLERY: Rhys Millen Racing Red Bull Hyundai Genesis Coupe

Official release after the jump:

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Red Bull’s new Cola beverage might not be as popular as the brand’s energy drink, which is strange considering it’s addictive ingredient. No, not caffeine. Try cocaine.

That’s right, during recent tests on the beverage it was found to have trace amounts (4 micrograms) of the illegal drug, prompting officials in six German states to force retailers to pull the products off their shelves.

The amount of cocaine found is too low to be a health concern, however, it is still not permitted in food or drink in Germany. Red Bull has said that is uses coca leaf extracts for natural flavor and said that no cocaine was found in the company’s own testing.

Coca-Cola is known to have once used cocaine in its drinks, however, that practice stopped in 1903. The amount used back then was significantly higher at 9 milligram.

Red Bull currently advertises its new cola drink on its Formula 1 cars.

[Source: BBC News]