First Track Day at Hallett, LOTS OF PICS - LotusTalk

rugger1345 · 08-26-2007, 07:27 PM

I figured since this was mostly a picture thread, it would go in here as opposed to the Track forum. Anyways.

Hallett Motor Raceway:

A 1.8 mile road course nestled in some hills about 45 minutes west-northwest of Tulsa, OK. Once a month they open up the track for track days they call High Speed Touring. It's really cheap at $95/day and you get 5 15 minute sessions
I arrived at the gates at 7:30 and took up some grass next to the guy who organizes this! EDIT Turns out Randy is a EliseTalk member I was pretty pumped up to set up next to an Ariel Atom fanatic who was sharing a shed with a guy who was running some impressive laps in his race-prepped Miata. Anyways, after a classroom session we went out on the track and I was dreadful. I have owned my Elise for a little over a month and haven't pushed it to its capabilities and was still nervous about the experience. I haven't run on a track at all much less this one so I was missing the late apex over and over, as well as mis-timing my shifts, and turning in too hard or too soft in the beginning. I was a mess. I went out with an instructor for my second session and even though we were going "slower" my times went from a best of 1:50.2 to 1:47.3. I opened up on my third session a bit more and got a best of 1:42.0. I gradually improved and had best times in the last two sessions of 1:41.2 and 1:40.5. Anyways, on to the pictures, the full set of which can be access here.

Looking out from the Atom's hangar where my Elise is located:

Looking out to the right from the Atom's hangar:

Interior of the Atom focused as clear as ever with my 5 year old 2MP Samsung POS:

This poor guy had a rod bearing fail on him during the session. It's a 1990 Lotus Esprit SE with the Turbo-4

The interior on that Esprit was so comfortable and so... British

These picture are from right behind the Atom's hangar. This is the straight coming up from turn 9, which is officially named "The Bitch":

The 007 car was the one right next to the Atom. He brought his whole family out and were just great people.

The 911 is *fixed*giving the pit in signal to inform the the Atom.

Turn 9... The Bitch

The poor Miata doesn't know what's coming...

Catching out the 300ZX

I'm the third car back here:

A shot of me in the far background coming through the turn 2-3 sequence:

Walking around the infield of the track:

Finally, I bought the $40 cd from the professional photographer. Here are a few shots of my car:

Rest of the pictures are here.

Z-dculus · 08-26-2007, 07:51 PM

great shot of that porsche carrying that tire!

Toad · 08-26-2007, 08:00 PM

Great pics thanks! Hallett looks like a great track;a somewhat undiscovered jewel. Some of the guys do Cvar events at that track. Would love to do a DE there.

mikelr · 08-26-2007, 08:24 PM

That's quite a collection of cars there, looks like you guys had a lot of fun.

dukenyc · 08-26-2007, 09:17 PM

Looks like it was great day.

Where did you get the lotus theme numbers for the car? Is it painted on, or a sticker?

Thanks for posting the pics.

rugger1345 · 08-26-2007, 09:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dukenyc

Looks like it was great day.

Where did you get the lotus theme numbers for the car? Is it painted on, or a sticker?

Thanks for posting the pics.

From SweetDaddyDelicious link

They are static numbers. All I did was put a little bit of water on the doors in the area where I wanted the numbers and when that was dry I had someone hold the numbers up as I pushed them down and out to the sides with a microfiber cloth to work out all the air bubbles. They stayed on perfectly and then came right off at the end of the day as soon as I used my fingernail to get under an edge.

Shawn C · 08-27-2007, 05:13 AM

Amazing pics!

"The 911 is waving the Atom past. This was part of the High Speed Touring which is friendly lapping so everyone is to be courteous and not hold up faster drivers."

That guy was giving the Pit In signal. Not a point by.

ace10 · 08-27-2007, 06:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rugger1345

I'm the third car back here:

nice pics.

is that a lexus ls catching you through that turn?

ZTEC · 08-27-2007, 06:36 AM

Awesome Pics - Thank you for sharing, You are addicted now

JimK · 08-27-2007, 06:39 AM

nice pics, looks like a nice track. Did they let the Atom run without fenders?
No roll bars required for the Mustang and Miatas?

gobuffs · 08-27-2007, 07:26 AM

The one thing I don't like about HST at Hallet is the lack of in car instructors.

When I was up there a few years ago, the kid driving that RX7 was like 13 IIRC (should be about 15 now) was FAST. the kid can drive. Funny thing is, his dad would tow the car to and from grid with a golf cart. The kid could barely see over the steering wheel.

rugger1345 · 08-27-2007, 08:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JimK

nice pics, looks like a nice track. Did they let the Atom run without fenders?
No roll bars required for the Mustang and Miatas?

No fenders on the Atom, and no roll bars for the cars in the High Speed Touring. HST is pretty much run what you bring. There were plenty of race-prepped Miatas there for a 2hr race later that day. All the cars racing in the COMMA series out there have to be fully race prepped.

Also, that car catching me was a nearly brand new BMW 335xi. He was amazingly fast and I waived him on by in the front straight. The guy was also a very capable driver. He used to bring an old 750i V12 out to the track which I imagine was quite difficult to corral.

shay2nak · 08-27-2007, 10:46 AM

thanks for posting all those pics!

TaylorSandbek · 08-27-2007, 10:50 AM

Wow is the Ariel yours? A beautiful and fast trackday car ..

Looks like fun! If it werent so far away ..........

rugger1345 · 08-27-2007, 11:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TaylorSandbek

Wow is the Ariel yours? A beautiful and fast trackday car ..

Looks like fun! If it werent so far away ..........

Not mine, but a man can dream. I did have two bad things happen to me out there. I lost a wheel cap ($22 for a replacement, ugh) and my brakes went really really mushy towards the end of the day. A few people told me my DOT4 brake fluid was probably boiling, putting bubbles in the line and causing the mushyness. It was real, realy scary coming into "The Bitch" and having the pedal go all the way to the floor to brake hard (which it did, thank God). I know a lot of people here use the Red Line or Motul stuff, and I guess it is for that purpose. My next addition will be that and the Porterfield R4-S pads on the front.

TaylorSandbek · 08-27-2007, 11:07 AM

$22 doesnt seem like too much for a whole day of driving

And the Ariel! =

Twebb · 08-27-2007, 07:44 PM

Sorry I could not make it out this past weekend. I ended up having to work.

I'm glad that you had a great time. Hallett is one of the best kept secrets in the motorsport world. The track is challenging and relatively safe, although a 997 put it on the roof on Sunday.

The Atom is owned by a friend of mine. We have put many days on the car at Hallett. To give you an idea of times, we have run 22s in the Atom going the direction you went this past weekend, CCW.

For those of you who want instructors, we now offer a driving school with instructors. I run the HST program. Just let me know in advance that you are attending and I will see to it that you are well taken care of.

If you do decide to make it to Hallett, plan in advance since the school/HST is now filling up early. July and August are usually no a problem since people have a tendency to stay away from the heat. September will be a different story.

We would love to see a lot bunch of Loti at the next HST!

Cheers.

Tim Webb

Toad · 08-27-2007, 07:56 PM

Do yall have a link for your school? Although that's quiet a drive from Houston I'm interested in the track..thanks.

AtomFest · 09-25-2007, 01:13 PM

Rugger: Enjoyed meeting you and seeing your awesome car! Thanks for the nice pics. We'll be there again on the 29th. Will you be able to make it? Also, try and come to AtomFest if you can. It will be awesome!

www.AtomFest.net

CosmosMpower · 09-25-2007, 01:16 PM

This wasn't with the Miatas this past weekend was it? My friend turned a bunch of 1:37's on street tires in his bolton 94 Miata.

08-26-2007, 07:27 PM	#1 (permalink)
rugger1345 Simplify and Add Lightnes Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Oklahoma City, OK Posts: 133	First Track Day at Hallett, LOTS OF PICS I figured since this was mostly a picture thread, it would go in here as opposed to the Track forum. Anyways. Hallett Motor Raceway: A 1.8 mile road course nestled in some hills about 45 minutes west-northwest of Tulsa, OK. Once a month they open up the track for track days they call High Speed Touring. It's really cheap at $95/day and you get 5 15 minute sessions I arrived at the gates at 7:30 and took up some grass next to the guy who organizes this! EDIT Turns out Randy is a EliseTalk member I was pretty pumped up to set up next to an Ariel Atom fanatic who was sharing a shed with a guy who was running some impressive laps in his race-prepped Miata. Anyways, after a classroom session we went out on the track and I was dreadful. I have owned my Elise for a little over a month and haven't pushed it to its capabilities and was still nervous about the experience. I haven't run on a track at all much less this one so I was missing the late apex over and over, as well as mis-timing my shifts, and turning in too hard or too soft in the beginning. I was a mess. I went out with an instructor for my second session and even though we were going "slower" my times went from a best of 1:50.2 to 1:47.3. I opened up on my third session a bit more and got a best of 1:42.0. I gradually improved and had best times in the last two sessions of 1:41.2 and 1:40.5. Anyways, on to the pictures, the full set of which can be access here. Looking out from the Atom's hangar where my Elise is located: Looking out to the right from the Atom's hangar: Interior of the Atom focused as clear as ever with my 5 year old 2MP Samsung POS: This poor guy had a rod bearing fail on him during the session. It's a 1990 Lotus Esprit SE with the Turbo-4 The interior on that Esprit was so comfortable and so... British These picture are from right behind the Atom's hangar. This is the straight coming up from turn 9, which is officially named "The Bitch": The 007 car was the one right next to the Atom. He brought his whole family out and were just great people. The 911 is fixedgiving the pit in signal to inform the the Atom. Turn 9... The Bitch The poor Miata doesn't know what's coming... Catching out the 300ZX I'm the third car back here: A shot of me in the far background coming through the turn 2-3 sequence: Walking around the infield of the track: Finally, I bought the $40 cd from the professional photographer. Here are a few shots of my car: Rest of the pictures are here. __________________ If we desire respect for the law, we must first make the law respectable. -Louis D. Brandeis DID YOU HEAR THAT, COP IN BIG LAKE, TEXAS? Last edited by rugger1345 : 08-27-2007 at 11:18 AM.

08-26-2007, 07:51 PM	#2 (permalink)
Z-dculus Derriere Extraordinaire Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: US OF A! Posts: 2,317	great shot of that porsche carrying that tire! __________________ 2006 KG-Sport Pack, LSD, TC, SS, RAC Monolites, Sector CF Roof, Carbon 3 Element Diffuser, V3 Panel eliminator (p-coated), Odyssey PC680, Boomerang , HIDs, CF Console, Multivex, Lotus Stage II, CF Zoom Rear View, Sector LidBone, Darth Holder (thanks Kestrel!), Sector 4Tress Harness Bar/CRD Mount, couple exige trim pieces- KGB Authenticated 2009 VeeDub Jetta (new kid on the block) 1978 Chevrolet Caprice Classic -(relegated to 'project car' status)

08-26-2007, 08:00 PM	#3 (permalink)
Toad A lot of stickers! Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: 30 miles due east, take a right Posts: 1,708 Images: 9	Great pics thanks! Hallett looks like a great track;a somewhat undiscovered jewel. Some of the guys do Cvar events at that track. Would love to do a DE there. __________________ Jeff Formerly known as brgm100 1991 Lotus M100 Elan 2005 Lotus Elise 2008 Saturn Astra XR 3 door 5 Speed

08-26-2007, 08:24 PM	#4 (permalink)
mikelr <[^,^]> Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Newburgh, New York Posts: 650	That's quite a collection of cars there, looks like you guys had a lot of fun. __________________ 00' S1 Exige (7.14lbs/hp) 94' S4 Esprit 07' Ram Quad cab 3500 hauler

08-27-2007, 05:13 AM	#7 (permalink)
Shawn C Registered User Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Florida Posts: 1,581	Amazing pics! "The 911 is waving the Atom past. This was part of the High Speed Touring which is friendly lapping so everyone is to be courteous and not hold up faster drivers." That guy was giving the Pit In signal. Not a point by. __________________ http://www.youtube.com/jerusdc

08-26-2007, 09:17 PM	#5 (permalink)
dukenyc Registered User Join Date: May 2007 Posts: 240	Looks like it was great day. Where did you get the lotus theme numbers for the car? Is it painted on, or a sticker? Thanks for posting the pics.

08-27-2007, 06:36 AM	#9 (permalink)
ZTEC Third Eye Open Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Florida Posts: 1,786 Images: 3	Awesome Pics - Thank you for sharing, You are addicted now __________________ GO: Vision Function Stage II Intercooled Bliss with Charlie's ECU magic and Ronin's Tenacity! STOP: DBA 4000's, Porterfield R4! TURN: Nitron S/A's Toyo RA1's 225/245 on Rota's! Knowledge is knowing a tomato is a fruit, wisdom is not putting it into a fruit salad.

08-27-2007, 06:39 AM	#10 (permalink)
JimK rooster Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Bettendorf, IA Posts: 2,153	nice pics, looks like a nice track. Did they let the Atom run without fenders? No roll bars required for the Mustang and Miatas? __________________ curator of C32B, J35Z3, J37A1, F20C. former 2ZZGE owner.

08-27-2007, 07:26 AM	#11 (permalink)
gobuffs Registered User Join Date: Jun 2006 Posts: 147	The one thing I don't like about HST at Hallet is the lack of in car instructors. When I was up there a few years ago, the kid driving that RX7 was like 13 IIRC (should be about 15 now) was FAST. the kid can drive. Funny thing is, his dad would tow the car to and from grid with a golf cart. The kid could barely see over the steering wheel.

08-27-2007, 10:46 AM	#13 (permalink)
shay2nak I'm bored...yawn... Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Land of da 1000 Oaks, CA Posts: 15,460	thanks for posting all those pics! __________________ save ~10 lbs gain 1 hp EQ: Y=(190*X) / (1984-X) where Y is (HP) and X is (lbs) '07 Lotus Exige S310 '08 Acura TSX 6-speed support WTC 2!

08-27-2007, 10:50 AM	#14 (permalink)
TaylorSandbek Registered User Join Date: Aug 2007 Posts: 79	Wow is the Ariel yours? A beautiful and fast trackday car .. Looks like fun! If it werent so far away ..........

08-27-2007, 11:07 AM	#16 (permalink)
TaylorSandbek Registered User Join Date: Aug 2007 Posts: 79	$22 doesnt seem like too much for a whole day of driving And the Ariel! =

08-27-2007, 07:44 PM	#17 (permalink)
Twebb Registered User Join Date: May 2007 Posts: 48	Hallett Sorry I could not make it out this past weekend. I ended up having to work. I'm glad that you had a great time. Hallett is one of the best kept secrets in the motorsport world. The track is challenging and relatively safe, although a 997 put it on the roof on Sunday. The Atom is owned by a friend of mine. We have put many days on the car at Hallett. To give you an idea of times, we have run 22s in the Atom going the direction you went this past weekend, CCW. For those of you who want instructors, we now offer a driving school with instructors. I run the HST program. Just let me know in advance that you are attending and I will see to it that you are well taken care of. If you do decide to make it to Hallett, plan in advance since the school/HST is now filling up early. July and August are usually no a problem since people have a tendency to stay away from the heat. September will be a different story. We would love to see a lot bunch of Loti at the next HST! Cheers. Tim Webb

08-27-2007, 07:56 PM	#18 (permalink)
Toad A lot of stickers! Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: 30 miles due east, take a right Posts: 1,708 Images: 9	Do yall have a link for your school? Although that's quiet a drive from Houston I'm interested in the track..thanks. __________________ Jeff Formerly known as brgm100 1991 Lotus M100 Elan 2005 Lotus Elise 2008 Saturn Astra XR 3 door 5 Speed

09-25-2007, 01:13 PM	#19 (permalink)
AtomFest Registered User Join Date: May 2007 Location: Arkansas Posts: 33	Rugger: Enjoyed meeting you and seeing your awesome car! Thanks for the nice pics. We'll be there again on the 29th. Will you be able to make it? Also, try and come to AtomFest if you can. It will be awesome! www.AtomFest.net __________________ Organizer of AtomFest - October 2007 =============================== Ariel Atom 245 (2) Corvette C6 FFR Cobra 4.6 S/C Mustang Cobras '94 (580 HP) '03 (535 HP)

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09-25-2007, 01:16 PM	#20 (permalink)
CosmosMpower Cone Magnet Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Dallas, TX Posts: 2,081	This wasn't with the Miatas this past weekend was it? My friend turned a bunch of 1:37's on street tires in his bolton 94 Miata.