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Brent Hall achieved a new milestones last weekend driving a 5 litre
Hydroplane at Tastin n' Racin. This is only Brent's second weekend driving, and his first race was at Tastin
n' Racin last year. Hall started a fundraising campaign around the event with other
AT&T employees, and raised over $4,000 for the Friends of the Children in 2008. This year, he added AT&T as
the title sponsor and 14 associate sponsors who all donated to Friends of the Children. In the 2 years to date he has
now raised over $11,000.00 for this great cause. "We are so appreciative of the support Brent and AT&T
have shown our agency. Our kids love to go to the races and the monetary support helps them to succeed throughout the year
with their mentor" stated Edgar Masmela, Interim Executive Director of Friends of the Children. www.friendskc.org Hall stated, "Everyone needs a mentor, myself included, and I was so impressed with the long term mentoring program
that Friends of the Children Organization has created that I had to figure out a way to help." Regarding
mentors, Brent has the honor of being mentored by National Champion Driver, and recent inductee into the African American
Ethnic Sports Hall Fame, Harold Mills. Brent and Harold definitely have an old school vs. new school relationship.
Brent is a promoter and looks for any way to get people excited about the sport using technology, Facebook, GPS watch, mini
onboard cameras and attending networking meetings. Harold, on the other hand, is 100% Driver, and barks at Brent on a regular
basis to make sure he gets in his office - "the Cockpit" - in order and has a systematic process for everything
regarding the boat and racing. Brent's boss Jim Lovvorn, Call Center Director from AT&T, loved watching
Harold "busting Brent's chops" after every heat. Hall said, "I appreciate Harold's style. Nowadays
in life, people get trophies for just showing up, Harold comes from the era that one only gives credit when credit is due.
Plus he is quick to remind Hall that, "You ain't no driver yet!" Harold's frankness lets me know that
when compliment comes from him, it's genuine and definitely earned, and I wouldn't have it any other way." The
question was asked of Mills, why would you throw Brent in with the five litres? That is a tough place to start.
The field is extremely competitive, and they have been known to swap paint from time to time. Harold replied confidently,
"He is learning more about driving in each heat of five litre racing than he would in multiple heats in some of the less
competitive classes." Brent is coachable, and if I didn't think he was capable of being there I wouldn't support
the decision. " Brent's wife Elsa was pretty cool, calm, and collected through all of this. In between running
an adult Family home for seniors in Bothell, Wa, www.tranquilityhomecare.com, she popped by to attend on both days. "Brent has a lot of fans at our Adult Family Home too. They all couldn't
wait for him to get home to share the results." At the end of the weekend, Hall completed his last four of
eight rookie heats and will be able to mix it up more in races to come. ERCU
article December 2009 In the Mill with BRENT HALL Family: . . . Wife Elsa; residents in their Adult Family
Home his biggest racing fans:
Herb, Dee, Jinny, Henny and Ed City he calls home:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Bothell,
Wash. Job (when not boating): . . . . . . . Director of a call center for AT&T. Adult Family Home Owner, 5-Litre hydroplane driver (well, that’s definitely
part-time right now) College football loyalty:. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Go Dawgs!Woof! Favorite current unlimited
hydro: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Oberto Favorite unlimited hydro of the past: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . 1980 Turbine Pay ‘n Pak Boats he races in ERCU: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Sold the Squire Shop, so, hmmm . . . we will see What was your first
car?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1980 VWRabbit What was your first job? . . Telemarketing – magazine subscriptions
– “For less than the cost
of a McDonalds hamburger per week, you can have six magazines of your choice . . .” Scary
that I still remember the pitch. When and how did you get involved in scale racing? . . . Pete Schille and Jon Zimmerman helped me with my first boat. It was a 1/16- scale 1985
Bubble Bud in the early 1990s. First run out, I blew it over going down the backstretch. I remember saying
that was too cool! The boat I had before that was a 1980 Pay ‘n Pak MRP hydro
sport which barely got up on plane. Have you ever had a manicure/pedicure? (come on, manlyman, admit it): . . Well, here is a boat guy for you: I once took
a Dremel to
my little toe nail because it was rough on top. I guess that counts. Coke or Pepsi? . Well, it depends on which one becomes a boat sponsor again. Classic Thunder Article
June 2009 06/16/09:
Brent's Making a Difference for Kids! HydroInsider.com recently ran this story about our very own Brent Hall, who for the last few years has been raising money
for charity as part of his effort in becoming a limited class hydroplane driver. We certainly appreciate what he is doing and are proud to see what he is doing. Brent is
a good guy and has shown signs of becoming a good race driver. Take a look at the story, it's a nice one. Brent, thanks for being a good ambassador to the sport and
to our hobby as well. (click to view the story)
Brent talking about
Career Opportunities and Childhood Dreams with a Tech-Savy Group of Students at AT&T Redmond Town Center August 2008 
Racing West Article June 2008 http://www.racingwest.com/news/articles/18174-rookie-driver-gets-high-praise-from-hall-of-fame.html HYDROPLANE Source — Namron Racing Date Posted — June 12, 2008 The "GEICO of Lakewood Presents The Namron Racing Team" 5-Litre
hydroplane sported a couple of new looks at the June 7-8 "Tastin' n Racin'" inboard hydroplane on Lake Sammamish,
in Issaquah, Wash. After repairs from a flip in Arizona and damage in Richland, white primer paint covered the boat's distinctive
red, white, blue and purple colors on the sponsons and entire canoe section. The GEICO of Lakewood hull also lost about
125 pounds in the cockpit as she flew over the mile-and-a-quarter course. But it wasn't from any repairs or a special coat
of primer paint. Thirty-eight-year-old rookie Brent Hall, from Bothell, Wash., made his hydroplane racing debut driving the
GEICO of Lakewood hydroplane at the event in place of the 290-pound owner/driver Bud McKay. And what an impressive debut it
was as he grabbed a fourth-place finish in a seven-boat APBA field -- in his very first heat of racing. Inboard hydroplane
legend Harold Mills, turned coach, was on the radio talking Hall around the course. Only thing was, the radio didn't work
once Hall left the dock - Hall was on his own on the course. “I was fine until the canopy shut,” Hall said.
“The radio made a couple of quick beeps and then I couldn't hear a word Harold was saying. I remember thinking, ‘Oh
well here goes nothing,’ and just tried to stay out of the way on the course.” Hall was briefed and debriefed
by Mills before and after each heat. According to Mills, Hall ran a clean and impressive heat. In fact, Mills said he raced
four clean and impressive heats all weekend long. It's not uncommon at all for rookie drivers to be penalized or disqualified
on the course with infractions - and those are rookies who have working radios, too. “All of the classroom education
that I gave him paid off,” Mills said with a laugh. “I bent his ear so much that I got tired of listening to myself.
To go through a whole two days of driving four heats in a very competitive class, special people coming to watch him drive,
and it's a big festival race, too, with no course infractions…what else can you say?” In the first two
heats on Saturday, Hall took things easy and just went out on the course and got the feel of the boat and experience in racing
a hydroplane. But Sunday morning, he came to race. In heat one on Sunday, Hall got the “Flying Gecko” flying and
dancing on the water, getting the attention of everyone on the shore. Not to mention an excited Mills who was sitting in turn
one as a turn judge. “To be honest my first thought when I saw him get the nose way up in the air was like that
of a dad – ‘slow down!’ – I said to myself,” Mills said.”But I realized that he was OK.
He brought her back down in reasonable time to show that he was aware of what was happening. I gave him an A-plus in that
department because he brought her down without losing any of his forward momentum. Again, the classroom study sessions paid
off.” McKay shook his head in agreement. “Your human survival instincts tell you to let your foot
off the throttle when the boat gets in the air like that,” McKay said. “But if you do that, you’re going
to blow the boat over. The smart thing to do is to do exactly what Brent did, but he still made my heart pound pretty good.”
And how did it feel inside the cockpit as Hall aired the boat out? “The boat became unusually quiet when
I was heading down the front stretch on lap three,” Hall said. “I didn't feel as though I was in danger, but I
heard from others that the boat caught some pretty good air. I remember thinking, ‘Oh that is what that was?’”
In the final heat on Sunday, Hall just took it easy and tried to enjoy the moment. “(Driving a hydroplane)
was as exciting as I thought it would be,” Hall said. “But I realize now more than ever I have a lot more to learn
and will be even more a student of the game so I can continue to improve my driving skills.” And what skills
he demonstrated. Asked to compare Hall’s first time out to his own, Mills said there’s no comparison. “Open
cockpit or closed cockpit Brent did way better than I ever could have imagined myself doing in my first time out,” Mills
said, remembering he sank his then 145 class hydro, now the 2.5-Litre Stock, in his first race. “Even my second time
out, a year later, there was no sponson walking. My sponson-walking days arrived about three years after my first race. So
what does that tell you about Brent?” And this coming from someone with more than 100 hydroplane wins under his
belt who will be inducted into the “Black Ice Hockey And Sports Hall of Fame” in August. As always, the
GEICO of Lakewood Presents The Namron Racing Team likes to put in as many race fans in the cockpit at the races as possible.
During Tastin’ n’ Racin’, there were two long breaks each day where fans were able to come into the pits.
And thanks to Hall and Mills' work with AT&T Mobility and the "Friends of the Children" (www.friendskc.org)
campaign, there was a line of children waiting to get into the GEICO of Lakewood cockpit over the weekend. Hall said
they raised nearly $4,000 -- as of Monday - for the children. “The kids were the icing on the cake of a dream
come true for me in my hydroplane racing debut,” Hall said, an AT&T Mobility manager. “Of course the kids
asked the normal questions like how fast does the boat go and was I scared? I think the biggest impression was having them
sit in the boat. I was a huge hydro fan at that age and because someone gave me a chance to be around the boats, I have continued
that love affair with this sport ever since.” ULHRA article 2008 TranquilityHomeCare.com joins
the flying ‘Gecko’ and Namron Racing Team for 2008 BELFAIR, Wash. – TranquilityHomeCare.com is the latest sponsor to join Belfair’s
GEICO of Lakewood Presents the Namron Racing Team 8-Cylinder Lighter-Than-LIGHTS racing team. The sponsorship became official
after the Unlimited Lights Hydroplane Racing Association’s Spring Training session on Lake Washington Thursday. Owned by Elsa and Brent Hall, TranquilityHomeCare.com
is a new adult family home provider offering luxury and waterfront adult family homes with top quality care for seniors in
the Bothell, Bellevue, Seattle and surrounding areas. “We’re proud to be one of the sponsors for the Namron Racing Team,” Hall said. “I
saw Bud McKay in action at the Spring Training session the other day. He is what he said – ‘the biggest, little
kid’ in the pits. He talks to the fans like they’re old friends. He was grabbing kids who were just walking by
and putting them in the cockpit. He’s a great spokesman for not only his team but for the sport of hydroplane racing.” Bud McKay, owner/driver of the GEICO of Lakewood
Presents the Namron Racing Team, said TranquilityHomeCare.com’s sponsorship allowed his team to make the trip to Firebird
Raceway, in Chandler, Ariz., for this weekend’s season opening Unlimited Lights Hydroplane Racing Association hydroplane
race. “TranquilityHomeCare.com
made a huge commitment to our team and our program that will give us an opportunity to get every point we can this season
in Lighter-Than-LIGHTS racing,” McKay said, the two-time defending series high points champion. “We’ll have
the boat out for the residents to see at TranquilityHomeCare.com during the season. This will give the residents a break from
watching Brent in the back yard running his radio controlled hydroplanes up and down the Sammamish River. I guess there are
two ‘big kids’ in this newly formed partnership.” TranquilityHomeCare.com joins GEICO of Lakewood, Wash., and McDonough and Sons Inc., as the Namron
Racing Team’s primary sponsors for the 2008 season. The GEICO of Lakewood Presents the Namron Racing Team won the 8-Cylinder
LTL high points titles in 2006 and 2007.
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