The fourth of nine Hoosier Racing Tire SCCA® Super Tour (HST) weekends is underway at Hallett Motor Racing Circuit (HMRC). It’s a highly anticipated party each year, this one taking place April 25-26, 2026, near Jennings, OK, and hosted by SCCA’s Ark Valley Race Group.
Things got rolling Saturday morning with 20-minute qualifying sessions for each of the seven run groups in cool and overcast conditions. The afternoon then saw the temperature rise a bit into the lower 70-degree range, but the cloud cover remained during 25-minute or 22-lap contests.
Mother Nature, however, decided to keep competitors on their toes beginning with the sixth run group. A light sprinkle began to fall around Hallett’s challenging 1.8-mile, 10-turn circuit in Oklahoma’s rolling Osage Hills. Before too long, rooster tails could be seen spraying from race slicks fitted on powerful GT-1, GT-2, GT-X, Touring 1, Touring 2 and American Sedan cars in that run group. After five laps, competitors were pulled into pitlane and given the chance to put on rain tires while cars that left the racing surface were retrieved. The race was then restarted.
On the bright side, the slight delay gave drivers in the seventh and final run group an opportunity to affix rain tires to their cars as weather conditions remained the same to close out the opening day of racing at HMRC.
Livin’ the Club Lifestyle after Competition
Inducted as a couple into SCCA’s Hall of Fame in 2023, Kathy and Kent Prather epitomize the perfect racing partnership. Kent was the face of Prather Racing both on and off the track, but the business and family would not have achieved its level of success without Kathy.
The husband-and-wife duo are members of Kansas Region and joined SCCA in 1979 after becoming passionate fans of sports car racing. In 2015, Kent stepped away from Summit Racing Equipment SCCA Road Racing competition for the last time, winning eight National Championships along the way.
So, what do you do after building countless friendships over 35 years and then hanging up the race helmet? You become SCCA Volunteers, of course!
This weekend at Hallett, both Kathy and Kent are enjoying their Club membership as Volunteers. Kathy can be found in Registration, and Kent is belted into the pace car.
According to Kathy, the transition from competitor to Volunteer was simply sensible. “We have all these friends all over the country, so we still had to go to races and see them. It just seemed logical to start helping out because this has been our life.
“I get to see everybody,” Kathy noted about being part of Registration. “I just like being around all the people … and seeing friends from coast to coast to say ‘hi.’”
In actuality, it was earlier than 2015 when Kathy and Kent became Volunteers. Combined, the two have worked Grid, Paddock, Tech and more. But for Kent, pace car duty is his ‘jam.’
“I just decided I still wanted to drive,” Kent said about his Volunteer preference. “For the last five years, I’ve been the Pace Car Chief for the Runoffs®.
“To be on the pace car team, you had to have been a National driver at some point,” Kent continued. “You don’t have to be a National Champion, but you’d had to have been behind a pace car at a National race, now called U.S. Majors® Tour or Hoosier Super Tour races.
“There are two jobs in a pace car,” Kent revealed. “One is the driver and the other is the communicator. Actually, the communicator job is tougher than the driver’s because they’re listening to all different voices from the tower trying to tell us when to catch a car on a safety call, what speeds to go, and it does get a little bit busy.”
Passionate about motorsport and Sports Car Club of America®, Kathy and Kent fervently support the Club of which they are members. Across decades, one activity to the next, they’ve found a wonderful family and invite others to experience the amazing adventure.
“People can come out and do so many things,” Kent said about SCCA’s Volunteer experience. “They can be Corner Works, Pit and Grid, and it puts you all right next to the cars. You can do Timing and Scoring, or you can be a Starter. If you like technical stuff you can be in Tech, or you can do Registration. There’s just so many things to do and so many people to meet. SCCA is just a really good organization and something people should get involved in.”
With a warmhearted touch of simplicity, Kathy added, “SCCA has been good to us, so we wanted to return the favor.”
Every single SCCA event around the country has countless members crafting an experience that ensures weekends run smoothly and safely. Members also get up close to the action, often mingling with drivers and getting exceptional access to fantastic cars.
SCCA strives to create opportunities for anyone who loves having #funwithcars. Interested in learning more? Just walk up to an SCCA Volunteer at any event and say “hello.” They’ll be happy to clue you in on how to get involved. A bunch more information can also be found by clicking here.
A Fast Kaleidoscope
Race cars are beautiful in many ways. Some are expensive pieces of engineering that roar around circuits. Others, combined, make for a colorful collage photographers love to capture.
One vehicle at HMRC that couldn’t be missed Saturday was the uniquely beautiful No. 15 Blue River Concrete Nissan 350Z driven by 56-year-old Stephen Johnson in the Touring 3 (T3) field. The car’s livery could be described as a kaleidoscope explosion, or perhaps a psychedelic flashback according to Johnson.
“I wadded up my Nissan 370Z at the Runoffs® last year at Turn 5, inside wall, and the car was done,” Johnson admitted. “I like running T3, so I put some feelers out for a new car. I like the Nissan Z, and now I got Derek Kulach’s old car.”
Originally, Johnson wasn’t a fan of the chaotic paint livery devised by Kulach’s offspring seeking a way to spot dad on track. But after rolling the car out for the first time at a recent U.S. Majors® Tour event, Johnson’s sentiment has changed.
“I’ve gotten more comments on this wrap than anything on the planet,” admitted the member of SCCA’s Kansas City Region. “It’s ‘oh my god, that thing is crazy when you’re on track,’ and everyone takes pictures of it all the time. It’s very strange.”
The color scheme is so attention grabbing that Johnson has mimicked the design on his paddock golf car, too. Even better, Johnson has found this vessel solid on track, especially with his Hallett history, stating, “I feel pretty happy so far with this, and think I’ll do pretty well at Hallett.”
Moving forward, the colorful scheme may or may not be too much for Johnson. “When I do screw this car up, I’ll probably paint this a different color. But it’s growing on me, and the girls dig it.”
Pretty well is indeed how Johnson performed at Hallett Saturday, finishing second in wet conditions to T3 winner Jeff Ryan in the No. 17 Island Racing/Cobizi BMW 330ci machine.
Saturday Race Winners
Below are provisional race winners from Saturday’s Hoosier Racing Tire SCCA Super Tour conducted at Hallett Motor Racing Circuit in Oklahoma. Each entry includes Car Class: Driver Name, SCCA Region, and Car.
American Sedan®: Ross Murray, Cal Club, Ford Mustang
B-Spec: Chris Taylor, South Texas Border Region, Mazda 2
E Production: Tyler Ladd, Wichita Region, BMW Z3
F Production: Stephen Simonds, Houston Region, Mazda Miata
H Production: Jesse Prather, Kansas Region, Mazda 2
Formula Atlantic®: Hans Peter, Kansas City Region, Swift 16
Formula Continental®: Bill Johnson, Kansas City Region, Van Diemen RF01 2
Formula Enterprises® 2: Darryl Wills, Houston Region, SCCA Enterprises FE2 Mazda
Formula 600: Carl Maier, Texas Region, Scorpion F600
Formula F: Cliff Johnson, Kansas City Region, Piper DF-5
Formula Vee®: Zachary Whitston, Lone Star Region, Protoform P2
GT-2: Charlie Peter, Kansas City Region, Porsche 9912 Cup
GT-X: Greg Scheideman, Texas Region, Porsche GT4 Clubsport
Spec Miata: John Salerno, New England Region, Mazda Miata
Spec MX-5: Cam Ebben, Milwaukee Region, Mazda MX-5
Spec Racer® Ford Gen3: Tyler Stephens, Northeast Oklahoma Region, SCCA Enterprises SRF3
Super Touring® Lite: Amy Mills, Northwest Region, Mazda Miata
Super Touring® Under: David Fiorelli, Texas Region, Ford Mustang
Touring 1: Michael Pettiford, Colorado Region, Chevrolet Corvette Z06
Touring 2: Christopher (Ap) Miranda, Cal Club, Chevrolet Corvette
Touring 3: Jeff Ryan, Colorado Region, BMW 330CI
Touring 4: James Ebben, Milwaukee Region, Mazda MX-5
Hallett Hoedown Ain’t Done Yet
One down, one more to go as far as action at HMRC during this year’s HST visit. Engines fire up again at 8 a.m. Central Time on Sunday, April 26, with 15-minute qualifying for each of the seven run groups. That will be followed by 35-minute or 27-lap contests to decide those who step onto the victory podium to collect trophies and cherished bottles of Mazza Vineyards sparkling wine.
If you’re in the area, come enjoy some Summit Racing Equipment SCCA Road Racing fun in person at Hallett. Spectator entry is only $10 at the gate, and those presenting an active SCCA membership card will receive free admission.
If you can’t be at Hallett, the second-best way to follow Sunday developments is to watch HST’s free online video broadcast produced by DriversEye Live and found at SCCA’s YouTube page. Announcers Brian Bielanski and Tom O’Gorman will be back to supply expert insight, and Sunday victory podium celebrations can be viewed at the Summit Racing Equipment SCCA Road Racing Facebook page.
Don’t forget that live HST Timing & Scoring is also available throughout the weekend at scca.com/live.
Photo: Touring 3 winner Jeff Ryan in the No. 17 Island Racing/Cobizi BMW 330ci car.
Photo by Tim Turner/Hallett Foto Shoppe
