Back at the last Halletts in Havasu in October, there were a couple of boats that stood out. We’ve already done a feature on the Eddlebrock Hallett Vector, but now its time to take a look at Tim Keck’s beautiful, yellow, 1989 Hallett Vector.
Tim had been looking for his next project, but was being patient in his search. He was looking at an Eliminator, but ended up passing on it just the day before, thinking it just wasn’t right for him. The next day a Craigs list add popped up with a Hallett Vector for sale. Noticing the ad had just been posted only 1 minute earlier, he click on it. Shocked at the listing price, he quickly gave the guy a call. Although the ad was listed in LA, the boat was actually located in Carmel valley.
Assuming it’s a scam, he asked the seller to verify who it belonged to, and Facetime him to confirm. Everything appeared to check out so he offered to wire money on the spot so someone else didn’t snap it up. The seller said he didn’t need a deposit and he would hold it for Tim to come and pick it up. With the boat virtually his, he woke up early the next day and made the drive (6hours, one way) to pick it up. He said when he arrived… “the boat was damn near flawless. 80 something original hours. A time capsule. The trailer was tattered from the salt air but that was about it.” At that point, he paid the guy, drug it down the street for some new trailer tires, and towed it the 6 hours back home that night.
What was so special about this boat? Well, it was originally built for Nick Marotta in 1989 to race in “stock class”. Nick was an avid ski racer from 60s into the 90s from central Ca Carmel valley. He was actually the developer that created Carmel valley as we know it today. The first set of Majaraja high-wrap boots were made for him. I’ve been told it held the record for the Catalina unblown stock class from 89 on, until they did away with that class. It’s also rumored that Mike Avila used to practice behind it at some point. Later he would find out why Nick won most races he ran it in.
So back to the boat.
When Tim got it home, he changed impeller and ran it for 2 seasons, untouched. Then one day in 2015, while racing a Howard down river after the Billy B show at pirates… BOOM!… The motor blows. And so it all began. He promptly set out to build a new motor, but as these things go, it was like… “hey if we’re doing a new motor, we might as well add full hydraulic lines.” But then… “hey, If we’re doing hydraulic lines, we need to move the exhaust.” Then, “crap, moving the exhaust means filling in the transom”… and so on and so on. “This went on for years – two steps forward, one step back – until we ended up with an over the top, better-than-new, one-off Hallett Vector,” Tim says. It’s the kind of build that the average person would only see and say… “yep, that’s cool.” But it’s much, much more than that. it’s truly a work of art. It’s also the reason the boat earned its appropriate name change, going from “Mellow Yellow” to “Two Step”.
About the Build.
The Boat was capped front and rear, and the transom filled by Blas Montez in lake Elsinore, CA. Ron’s in Havasu ended up regelling most of the boat and removing the hockey sticks. They also replaced the stringers, floor and bulkheads and smoothed the bilge, floors, and underside of deck.
It has full air-ride suspension seat bases with Fox Shocks for a comfortable ride.
Other features include:
• A custom built, one-off shifter
• One-off, one-piece billet pedals
• Custom, push bottom panel for switches
• Hidden keyless ignition
• Powder coated stainless rub rails
• Custom, one-off billet battery box with switch under rear seat
And the list goes on and on. There is very little on this boat that can be ordered from most suppliers. It even has a one-off custom road dolly trailer by Adrenaline.
There were many individuals and various companies that helped make all of this possible. Tyler Coletta in Havasu did many of the one-off billet parts, as well as SB products who also fabricated some of them. Bill Sturgis Arko did all the interior – one of the last boats he did. Others include Eddie marine and Bob at West Marine. And of course, for Power, it’s now got a little triple nickel 555ci with an Imco SC drive built by Max Machine Works.
AJ at Barrett Marine did all rigging and helped coordinate a lot of the custom parts. And according to Tim, “he also dealt the most with my… ‘nope, it still ain’t right’ attitude for years. He probably deserves the biggest thanks of them all.”
This boat was clearly a labor of love for Tim. His Intent is to eventually honor Nick Marotta by running his number “999” at local races in Havasu / Parker. He also plans to use it in Havasu for fun, and keep it in the family until the next generation is ready to take it over.
So what exactly was it that enabled Nick to win all of those races? Well, according to Tim, Nick was sneaky. Back then, the motor was dressed as a 502, but it was not stock inside. And the hull itself was laid up with less than half the stringers, half the floor, etc. It was basically a light lay up with hidden power which was running in the high 80s as “stock” with a 502.
Tim’s Vector was definitely a stand out at this year’s Hallett’s in Havasu, and we thank him for sharing his story with us.
Tim had been looking for his next project, but was being patient in his search. He was looking at an Eliminator, but ended up passing on it just the day before, thinking it just wasn’t right for him. The next day a Craigs list add popped up with a Hallett Vector for sale. Noticing the ad had just been posted only 1 minute earlier, he click on it. Shocked at the listing price, he quickly gave the guy a call. Although the ad was listed in LA, the boat was actually located in Carmel valley.
Assuming it’s a scam, he asked the seller to verify who it belonged to, and Facetime him to confirm. Everything appeared to check out so he offered to wire money on the spot so someone else didn’t snap it up. The seller said he didn’t need a deposit and he would hold it for Tim to come and pick it up. With the boat virtually his, he woke up early the next day and made the drive (6hours, one way) to pick it up. He said when he arrived… “the boat was damn near flawless. 80 something original hours. A time capsule. The trailer was tattered from the salt air but that was about it.” At that point, he paid the guy, drug it down the street for some new trailer tires, and towed it the 6 hours back home that night.
What was so special about this boat? Well, it was originally built for Nick Marotta in 1989 to race in “stock class”. Nick was an avid ski racer from 60s into the 90s from central Ca Carmel valley. He was actually the developer that created Carmel valley as we know it today. The first set of Majaraja high-wrap boots were made for him. I’ve been told it held the record for the Catalina unblown stock class from 89 on, until they did away with that class. It’s also rumored that Mike Avila used to practice behind it at some point. Later he would find out why Nick won most races he ran it in.
So back to the boat.
When Tim got it home, he changed impeller and ran it for 2 seasons, untouched. Then one day in 2015, while racing a Howard down river after the Billy B show at pirates… BOOM!… The motor blows. And so it all began. He promptly set out to build a new motor, but as these things go, it was like… “hey if we’re doing a new motor, we might as well add full hydraulic lines.” But then… “hey, If we’re doing hydraulic lines, we need to move the exhaust.” Then, “crap, moving the exhaust means filling in the transom”… and so on and so on. “This went on for years – two steps forward, one step back – until we ended up with an over the top, better-than-new, one-off Hallett Vector,” Tim says. It’s the kind of build that the average person would only see and say… “yep, that’s cool.” But it’s much, much more than that. it’s truly a work of art. It’s also the reason the boat earned its appropriate name change, going from “Mellow Yellow” to “Two Step”.
About the Build.
The Boat was capped front and rear, and the transom filled by Blas Montez in lake Elsinore, CA. Ron’s in Havasu ended up regelling most of the boat and removing the hockey sticks. They also replaced the stringers, floor and bulkheads and smoothed the bilge, floors, and underside of deck.
It has full air-ride suspension seat bases with Fox Shocks for a comfortable ride.
Other features include:
• A custom built, one-off shifter
• One-off, one-piece billet pedals
• Custom, push bottom panel for switches
• Hidden keyless ignition
• Powder coated stainless rub rails
• Custom, one-off billet battery box with switch under rear seat
And the list goes on and on. There is very little on this boat that can be ordered from most suppliers. It even has a one-off custom road dolly trailer by Adrenaline.
There were many individuals and various companies that helped make all of this possible. Tyler Coletta in Havasu did many of the one-off billet parts, as well as SB products who also fabricated some of them. Bill Sturgis Arko did all the interior – one of the last boats he did. Others include Eddie marine and Bob at West Marine. And of course, for Power, it’s now got a little triple nickel 555ci with an Imco SC drive built by Max Machine Works.
AJ at Barrett Marine did all rigging and helped coordinate a lot of the custom parts. And according to Tim, “he also dealt the most with my… ‘nope, it still ain’t right’ attitude for years. He probably deserves the biggest thanks of them all.”
This boat was clearly a labor of love for Tim. His Intent is to eventually honor Nick Marotta by running his number “999” at local races in Havasu / Parker. He also plans to use it in Havasu for fun, and keep it in the family until the next generation is ready to take it over.
So what exactly was it that enabled Nick to win all of those races? Well, according to Tim, Nick was sneaky. Back then, the motor was dressed as a 502, but it was not stock inside. And the hull itself was laid up with less than half the stringers, half the floor, etc. It was basically a light lay up with hidden power which was running in the high 80s as “stock” with a 502.
Tim’s Vector was definitely a stand out at this year’s Hallett’s in Havasu, and we thank him for sharing his story with us.
