Farewell pchall

[BarillaGirl]

I am so sorry to have to pass along this news, but Peter Hall (pchall) passed away unexpectedly at his home yesterday morning, September 1.

Peter was my dear friend for more than 20 years, and was my husband from 1997-2000. Our son, James, turned 12 this March. We are devastated at the news, and I will keep you all posted about funeral arrangements as soon as I can. Email me at dooleybeth @ yahoo . com if you have any questions.

He loved Off Camber and Seventh Gear. This was his happy place, where he could spout off racing history, slag the IRL, and be witty as hell about whatever he pleased.

If anyone is in the Cincinnati area this weekend and could attend Peter's services, I would be honored to meet you.

[chop456]

Stunned.

Got to hang out with Peter a few times at MO and elsewhere. He will be missed.

[datachicane]

:(

Too, too sad. I corresponded with Peter for quite a few years. He'll be missed...

[Cam]

Oh god no Beth!!! :cry: :cry: :cry:

[Kiwifan]

Bugger. :cry: I am so so sorry, Pete was a goodun and will be missed.

[cameraman]

Damn. I'm at a loss for words. He will be missed.

[Elmo T]

:(:(

Not what I expected when I opened this thread.

[Warlock!]

Damn.

He was one of the first 7th Gearheads I met... we drank waaayy too many beers at the first 7G Long Beach meet-up at Quaker Steak n Lube in Columbus. Never seemed to lose that hatred of all things IRL... I liked that.

Cheers to you, Pete... rest in peace.

[Indy]

You have my condolences. He was one of the most intelligent, witty people on the forums. He will be missed.

[opinionated ow]

:cry::(

[dando]

Sonofabitch. :cry: RIP, Pete. :(

-Kevin

[KLang]

Condolences. :(

[TKGAngel]

Wow.

Barillagirl, my condolences to you and your son and the rest of pchall's family.

[stroker]

I'm so sorry. That's horrible news. God be with you.

[G.]

Damn. I am so sorry for you and your son. :(

[Mr. Vengeance]

Thanks for all the laughs Pete. We're gonna miss you. :(

Dammit.

[Don Quixote]

:( Oh damn. I haven't seen him since the last champcar race at mid-ohio, which was a great event. Rest in peace, race fan.

[emjaya]

:(

My condolences to you and your son.

[extramundane]

Godspeed, Pete. :(

Condolences to family and friends.

[RTKar]

Dang, So sorry to hear that, may he rest in peace.

[Ed_Severson]

Wow. :cry:

I remember getting an email from Pete shortly after I first started posting at 7G. I have no idea what he wrote to me, but I remember being pretty flattered that he took the time to do it.

Never got to meet him in person, but he was a hell of a presence around here. Great wit. Will miss him a bunch.

Godspeed, Pete.

[Ripped]

Damn. RIP. :(:(

[racer2c]

My sincere condolences. Peter was a class act who always took the high road. His racing knowledge was second to none. He will be missed. :(

[Cam]

Just had message from Beth. She is having brief problems getting into here. She has no more info, but will reply to messages ASAP.

Cam. :(

[SteveH]

Oh my, what terrible news. MidOhio and marinated chicken breasts on the grill, the last time ChampCar raced there.

Peter, you'll be missed. Very much so.

RIP buddy.

[devilmaster]

loss for words...

:cry:

[devilmaster]

http://a1.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/5251_116275258761_571478761_2172779_751564_n.jpg



Son: This is what we make next.
Dad: You and whose Visa card? ;)

http://a5.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/28685_4789861348_566411348_74640_7893622_n.jpg

[Napoleon]

What sad news. I really liked reading what he had to say hear and meeting up with him at the track.

The last time I saw him must have been MO the only question would be was it a Champcar race or when some people from this board came out to see me wreck out of a race there.

[devilmaster]

What sad news. I really liked reading what he had to say hear and meeting up with him at the track.

The last time I saw him must have been MO the only question would be was it a Champcar race or when some people from this board came out to see me wreck out of a race there.

was he there? I think so, me, missy and him.

Beth, I know in our talks that he always enjoyed his son and looked forward to what adventure he was going to take him on next. My condolences to you and him...

[dando]

http://a5.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/28685_4789861348_566411348_74640_7893622_n.jpg

I was going to send you a PM to post this pic. :) I so wanted to meet up with him @ the Hofbrauhaus during one of my Bengals game visits, but it never worked out. :(

-Kevin

[Wheel-Nut]

Sad news. Prayers for the family.

[devilmaster]

this was a PM i saved from him. and basically 4 years to this date...

Re: hey hey
Who would have the bad taste to post pix with me in them? Care to name names?

Facebook and MySpace are the last places on earth that I'd think of making my presence known on the internet. It's bad enough I post at Smackforum. ;)

All's well here. Teaching at Miami of
Goddamned Ohio is getting more boring every year. My son is now 8 and one heck of a cool kid. Took him to Lawrenceburg for the sprints and midgets this summer and he was so excited he didn't get to sleep until 4am. I built a Cox .049 powered control line trainer and he flew that with only moderate crash damage. Of course, I was in the circle next to him and my older sister was the pit crew/release guy.

That's about it, except I turn 50 in October.

Quote:
Originally Posted by devilmaster
just wondering if you're on facebook at all....

I'm tagging people in photos and you are in a couple there buddy.

Hope everything is good with ya.
Steve

[Napoleon]

was he there? I think so, me, missy and him.


I think it was just you 3, or maybe I am confused and it was just you and Missy.

I have a picture of him on the hill at MO with SeanO, I think you are in it, me and someothers I will post when I get to that computer this weekend.

[devilmaster]

http://a7.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc1/7324_153362833761_571478761_2542417_1653254_n.jpg


So, what do I do when I'm not typing at my iMac? Lately I've been putting together short kits so my son can make recipe card/coupon holder to give as Christmas presents this year. Three for relatives and one for his mom. He's too far away to do this project together but I think a conference call will help. I made one of these in Cub Scouts when I was about his age. These are going to be way better. : )

[devilmaster]

http://a4.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc3/29748_402880763761_571478761_4070356_6050914_n.jpg


One of the great things about having an 11 year old son is that sometimes I get to be a kid all over again, only bigger and better at it. The bare bones of a 1/2A control line stunt plane with a reworked Cox .049 Golden Bee. Summer fun starts now!

[Spicoli]

Sad news indeed. Best to the family.

[Ankf00]

I'm sorry for your loss.

[JoeBob]

This sucks. He was always one of the good ones.

[TravelGal]

this was a PM i saved from him. and basically 4 years to this date...

Re: hey hey
Who would have the bad taste to post pix with me in them? Care to name names?

Facebook and MySpace are the last places on earth that I'd think of making my presence known on the internet. It's bad enough I post at Smackforum. ;)



But BarillaGirl is on Facebook and reaching out to racing fans there with DM's help. I was honored to be asked to "friend" so I could see an album she is putting together. If you're on FB and know others that DM might not know, contact him to relay to Beth.

This is so awful. I can't begin to imagine how awful for the family in RL but I know that here, for his cyber family, it is a huge blow. He was, as you've all said, simply "one of the good ones." Farewell Peter. I'll miss you. Marge

[TKGAngel]

I was going to send you a PM to post this pic. :) I so wanted to meet up with him @ the Hofbrauhaus during one of my Bengals game visits, but it never worked out. :(

-Kevin

I recognize dm, but who else is in that pic?

[mapguy]

Damn. Peter was one of the first people that I exchanged emails with back in the early days of 7G. :( Godspeed Pete.

[devilmaster]

I recognize dm, but who else is in that pic?

it was from when my friends and I went to cincy for a ballgame. Invited peter to meet us there. He took us to the HofBrauhaus.

Sitting beside Peter is my buddy mike who'm i've talked about here when he died in 04. Sitting beside me is my other buddy Rick.

[devilmaster]

I was honored to be asked to "friend" so I could see an album she is putting together. If you're on FB and know others that DM might not know, contact him to relay to Beth.

I wont give out Barilla's full name on here without permission, but she has started an album on her facebook page.

If you already are my friend on facebook, you've been suggested as friends with Beth. If not, PM me and i'll get you the info. (Beth told me on facebook she had to reset her OC account and doesn't have full access here till the bosses check in. That's why i'll act as go-between for now.)

[RHR_Fan]

He and Fourrunner are gonna be enjoyin' a lot of beers up in the sky. :)

Facebook can be a pain, but it saves conversations. The last one we had was him asking me why I had a s***** day and it was because this guy had broken up with me and he basically said he had a baseball bat in hand and was coming up to WI. Oh good times, as he called himself "Uncle Pete always has your back."

~Nicole

[Ankf00]

****, I completely forgot about fourrunner. :\

[devilmaster]

****, I completely forgot about fourrunner. :\

The hall of fame list keeps getting bigger, damnit... :/

[Elmo T]

****, I completely forgot about fourrunner. :\

I was thinking about him during a recent visit to Center City - all those years back we had been messaging about the likelihood of a Philly GP and the layout. :(

I never cease to be amazed at how a shared passion can make the world so much smaller.

[JT265]

The hall of fame list keeps getting bigger, damnit... :/

Sadly it does indeed. Two greater people you'd never find. Godspeed Peter. :(

[Napoleon]

Sadly it does indeed. Two greater people you'd never find. Godspeed Peter. :(

Three, don't forget oddlycalm/taildragger

Duh, and Railbird, a major reason I kept reading the racing boards. One of the funniest guys I ever saw on the boards.

[Kiwifan]

So many great friends I never met.... :( Always thought I would have met up with you guys at the track somewhere but it just never happened. *sigh*

[JT265]

Three, don't forget oddlycalm/taildragger

Duh, and Railbird, a major reason I kept reading the racing boards. One of the funniest guys I ever saw on the boards.

Very true Nappy, and my mistake. I'm sure John will bag on my ass for that one someday.

[devilmaster]

I think the hall of fame list is at 5 or 6 now. and thats just the ones we know...

MadMaxFan
Railbird
Fourrunner
Oddlycalm
Pchall

those are i ones I remember at the moment...

[Hard Driver]

Very sad news. I always respected his opinons on here. Would have liked to gotten to know him..

[Racing Truth]

****, I completely forgot about fourrunner. :\

Me too.:(:(

Pchall was a legend. Already missed.

[Corner5]

So sad...

Godspeed:(

[Opposite Lock]

Wow. Always enjoyed his knowledge, insight and wit. I regret never having met him at a race - I never really tried all that much because it always seemed like there would be another opportunity or two next year, either at RA or MO. My condolences.

[Rogue Leader]

RIP... very sad...:(

[trish]

I'm so sorry. :(

[RusH]

Sad news..condolences to everyone in the family. :(

[grungex]

Wow, this is terribly sad news indeed. :( He was truly one of the good ones... My condolences to BarillaGirl and his family.

[High Sided]

r.i.p. Pchall :(

[nrc]

Very sad to hear this. Thoughts and prayers to his friends and family.

[nissan gtp]

wow what terrible news :cry:

[Turn7]

Sorry for the families loss. God Bless you all.

[Rocketdoc]

Rest in Peace, Pete.
I have few friends on the Internet but you were one of the few, and for a long time.

God speed, Pete.

[Michaelhatesfans]

****. I didn't see that coming at all. One of the ones I never met but felt that I knew. My thoughts go out to the family.

[JohnHKart]

Utterly floored and reduced to tears when I saw this thread at work earlier today!!! But also have had quite a few laughs telling my coworker and family about the famous Futility watch, and the names of the victims in bold after qualifying. And stuff like the word "samich" and working on the race car underneath a tree with a hammer (laughing as I type this!!) Thank you Pchall...I will miss you terribly. Condolences to his family and daughter as well. Just talking about those threads has given me some good laughs today. This is very sad news.

[pineapple]

:( Stunned.

Condolences to his family...such a great guy.

[Ziggy]

Stunned........

Met him at Mid Ohio, must have been the "Jimmy Car" race.

Life sure is weird

nothing to say right now, just shocked

[Andrew Longman]

Just saw this today.


Sad. Really sad. I never had the pleasure of meeting Pete but I am thankful for many great memories and the perspective he brought to this race fan going back to 7G.

My thoughts will be with his family. :(

[BarillaGirl]

Thank you to everyone who is posting in this thread. It helps that I am not suffering alone. I cannot begin to explain how Peter was such a significant person in my life and how shattering this is to me. I honestly don't know how I am going to get through the next week of my life. :cry:

I have started a private photo album called "pchall" on my Facebook account. If you friend me there I will sort you into the only group that gets access to it. Feel free to leave comments or reminiscences there. I'll just get pictures in there as I can, over time.

And thanks to WickerBill, who got my account sorted out so I can post again! :thumbup:

As of right now I still don't know the cause of death. This being a holiday weekend for us, I'm not sure when we will. Peter's sister is making funeral arrangements and I'm working on the obituary. I proposed putting in a donation notice for Hole in the Wall as was done for oddlycalm, and Linda liked that idea. When it's published I'll post a link.

If anybody has stories or pictures, share them like mad. It helps. You all were his best friends. If anybody has questions for me, you can ask them here or email me if you'd rather keep things private.

I'm still in shock as much as anyone else. Your messages mean a lot. :cry::cry:

[Paintergeek]

I dont get here often, But heard the news elsewhere. I never met him, but know the screen name well.

What else can I say that hasnt already been said before me. My heart is with you at this tragic time in your life, and thank you for thinking of his online family so quickly and getting the message to everyone.
:(

[Hardpoint]

Very sad. Met him a couple of times at M-O and Quaker Steak & Lube. My sincerest condolences to his friends and family. :(

[swift]

:( Condolences to family.

[TRDfan]

What a loss. Never met him but he always had a kind word or a witty comeback in chats or PM's.

Too many of these things happening these days - reminds to cherish the days we have.

[Chief]

Oh my....

What profound sadness in hearing of Peter's death. My sincerest condolences to his family.

One of Pete's favorite things when he lived up here was enjoying 12 Horse Ale and eating pizza at Michelangelos. It was something we had in common...I shall hoist several pints in his honor.

It was a great honor to have known him...he will be missed by all.

RIP pchall, godspeed.

[WickerBill]

There are certain names at any internet forum that are cornerstones, and pchall was one here at OC. This is sad news, and my thoughts are with his family and those who knew him well. I didn't -- I've only met four people total from here -- but I'm grateful for his contributions over the years to OC.

[Anteater]

Shocked and saddened to read this news; pchall's witty posts have kept me entertained for 11 years (7G and here). My deepest condolences to BarillaGirl, her son, and the rest of Peter's family and friends. He will be missed here for sure. :(

[Insomniac]

I am so sorry to hear this news. You have my condolences. May he rest in peace. :(

[Duroc]

Well...s#%t.


RIP Mr. Hall.

[rocket]

I was lucky enough to meet him a couple times...Life's too short.


Condolences to his family and friends.

[Gnam]

I will miss his posts. :(

[Greg B]

I'm amazed & sadden that after reading his posts for years I never knew he lived less than a mile from me.

[BarillaGirl]

Greg, I will be at the house again today to sort through things. If you feel like stopping by, I'd be glad to meet you.

[BarillaGirl]

I think this will give a link to Peter's obituary. There is an online guest book as well.

http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/cincinnati/obituary.aspx?n=peter-hall&pid=153489139

:(

[Cam]

Obit (http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/cincinnati/obituary.aspx?n=peter-hall&pid=153489139&refsvce=facebook#.TmepCZUfHMI.facebook)

Godspeed Professor. You are one of the first 2 I expect to greet me like this http://www.smackforum.net/images/smilies/cheers.gif when it's my turn. A tome of wit, wisdom, sarcasm and most of all knowledge has been left behind with your leaving us and equally as much will now be left unsaid.

You will be dearly missed. http://www.smackforum.net/images/smilies/bananalama.gif

Cam. :(

[nissan gtp]

I think this will give a link to Peter's obituary. There is an online guest book as well.

http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/cincinnati/obituary.aspx?n=peter-hall&pid=153489139

:(

thanks for that link, and, again, condolences.

[devilmaster]

Got a txt from BarillaGirl earlier....

It was a very nice ceremony, and the rain held off. She said that a mutual friend showed up who is a big OW fan, so she felt like someone from 'our team' was there.

[BarillaGirl]

I'm back home in Wisconsin again. My present husband finally offered his condolences on the "loss of my long-time friend" without naming names. Some people just don't get it. :(

I think watching the Italian GP is going to be tough for me... but I will do it eventually and chime in if I can --- therapy. I do hope somebody else can take over Foyt Futility for the rest of the season. I would do it if someone wanted me to, but I'm not ready for that yet by a long shot.

Thanks to devilmaster for his chats and texts... you helped hold me together, Steve. I am grateful.

[Winston Wolfe]

wow! I too am shocked by this sudden bad news.
Definitely one of the good ones here and back at 7G.
After reading info on the obit, there is lots of recent sad news in the family.
My condolences to the family and especially to that 12 y.o. son of yours.
He was a race fan through and true. RIP, pchall

[BarillaGirl]

Just a note.... I inherited Peter's computer and have it set up to use my home network, but when I try going to the places I'm used to going (Facebook, OC, etc.) it is automatically logging me in first under his account. I was a bit disoriented to realize I was controlling his Facebook wall for a minute there. :saywhat:

I just wanted everyone to know that, in case they logged in here and saw his name as someone who was online. :eek:

Update time: no update. Every day is hard for me and for James, and we still don't know the cause of death. But I am coming across nice pictures to scan in for the private Facebook photo album, so friend me (Elizabeth Lamb Dooley) on FB if you'd like to see them.

[BarillaGirl]

For some reason tonight is a particularly lonely night, thinking about and missing Peter. Messages, posts, and texts are all welcome. :(:(:(

[Michaelhatesfans]

I am coming across nice pictures to scan in for the private Facebook photo album, so friend me (Elizabeth Lamb Dooley) on FB if you'd like to see them.

I just sent a request. I'm the Brian from Portland with the Guinness profile pic. I never had the pleasure of meeting Peter, but I would love to see the photos.

It's funny the connections that you make with people here that you've never even met face to face...

[BarillaGirl]

For those who wanted it, this is the original obituary I wrote for Peter. Unfortunately, we were told this would have cost us more than $1000 to publish in the paper. (Why? I have no idea.)

The September 1 date of death is wrong, but we still don't know the correct date. At any rate, it's a date that will be easy for us all to remember.

---

Peter Clayton Hall, 54, passed away unexpectedly September 1, 2011. He was born in Washington Court House, Ohio, on October 14, 1956, to Clayton Milton Hall and Elfriede Lorenz Hall. As a member of an Air Force family he lived in Japan, Germany, South Dakota, and Cincinnati, Ohio. He was a 1974 graduate of Aiken High School in Cincinnati. He graduated from the University of Cincinnati in 1978 with a B.A. in English literature (honors). He attended graduate school in English at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, where he received an M.A. in 1987 and a Ph.D. in 1989. He particularly enjoyed teaching freshman English and encouraging his students to think critically. He also taught English classes at Miami University's Hamilton campus, Ohio Northern University, Xavier University, and the University of Wisconsin-Waukesha. He loved Reds baseball, sci-fi movies, classic open-wheel racing, designing and building remote-controlled scale aircraft, and cooking fine meals for his friends. Peter was preceded in death by his father in April 2009 and by his mother in February 2011. He is survived by his sister, Linda C. Hall, his former wife, Elizabeth Lamb Dooley, and his beloved son James Clayton Hall; his Miami University colleagues Richard D. Erlich, Bill Hardesty, Jean Lutz, Hugh Morgan, Kerry Powell, and Jerry Rosenberg; and his fellow open-wheel racing fans in online communities Seventh Gear and Off Camber. Graveside services will be held at noon, Thursday, September 8, 2011, at Spring Grove Cemetery. Donations may be made in his name to The Hole in the Wall Gang Camp, main page http://www.holeinthewallgang.org/page.aspx?pid=525.

[racermike]

My condolences .. just checked into forum after being busy working for last few weeks.

I hate it when I return to find out this kind of news, Peter was a very nice guy and enjoyed some of the talks we had.

[BarillaGirl]

It's official.... the coroner determined that Peter died by choking on a bite of his steak dinner. However, they didn't bother to determine a correct time or date of death. I guess it's not important to anyone but me and his sister. I don't know if there's much we can do to find that out. :confused:

I have mixed feelings. In terms of ways to go, I guess eating steak isn't so bad. But having performed the Heimlich maneuver on Peter several years ago while we were having dinner at one of our favorite restaurants, I can't help but think that if I had managed to still be in his life, he would still be with us right now. :(

[Kiwifan]

Sorry to hear that Girl. I choked on a piece of steak a few years ago when someone made a joke just as I was eating. Luckily my wife was there to help.

Thoughts are racing through my head about this but further comments would seem insensitive.

DON"T go blaming yourself, we can't always be near to protect our loved ones.

Take care.

Rusty.

[Indy]

My thoughts are with you, BarillaGirl. It's NOT your fault.

[Andrew Longman]

BarrilaGirl, everything happens for a reason. A zillion things could have happened differently that wouldn't have even put him there at that time with that steak -- or the two of you together for however long to produce a pretty cool kid who is loved -- or all the other lives Peter touched in person (and cyberspace :gomer:).

Be at peace.

Great obit, BTW. I hope I am worthy of as much.

[diamond dave]

very late and very sincere thoughts to you, your son and his family:(
not sure if I ever met him at a race weekend but have enjoyed his post via internet.

rip pchall