Peter Haller
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Complete name: Peter Haller |
Birth date: 21.May.1940 |
Birth Place: Walsrode, Sachsen, Germany |
Death date: 03.Mar.1984 |
Death Place: Welkom, Free State, South Africa |
Nationality: West Germany |
Gender: male |
Age at death: 43 |
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Event date: 03.Mar.1984 |
Series: South African Formula Atlantic Championship |
Race: Goldfields 100 - Goldfields Trophy Races |
Event type: race |
Country: South Africa |
Venue: Welkom (Goldfields Raceway) |
Variant: 4.168-kilometer, street course (1970-1997) |
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Role: driver |
Vehicle type: car |
Vehicle sub-type: single seater |
Vehicle brand/model: Haller 81 - Mazda |
Vehicle number: ?? |
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Notes: Peter Haller was a German driver who lived in South Africa from 1964 till his death which happened in 1984. It is not confirmed that he acquired his new citizenship after immigrating to South Africa; most likely his nationality was West German.
A regular in the South African F1 Championship since the early 1970s, at the wheel of a Lola T140-Ford and then a Surtees TS5-Ford, Peter Haller finished 11th in the standings in 1973 and 12th in 1974. When the South African Championship switched to Formula Atlantic in 1977, he campaigned a Chevron B31 which Mazda engine was prepared by Stephen Line. Haller later modified the car by himself and raced his home-built space-frame christened as Haller 81, taking several podium finishes.
Peter Haller was killed as a result of an accident which happened at Goldfields Raceway near Welkom, South Africa, on Saturday, 03 March 1984. The Goldfields 100 event was the third round of the 1984 South African Formula Atlantic Championship
On the opening lap of the race, the cars of Peter Haller and Wayne Lahner touched wheels on the Viana Straight, the long back straight of the track. The Mazda-engined Haller 81 was thrown in the air, somersaulted and crashed into a pole, killing its driver almost instantly. Lahner escaped serious injury.
Located between Welkom and Odendaalsrus, about 140 kilometers (90 miles) northeast of the capital city of Bloemfontein in the Free State province of South Africa, the 4.168-kilometer (2.59-mile) Goldfields Raceway was opened in 1970. The circuit was active until 1997, when on the site of the former road course was created the Phakisa Freeway, consisting of an one and a half miles paved oval and a 4.242-kilometer (2.636 miles) road course.
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Sources:
- Magazine Wiel Motortydskrif, issue of April 2004 [M1].
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Magazine Classic & Performance Car Africa, issue of October/November 2014, retrieved by website https://issuu.com/classiccarafrica/docs/001_small_mag_oct_nov/62 .
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Magazine Autosport, issue unknown [P1].
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Website Racing Circuits, by Daniel King, page http://www.the-fastlane.co.uk/racingcircuits/SouthAfrica/Goldfields.html .
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Website The GEL Motorsport Information Page by Darren Galpin, page
http://www.silhouet.com/motorsport/archive/f1/nc/1973/1973.html#gol
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Website RacingCircuits.info, page https://www.racingcircuits.info/africa/south-africa/phakisa-freeway.html .
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Website Motorsport Magazine Database, page https://www.motorsportmagazine.com/database/drivers/peter-haller/ .
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Website AUTOSPORT → Forums → The Nostalgia Forum, thread "South African Drivers Championship" posting by "Rob29", message https://forums.autosport.com/topic/17829-south-african-drivers-championship/#entry320641 .
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Website AUTOSPORT → Forums → The Nostalgia Forum, thread "Formula Atlantic SA", posting by "Piet Ram", message https://forums.autosport.com/topic/55452-formula-atlantic-sa/#entry1229171 .
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Website Driver Database, page https://www.driverdb.com/drivers/peter-haller/ .
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E-mail by Marius Matthee, dated 19 September 2004, citing [M1].
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E-mail by Piet Ram, dated 18 December 2004, citing [P1].
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E-mail by Piet Ram, dated 19 December 2004.
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E-mail by Olaf Haller, dated 28 December 2007.
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