An Adrenaline Junky’s Dream

A speedy racecar is only as cool as its graphics, and whether or not speed is more important than style is a rivalry that may never be settled – especially at the Spring Mountain Motor Resort, located just west of Las Vegas. An automotive playground allowing grownups to experience the childhood dream of being a racecar driver, the resort is home to the Ron Fellows Performance Driving School and the Radical Racing School, and it offers four miles of track and more than 20 configurations sure to please any adrenaline junky.

Looking to get a piece of the race action: the Silverton Casino Lodge Hotel in Vegas, which features three promotional cars at the track for its guests to race. The hotel wanted its rare sports car, a Lotus Exige, to not only be faster than its other two cars, but also be sleeker and boast more eye-catching graphics. It contracted with Altitude Color Technologies  to wrap the Exige.

Using Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator, Altitude art director Kellie Kowalski designed the Silverton-promoting wrap. In creating the casino-themed design, Kowalski traced images of dice, speedometers, and playing cards using Illustrator. “The stock photos can get pricey, so anything she can make herself saves the company on costs,” says Altitude’s Amy Terrile. Because of the Lotus’s uncommon status, Kowalski was tasked with creating a Lotus template from scratch.

The design was proofed using a small hard copy onto the media of choice. Then, for final output, the shop produced the graphics in 60-inch horizontal panels using its EFI Vutek UltraVu 2360 onto 150 square feet of 3M Controltac 180C vehicle vinyl. “We install this material to all high-end vehicles because it’s suited for the complex curves,” says Terrile. The graphics were finished with an AGL 64i laminator and 3M Scotchcal Overlaminate 8518. The shop worked quickly to print, laminate, and hand-cut the graphic in a single day.

It was the Exige’s detailed curves that provided Altitude with its biggest test, and something that the shop struggled with. “Making sure all of the panels lined up was a challenge. We wanted to ensure the final product looked identical to the proof,” says Terrile. Despite the complications, however, two installers managed to complete the wrap in less than eight hours.

Altitude Color Technologies
altitudecolor.com