AMA Amateur Championships @ MidOhio

[Chris Clark]

AMA Road Race Grand Championships at Mid-Ohio this weekend. Naturally I was there:) Should provide some good practice for The Superbike Shootout next weekend.

The weather was shit. Sorry to use profanity, but that is exactly what it was. Rain was threatening all day, the sky looked like a solid grey sheet of paper. The sun came out for about an hour before the rain came again.

As a result, I had a tough time "stopping action" with my little f4, so I decided "why fight it?" and shot slow-speed pans most of the day.

So, yeah, I'm wet, I'm cranky, and I'm ready for a beer. Here is what I got:

1.
http://themotorsportreport.com/webimages/AMAam01

2.
http://themotorsportreport.com/webimages/AMAam02

3.
http://themotorsportreport.com/webimages/AMAam03

4.
http://themotorsportreport.com/webimages/AMAam04

5.
http://themotorsportreport.com/webimages/AMAam05

6.
http://themotorsportreport.com/webimages/AMAam06

Off topic:

For those of you who have shot Mid-Ohio, or are planning on it, I learned something new today:

The holes in the catch fencing w/yellow tubing around them are NOT photo holes. They are "Driver Escape Holes" and we are not to shoot from them. Only allowed to shoot from the holes w/a black surround or no surround. Security looked kind of baffled when I pointed out that some of the holes have yellow and black tubing..... Does that mean I can only shoot from them Half of the time? Not to mention the "Driver Escape Hole" with a "Super Photo Hole" sign hanging from it...:confused:

[Jeff Kapic]

Nice shots Chris. I like 2 and 5 the best. 2 has a great sence of motion.

[Jim Sykes]

I've never had a problem shooting from yellow holes before. I always knew they were escape holes, but as long as you get out of the way when someone needs to get through, its never caused an issue as far as I know.

[Chris Clark]

I've never had a problem shooting from yellow holes before. I always knew they were escape holes, but as long as you get out of the way when someone needs to get through, its never caused an issue as far as I know.


Yeah, me too.

Matter of fact: I wasn't actually shooting "in" the hole. I was behind the catch fencing, shooting diagonally through the hole. No obstruction whatsoever, I don't even think me or my lens was technically "IN" the hole.

Security was bored I guess:confused:

[John Thawley]

This is not a slam against corner works or security, Lord knows they have a thankless job and are a very much needed presence in racing. However, I have noticed from timt-to-time they can become creative in making up "policy" as they go along. I had a guy in Portland, at 2 in the afternoon, stop... climb out his truck and walk over to tell me flash photography was not allowed. LOL - I asked him "who told you that?" He started to stammer.... to whcih I said, "exactly..... no one told you that and you don't know what you're talking about." At which point he started spewing out reasons why he "thought" I shouldn't. Again, I told him he was wrong and that I'd be happy to meet with him and the track steward after the session. He declined and went on his way.

Typcially, though... you should probably move on and find a track "official" later... let them know that there is creative policy making happening out in the field. Whatever you do.. DON'T argue with corner workers... you put the track in a tough position... they need THEM more than they need YOU.

Oh... and NEVER EVER argue with TV people. Compared to TV people, we are all children of a lesser God. LOL

JT

[Chris Clark]

Update on the Photo Hole issue:

I was shooting on the infield side of the pit straight today. All yellow holes. But, it says on the "Photographers Map" that we can shoot there, so I did. Security and a corner worker approached me and asked to see my photo credential, so I showed it to them. They said "thanks, have a good day". No mention of not shooting through the yellow holes.:)

And yes John, you are right, NEVER argue with corner workers. As a matter of practice, if the corner worker isn't busy, I usually approach them and ask if I am gonna be in their way. So far I have had nothing but cooperation. One guy told me today on the inside of turn7,"Your fine, shoot anywhere around here, if you get in our way, we'll just push you down the hill.":D

Better weather today, no rain, but crazy wind gusts. Still sorting through my catch, but this one caught my eye as an "Is this Anything?" sort of image. I don't necessarily like the image itself, but the reflection is the riders visor really caught my eye. I noticed it in a couple of images yesterday, but wasn't in tight enough to really notice it, so I went back to the inside of 7 and tried to get a few tighter shots that could really show the reflection. This is the best one.

http://themotorsportreport.com/webimages/AMAam083

What do you think? Is this worth exploring some more next week for Superbike Shootout? :)