Adrenaline At A “Buck Eighty”
I had a great time when I visited Virginia International Raceway for a day of practice runs with a group of Superbike road racers that primarily ride Ducati bikes.
I have a bunch of pictures up on the OffWing Flickr group, click here to view.
The phrase, “buck eighty,” was used at the early morning track briefing referring to the speed (180 mph) that some folks hit on the straight away section of the track. The safety briefing went over issues from the previous day and helped me get acquainted with the track.
Preparation for the shoot started about a month out from the day at the track. I first checked with the raceway for any limitations or special access that I would be required. Because they were just practice runs red-tape was at a minimum.
The next steps were typical preparation that I go through for a shoot:
- Image Research: Go out there and do an image search on the topic of your shoot. I will look at the wire services, Getty Images, Photoshelter, etc. Because of the specialty subject in this case I also checked out Flickr.
- Are there special lighting issues?
- Do I need special equipment?
- What angles and techniques do I like?
- Equipment Inventory: What do I need for this assignment? I also make sure that everything is in good working order.
- Shoot List: I get very excited in the moment, so I need to prepare beforehand by creating a shoot list of things that I want to try on the assingment.
Race Day
I am out with a buddy of mine today at Virginia International Raceway, trying my hand at shooting motorcycles flying down the track at upwards of 170mph.
I am going to add a gallery a little later. I gotta get back out to the track and shoot the rest of the afternoon……later.
