Racing highlights from around the world from many disciplines of racing. IndyCar, F1, FD, NASCAR, V8 Supercars, TUSCC and more in this edition of RVM.
John
Great article, John! The Bristol race was alright to watch, I was hoping Harvick would catch Logano but it wasn’t enough. It was scary to see Wilson get hit in the head by that piece of debris then head into the wall; and to make things worse: Wilson passed away from due to the head injury just a while ago. RIP Justin Wilson
Next stop for the Nascar Sprint Cup: Darlington in 2 weeks!!
Great article John. RIP Justin Wilson
Sad news about Justin Wilson.
Thanks for mentioning my VIR photos! That blue Porsche one is one of my favorites. I found that the still shots came out better than the action shots; I need to work on my panning technique to capture clear images. The images also go to show how important light is. When I arrived on day one it was about two hours before sunset, and the long light gave me some great photos. Day 2 was more in the middle of the day and the harsher sunlight was blowing out some of the images with hotspots. The weather itself was great for a race day; hot in the sun, but there was a nice breeze and there are plenty of areas you can find shade thanks to the trees and the structure near the food trucks. The area is fully covered by grass, which also keeps the heat down compared to the stadium parking lot used for the GRC race I attended earlier this month. Being able to park in the center of VIR was great too because after walking around for a few hours I went back to my car, turned on the A/C and shut my eyes for a bit while listening to the race announcing on the local radio station. There was the opportunity to rent golf carts to get around (I haven’t checked my stats but I’m sure I walked over 15,000 steps per day), but I was fine without one - you’re not supposed to take them right up to the fence line (I think) anyway. Given the size of the course and area there was plenty of space to plop down and just watch the race, with plenty of speakers and video monitors to help keep tabs on the race.
One tip I’m sure you’ll hear from anyone who attends races like these - bring earplugs (and a hat and/or sunscreen). They’ll vastly improve your enjoyment of the day without diminishing the roar of the cars too much. And to me, the sound of the event is one of the primary reasons to attend these races. It’s just unbelievable compared to what you hear on tv. The decibels can be pretty brutal if you stay along the fence line without ear protection.
Also, for places like VIR that are located in fairly rural regions, be sure to book early if you plan to stay overnight locally. The hotels filled up quickly and I had to get a place pretty far out of town. Combined with my not-a-morning-person tendency, I ended up missing the autograph session on the morning of day 2. But I did get to participate in the fan walk in pit lane to get right up close to the cars on the grid before they started the race.
I had a great time and encourage anyone thinking about going to one of these events to try it out.
1 Like
