Did Somebody Say Sebring?

Finally, some racing to write about. Even better, it's another bucket list race event for me: the Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring. I've wanted to photograph a race at Sebring for years, but this year is the first time I've been able to make it happen. Preparations have not been without a couple of hiccups, but those appear to have all been resolved and I'm ready to head south in a week with a friend of mine from Cicero, Indiana.

At LeMans in 2017; got a new helmet this week

I love sports car racing and I've especially come to love the endurance classics which feature multiple classes of cars fighting for position hour upon hour. I have photographed the Rolex 24 Hours at Daytona three different times, and I was fortunate to get credentials to shoot the 24 Hours of LeMans in 2017. I plan to go back to LeMans this August on its rescheduled date and hope to have credentials again - assuming travel restrictions between America and France are no longer an issue. Now to have the chance to shoot Sebring and support my friends at French media company MPS Agency - it's one helluva way to start my 2021 racing season.

I expect I will photograph Indycar at Indianapolis for MPSA again as I did in 2018 and 2019 at the Indianapolis Grand Prix and the Indy 500. After that, the rest of this year is wide open for me. Prior to last year, I was pretty well scheduled out with the ARCA Menards Series but that all changed in 2020 when new people came in with a different philosophy about the photography needs of the series. As a result, I had to scramble to shoot any races at all last season. Add the pandemic protocols to that and last year was quite a challenge.

At least this year, progress in overcoming Covid-19 is being made. I will be fully vaccinated in less than two weeks and the mass vaccination programs now underway worldwide give me hope that travel to France in August will be allowed so I can shoot my second LeMans and see many of the friends I  made four years ago. In the meantime, I will enjoy being in Florida for three days of sports car racing this week and savor the experience of shooting another major event on the global motorsports calendar. Maybe I'll see you at Sebring. Say hi and I'll take your picture! Safe travels everyone. Get your shot!

Winter Doldrums or Brief Hiatus?

Acura Leaves Team Penske Next Season

Now all the major North American racing series have wrapped up their seasons and the 12 Hours of Sebring just concluded the wackiest year in memory for major motorsports series in America. Sadly I couldn't shoot at Sebring this month but next March is a possibility since it fits into my teaching calendar better. I have photographer friends who were in Florida for Sebring so I just enjoyed their photos and the television coverage of this year's delayed IMSA sports car classic. Ironically, Sebring was the last major United States race of 2020 and was one of the first races postponed this year by the coronavirus. It was great to see long-time Penske Indycar driver Helio Castroneves finally win a season championship, even though it was in sports cars. He'll be back in Indycar next year with Meyer Shank Racing for six races including the Indy 500 to go after that elusive fourth 500 win which would elevate Helio to legendary status along with AJ Foyt, Al Unser, Sr. and Rick Mears.

Mazda finally won an endurance race 

I am working on scheduling race assignments for next year which might include the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona at the end of January. That would be an awesome start for 2021 and it would be my fourth Rolex since 2014. Given how virus cases are spiking across the country right now, I must say I'm a little skeptical that the Rolex will be held without restrictions on fans, media or both. Shooting at Daytona would mean a short hiatus for me from racing which I would dearly love, but like seemingly everything else these days, planning must remain flexible so I won't be booking any flights or hotel rooms anytime soon. Watching Mazda win at Sebring over the weekend was satisfying since the marque has consistently had beautiful machines since joining the prototype ranks in 2014, which was ironically the first year I shot the Rolex 24. Even though I'm personally a Honda/Acura guy, I've had several of my Mazda prototype photos used in Autosport Japan magazine so they hold a special place in my heart.

Will Tony Kanaan return to the 500  in 2021?

I have three main goals for my 2021 racing photography. First, shoot the Indy 500 again. To do so, I need a team or media assignment and I will be in hot pursuit of that the next few months. Second, I must get back to the 24 Hours of LeMans, preferably as a credentialed photographer, but that will take some work. Absent credentials, if travel to Europe is allowed, then I will go as a spectator anyway as I know plenty of places where I can still get photos of this epic event. On top of that, I have friends in France now that I'm dying to see again. Third, I'd like to continue my relationship with the ARCA Menards Series in support of their marketing efforts and hope to do more than the one race I got to shoot this year

LeMans is calling with echoes of 2017

I have other photography goals for next year, including doing more assignments for Speedway Illustrated magazine and promoter Track Enterprises that I hope will involve dirt track races in USAC or other open wheel series. Of the seven races I shot this year, four were on dirt tracks and I loved them. They took me back to when I first started shooting races but more importantly, they reminded me of how my love of racing was originally sparked by my Grandpa Jay Shue at the fairgrounds track in Warsaw, Indiana before I was even in kindergarten.

My other photography goals involve branching out into other ventures. I've already put some of those into place by contributing stock photos to Adobe Stock, setting up a retail store on my Alleygroup website, and creating artistic content for sale on the website Fine Art America. Along with my photo work, I have a non-fiction book that I've been working on especially hard during this pandemic that I should have more announcements about very soon. If you are a regular reader of this blog and would like to among the first to get those announcements, I am starting to build an email list so please let me know if you'd like to be added to the list. Until next time, please visit the store on my website and order some unique photo products - just in time for Christmas! Thanks!

Fast and Furious Finish

Sometimes when you least expect it, things just seem to work out. I had been going through racing withdrawals most of this year due to my lack of photography work and I was especially missing the ARCA Menards Series in which I had been so integrally involved over the last five years. Then I got an email at the beginning of last week inviting me to come to Kansas Speedway where the ARCA season championship will be decided. Historically two photographers have been needed at Kansas to cover two celebrations in case the race winner is different than the championship winner. Of course, I said yes.

Carson Hocevar led over 300 laps in winning the 400

So in the span of a few weeks, I've gone from having no races to work in October to having two jam-packed weekends, the first of which I just completed after spending three days at Winchester Speedway as part of the Winchester 400 weekend. Carson Hocevar, who I know from shooting ARCA races, was dominant in the 400 and won the 400 for the first time. I hadn't been to Winchester at all since the last time ARCA raced there in 2017, so it was nice to be able to spend a significant amount of track time there this past weekend. Raceday itself was absolutely gorgeous and a large and enthusiastic crowd was on hand. Fall colors were evident in abundance and the campgrounds on-site were completely full.  

The pace lap included a colorful salute to America under beautiful skies

Working with driver Travis Braden was fun

I had two jobs last weekend and had plenty of opportunities to make photos. My first responsibility was to gather shots on Friday for Travis Braden to use on social media and for his promotional activities, including his merchandising. My second assignment was to cover the ARCA CRA super late model competitors in the 400 for Speedway Illustrated magazine. The races I have done this year (and so far there have only been five) have each involved submitting photos to the magazine for their consideration. Nothing has been published yet from those but you never know what priorities a magazine has when it's time to go to print. All told, I am glad to get these races added to the ones I've been fortunate to do this year. The pandemic has impacted everyone's schedules so the fact I've only done a few races is understandable. A total of seven races for 2020 pales in comparison to what I've worked the last few years, but in this year of pandemic upheaval and massive cancellations or schedule changes, I'll take it. For the first time maybe ever, I'll do more races at dirt tracks than at paved tracks this season. Those dirt track events have been a pleasant and refreshing return to my racing roots.

Now, this week I will drive to Kansas City on Thursday, shoot the ARCA race on Friday, drive home to Indy on Saturday, and then drive to Springfield, Illinois on Sunday to shoot the USAC Silver Crown event on the mile dirt track at the Illinois State Fairgrounds. The trip to Kansas is about 1,000 miles round trip and then I'll put in another 425 miles or so to Springfield and back, so not only am I getting a chance to shoot more, I'm getting some serious drive time. And that's after three commutes to Winchester this past weekend totaling about 430 miles. I love to drive so the mileage is no problem.

These last two weekends of my season are the reason I titled this blog post "Fast and Furious Finish" since that's how my racing season will wrap up. Unless of course, someone wants to hire me for the 12 Hours of Sebring which got postponed from March to November this year! Sebring has been a bucket list race for me for years and I'd love to have a chance to work for IMSA, Associated Press, or one of the sports car teams. That would also help me prepare for LeMans next year. Maybe I could even add Daytona and a return to Sebring next March if all goes well! 

I'm ready. Let's do it! So until I get back from Springfield, you probably won't hear from me on this platform but I hope you follow me on Twitter @alleygroup. Until next time, here are a few photos from the Winchester 400 weekend. Contact me if you see something you like!

What Happened to 2020?

Empty grandstands are symbolic of the racing year

In many ways for me, 2020 has been a lost year. I'm sure I am not alone in feeling that way. Back in February, I had big plans for this year but they all got quashed when the Covid-19 pandemic shutdown hit Indiana on Friday, March 13th. It's the first year I can remember since 1976 when I didn't attend or work an Indycar race. I went from working 21 racing events as a photographer last year to only four so far this with just two more on my radar. The silver lining in all of this has been I am still healthy. I've also probably prolonged the life of my Civic Si by a couple years after so little driving this year!

Chad Bryant (left) and Ron Drager confer in 2019

Watching from the sidelines and seeing what the various racing series have done this year to get their seasons completed has been amazing. The ARCA Menards Series, where I was chief photographer the last five years, has managed to complete 19 races with only one to go now. It's not the same 20 races that were on the original ARCA schedule, but they are getting it done with just the finale in Kansas remaining. While I was not fortunate enough to be assigned to shoot any ARCA races this season, which of course was disappointing, I still have friends in the series and follow the race results closely. It's still a thrill seeing my photos still being used on the series' website or on Instagram. I know they used quite a few in their media guides this year and I downloaded those for my portfolio whenever I saw that. I always know which photos are mine even when they don't have photo credits! Kudos to Ron Drager and all the ARCA staff for managing the season the way they have.

The NTT Indycar Series likewise has only one race to go and the pandemic restrictions on media kept me from shooting any of the races at Indianapolis Motor Speedway this year. Missing the Indy 500 was heartbreaking, especially after Takuma Sato won since I have been a regular contributor to Autosport Japan magazine since 2013. I don't know who I will be shooting for next season, so I have my work cut out for me this off-season to find another media outlet to work for in 2021. I have several friends who were able to shoot Indycar races this season and I have been living vicariously through their photos. They have done some outstanding work under some really trying conditions. I hope to be out there with them all next May.

As for the NASCAR Cup Series, they raced at Talladega yesterday and I couldn't help but think about all the times I've made the eight hour, 500 mile trek to Alabama since 2011 to shoot for either ARCA or Associated Press (and sometimes both). I'm pretty sure I would have "made some freaking pictures" yesterday, as the late AP Bureau Chief Dave Martin used to say. The "Big One" where Kurt Busch got airborne happened near the start-finish line and the melee would have come right to me if I had been positioned across the track in my usual photo hole. Unfortunately for me and many of my Alabama friends, none of us got the chance to shoot this weekend due to similar restrictions that I encountered in Indy, so I will set my sights on next Spring and hope that things have opened up by then and I can return to Dega where they say "It's More Than A Race."

Ayrton Senna, USGP Detroit 1984

It still amazes me that racing was able to resume during the pandemic and there hasn't been a catastrophic outbreak similar to what seems to be happening in college and pro football. Restricting photographers at races never made much sense to me since we can still get photos and socially distance simply by using a longer lens, but I understand the need to be cautious and limit "outsiders" who might not be a part of the usual "bubble" of participants. Formula One has probably done the most extreme job of this in racing from what I have seen and has put on great races in new venues while changing its schedule seemingly at the drop of a hat.

All that being said, every series has had to be flexible. Therein lies the lesson for me in all of this: I need to be flexible too. I understand why all the restrictions were put in place but I didn't like them because they put a major crimp in my plans for this year. On the other hand, since I might be more at risk than many people,  I have to say those restrictions were a hidden blessing for me and kept me from being potentially exposed and having to go through what my father endured before he passed away from the effects of Covid-19 this past June. You might say that racing saved my life this year, but in a dramatically different way than in years past. 

As the late Steve McQueen so famously said in the movie LeMans, "Racing is life; anything that happens before or after is just waiting." 

 And so I wait.

All Eyes on 2021

 

Kody Swanson was quickest in Silver Crown at LOR

My last blog post was looking ahead to the 104th Running of the Indianapolis 500 and deferring to friends who got to shoot the race. Afterward, I saw lots of amazing photos from my photographer friends who were allowed to cover the race on August 23rd. Unfortunately, I was not at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway that weekend but I was able to watch and listen to the race. Most importantly I got the opportunity to shoot two USAC Silver Crown races as bookends on the weekend. I was really happy to see Takuma Sato win his second Indy 500 and I know my friends at Autosport Japan magazine were too. When Taku won in 2017, they used a lot of my photos so this year I could have perhaps had another nice payday with his win. It was not meant to be, however, so we move on and that's what I've done.

Kody Swanson set quick time in Pro 2000 also

 As it turned out, I got to see lots of great racing over the weekend after all, on two very different kinds of race tracks. They got my creative juices flowing and with my family having the ability to finally have a memorial service honoring my late Father on Saturday, the whole weekend brought a sense of closure and peace about all the loss I've dealt with this year personally and professionally. Added to the two other recent races I shot at Terre Haute at The Action Track, the two around Indy 500 weekend brought my total for the year up to four races photographed. That's a far cry from what I worked in 2019, but it's still way better than nothing. The first event of the weekend was Friday night August 21st at the paved 5/8ths mile oval at Lucas Oil Raceway and featured the USAC Silver Crown cars and the Road to Indy F2000 and Pro 2000 series. Sunday the Silver Crown series moved to the venerable one-mile dirt track at the Indiana State Fairgrounds for the Hoosier 100, a legendary open wheel race which at one point had been canceled by the State. I've been shooting races at both these tracks since I started in motorsports photography in the 1980s. It's still a thrill to stand next to the guardrail as the Silver Crown beasts roar past me just inches away and fling dirt all over me and my camera gear. That never gets old.

Kyle Larson set fast time and took the win

I have to give a big shout-out to my friends at Track Enterprises, the promoter of both events, who I had gotten to know during the years I served as Chief Photographer for the ARCA Menards Series. They made it possible for me to shoot both these events. I was joined by my former ARCA colleague Rich Corbett at the Hoosier 100 who got some spectacular shots of two accidents on the backstretch. Both events gave me the chance to shoot night racing, to work more on my flash photography, and try some experimental photos that I might not normally get to do when I am concentrating on editorial and documentation style photos. Ironically, the Hoosier 100 was the first time that former NASCAR driver Kyle Larson had raced in Indianapolis since his now infamous utterance of a racial slur during a virtual race earlier this year. I am not condoning his use of racially derogatory language in any way. Seeing him sling that Silver Crown car around on the dirt was a sight to behold. I know Kyle has applied to be reinstated by NASCAR and I hope there is a thorough vetting of his application. As a motorsports photographer, having Kyle race on the Indy mile was newsworthy so I made sure I got photos.

Back to racing at the Fairgrounds again!

Being able to get back to racing of some sort was a real Godsend for me. This has frankly been a shitty year for me in many ways and it has affected my outlook on life and my relationships with people around me. Call it grieving or depression or whatever, it sucked and these races, along with my Dad's service, and some counseling help through my EAP at work, have helped me turn the corner on a year of emotional turmoil. Being in a high-risk group during the Covid-19 pandemic has added a layer of anxiety that just won't seem to go away but if you really know me then you know how important my photography work, especially in motorsports, is to me. If you think it's fun hobby that I dabble in then you really don't know me at all. I'm still in good shape physically, I have proven what I can do for more than 30 years, and I will travel. I just need an assignment and I will be there.

Pro 2000 at LOR reflections

This blog post title refers to what's next for me. I don't have any idea. I'm still going to be teaching full time as I have a few more things to accomplish in that field before I am ready to retire. Rest assured I will be taking photos, whether it's increasing my stock photo offerings, boosting my social media presence, ramping up my sites with Canon and Adobe, or contributing to Google Maps. I expect to be looking for new opportunities in motorsports and will be back shooting the Indy 500 next year for some media outlet. I also plan to return to LeMans but it is not clear what MPS Agency plans to do in 2021. The help and assistance of my friends in France at MPS will never be forgotten and I look forward to seeing all of them again next June. As crazy as this year has been, I am certain that next year will be exactly the opposite. When I said, I had turned the corner, that last statement says it all. See you at a racetrack somewhere soon. When you see me, be sure and say hi. I'll take your picture.

Life in the Rear View Mirror

"Mr. Photographer" at the racetrack

What a year this has been! I couldn't be happier that 2019 is almost over, and if you've been reading my blog this year, then you already know why. As 2019 comes to a close, I think back to twenty years ago today, when I was managing a sewer utility and watching the news with trepidation all day, waiting for the lights to go out as "Y2K" hit (what a scam that was BTW). My life has changed in so many ways since then. Today I am excited for the New Year to come because of what I believe lies ahead for me as a teacher and photographer!

I made it to Daytona and had surgery 10 days later

So now it's my turn to do a recap of the last 12 months. I am also going to provide a glimpse at a few favorites from the more than 50,000 photos I shot at races this season. Last year at this time, I was concerned I had lung cancer following a CT scan, and that diagnosis was confirmed January 4th. Thankfully the only treatment that was being recommended was surgery to remove the cancerous spot and the upper lobe of my right lung. My concern instantly shifted from uncertainty about cancer to whether or not my plans to shoot the first ARCA race of the season at Daytona in early February would be effected by the surgery. Thankfully the surgery was scheduled for after I got back from Daytona and I only missed three weeks at my teaching job and one ARCA race in March.

My "hole in the wall" shot means it's Salem

Getting back to "normal" was a challenge and my goals shifted to improving my breathing and my stamina and my racing photography helped me do that, starting with the next ARCA race near the end of April. I also had a deadline coming up in June to complete my "Hoosier Cemeteries" photo project under the grant I had received from the Indiana Arts Commission. While I was getting back to work and finding my feet again, my fiance was hit with her own cancer diagnosis, and we found out her brother also had cancer, so we had to deal with a trifecta of bad news the first quarter of 2019. Just before the Salem race, my fiance had breast cancer surgery and I was running back and forth between southern Indiana and Methodist Hospital in Indy the whole weekend.

Tommy Vigh, Jr. spun right at me at Talladega

Two weeks after Salem, I drove to Talladega for the next ARCA race event which started a string of ten straight weeks with racing to shoot. The Nashville ARCA race followed Dega, then the Indycar Grand Prix was the next weekend, followed by Indy 500 practice during the next week. A weekend in Toledo was next for ARCA and then on Wednesday I headed to Charlotte  for ARCA, driving back to Indy on Friday to shoot the Indy 500 on Sunday. The Thursday following the 500, I drove to Pocono for ARCA, then went to Michigan the following Thursday, then to Madison, Wisconsin the following weekend, then to Gateway near St. Louis the next weekend and finally to Chicagoland Speedway the next week to wrap up the month of June. I was feeling stronger but I was also exhausted having really only taken one day to relax with no commitments that entire ten weeks, as I was still teaching through the first week of June.

After one of my longest drives (to Elko , Minnesota) fans were great 

The first weekend in July, my fiance and I flew to Dallas to see her brother over the 4th of July holiday. When we got back my teaching job was resuming the very next day and then I had three more race weekends in a row in July: Elko, Minnesota for ARCA, then Iowa Speedway for Indycar and ARCA and then back to Pocono for ARCA for the second time in less than two months. August was a piece of cake by comparison as I only had one ARCA race (on the mile dirt track at Springfield, Illinois). Labor Day weekend ARCA had its second dirt track race of the year at the DuQuoin State Fair and I was finally feeling like I was able to catch my breath a little. I only had three more ARCA races to work between Labor Day and the end of October (Salem again, Lucas Oil Raceway and Kansas), and only one of those involved a long drive  (Kansas). That stretch brought my 2019 season to a close with a final tally of 19 ARCA races (out of 20 on the schedule) and three Indycar events.

The Indy 500 is always on my calendar - thanks Simon!

I put over 13,000 miles on my 2015 Honda Civic Si and had six race trips of more than 1000 miles, three of which were over 1300 mile round trips. I had flown to Daytona in February or my mileage total would have been even higher! I did all but one drive solo and the only time I had company was on the DuQuoin weekend when my brother went with me to help cover the race and that trip was only 535 miles! All of that driving and 21 of the race events occurred over the 27 weeks between the first Salem race in April and the season finale in October at Kansas. It was a grind but I loved it all - except for that moment in Shelby, North Carolina in May where I met one of the City's finest while passing through.

See you in June

I had another CT scan in September so I continue to be cancer free and don't have any other follow up scheduled until the next CT scan this coming March. I do not know what 2020 will be like but it has to be better physically than this year. I know I am going back to LeMans in June 2020 but I do not have any ARCA race assignments yet, mainly because new people are involved in the decision making since it will be the first year under full NASCAR control of the series. I know there is a new website in the works for ARCA and I am comfortable with the contribution I made this year to photography for the series. I did everything in my power to be in a position to be considered for future work so I trust that will pay off at some point. When it does, you can bet I'll be writing about it here, so stay tuned.

That's my life in the rear view mirror so the only thing left to do is show you some of my favorite photos from this season. What drove me this year was just getting to the next race. My body was tested but my faith never wavered so I greet the new year with renewed energy and commitment to my goals. Godspeed everyone. Be safe and have a prosperous 2020!

Gotta start them young like this fan at Toledo Speedway!

Where else but Pocono?

The future of racing is here: Ty Gibbs (left), Michael Self and Carson Hocevar (right)

Weather was often an issue this season.

Charlotte with "Big Willie"

Ty Gibbs 

Travis Braden has his game face on.

Indycar under the lights at little Iowa Speedway is always spectacular.

Race fans come in all shapes, sizes and ages.

 

ARCA races on dirt tracks twice every season; this is Springfield from the groundhog's view.

Shooting from the flagstand is always a thrill and Daytona was one of the best!

Grabbing private moments like this with ARCA rookie driver Tim Richmond makes it even more fun.

Getting dirty again.

Future flagman gives the green to the ARCA field.

Ty Majeski was ARCA's hottest driver during the middle of the year.

You see all kinds of people at the races!

I always look forward to throwback weekend at Salem Speedway.

Hailie Deegan was popular with fans every time she raced this season.

Christian Eckes got the guitar trophy this year at Nashville.

ARCA Veteran Bobby Gerhart is still fast whenever he races.

Waiting is the hardest part, right Christian?

Rain brought out the checkers at Toledo for Chandler Smith.

Christian Eckes won at Kansas and clinched the season title in the final race.

Christian Eckes (left) and teammate Michael Self fought for the ARCA driver's championship all season.

Sunrise on a race weekend is something we catch a lot to start long days.

NASCAR executive Mike Helton (left) conferred with ARCA President Ron Drager often this year.

Will Power at Iowa Speedway

Kids making their mark at the racetrack is a common sight.

Travis Braden sparks on the front stretch at Gateway.

Short track racing is a staple of  the ARCA Menards Series.

Carson Hocevar's eyes tell the story .

The trophy at Gateway was almost bigger than winner Ty Gibbs.

Simon Pagenaud swept the month of May at Indianapolis.