Tag: Motorcycle racing

A postcard from Norfolk – photographing Bemsee at Snetterton.

Since I started shooting motorbike racing, Bemsee has been a regular subject. Founded in 1909 the British Motorcycle Racing Club and is a community of competitors, official and marshals dedicated to two and three wheeled racing. The races are focussed on the competitor and typically features up to four races per class per weekend.

For the spectator photographer therefore it provides plenty of opportunity to practice at a reasonable admission price. You won’t see the current BSB stars at a Bemsee meeting. However, it’s been a proving ground for many racers including no less than Casey Stoner and Carl Fogerty.

My son, Andrew, like me was brought up on four wheeled motorsport, but he is increasingly interested in two and three wheels – a bonus this weekend was superkarts so we had a full set of one, two three and four wheeled action.

Bemsee at Snetterton finish line.

The weather had turned greyer and breezier after the sunshine of April and, of course, the northerly breeze on a former airfield was – noticeable!  We drove round the outside of the circuit to the area opposite the pits for some early panning practice.

This location also allows for some start / finish line shots. There’s no fence to shoot through and you can grab a range of angles. The raised area opposite the pit garages means you get shoot over the armco. Getting closer to the fence for some blurry armco produces some nice results.

The programme was running a little late. On the second day of the meeting there are sometimes races to catch up from the previous day and later races can be shorter than advertised. There are no extended gaps between the races unlike some of the higher profile events. We moved to Coram where an ambulance or headlights can feature …

Bemsee at Snetterton Tyrrells.

After lunch at Tyrrells (while the marshals cleaned up the very smoky blow up on the start / finish straight), we moved to the inside of Murrays for bikes, karts and sidecars.

Snetterton Nelson and the Bombhole.

To round out our day we drove round to the outside of Nelson and the Bombhole. Bemsee meetings are also notable for the ability to move around with the car at the eastern end of the circuit. For higher profile meetings, you are likely to be parked outside the track.

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