750 Motor Club at Snetterton

Postcard from Norfolk – part 2

24 July 2020

Having thoroughly enjoyed getting back behind the camera at Snetterton for the GT Cup meeting Postcard from Norfolk - part 1 just a week later I set off in an easterly direction on a sunny Saturday morning.

As a bonus, the roadworks around Cambridge were finished in the Spring meaning that it is pretty much all dual carriageway and an easy drive for me to the depths of Norfolk.

Motor Sport Vision, who operate Snetterton, had their comprehensive coronavirus plan in place with no access to the paddock for day visitors. Organisers of racing for the day, the 750 Motor Club, had a PDF programme available from to download in the week before.

It’s also worth a lookout for the Final Instructions which often contain some useful information. Both were available from https://www.750mc.co.uk along with links to live timing / results

Of course, one of the main reasons I wanted to go to this meeting was the first appearance of the Alfa Romeo Championship on the 750MC bill. It’s a marque close to my heart – I’m on my 5^th Alfa now. 

The Championship caters for various classes – Modified, Power Trophy and Twin Spark Cup. Other Italian marques are allowed to race in the Championship which explains the presence of three Punto Abarths and a Martini liveried integrale (last seen by me splashing across the grass at Mallory Park at one of the Plum Pudding Boxing Day races).

This time I drove round to the southern side of the track; at most club meetings it is the road less travelled and it is easy to park and move around. BTCC / BSB may be busier or more restricted, of course.

This gives access to the shot back to the Bombhole and through Coram. For these shots, I was using the 200-500mm lens on maximum zoom. What is especially good is that the background at the Bombhole and Coram is, for the most part, remarkably clean. Just try to avoid the toilet block … unless you like snapping toilet blocks as a background to a heavily modified Mito !

There’s a really nice rear shot of the cars through Coram. Depending on the class, you can get inside wheels off the ground.

Walking further round Coram gives you the option of head on, passing or a rear shot into Murrays – this can be a place for dramatic action or flaming exhausts and is a rather different shot than the norm there.

You can get all the way to start / finish just before the entry to Riches, but I stuck to the former to get some panning shots of Formula Vees and MR2s with the pits in the background.

I’d last seen the pink and black MR2 #17 in the pits waiting for their turn to race at a very soggy Birkett Relay last year.

After the lunch break it was back to the more familiar stamping ground of the Brundle / Nelson / Bombhole complex. Once the cars are racing, this area never fails to please – especially with the large fields of closely matched cars which are typical of 750MC grids.

Drivers were typically pretty well behaved. The 750MC is very much about grass roots motorsport and thus the racing is funded directly by the competitors with few, if any, big sponsors to fall back on after that do or die move. That is not to say the racing wasn’t close. Here’s the MX5s and Locosts.

There’s scope for an action shot of the rear of the car here too, whether it is Renaults at the Bombhole or Alfas at Nelson. There is also the possibility of flames.

Probably my favourite shot here is the entry and exit of Brundle. The marshals post is rather unfortunately positioned for snappers - but rather well positioned for marshals !

Nevertheless, there are shots to be had – I’m using the 70-200mm zoom here and a slower shutter speed.

All in all, a great day of club racing at Snetterton. Our thanks to all who made it possible – officials, marshals and the rest of the team there. Day visitors were, in my experience, observing social distancing and behaving sensibly.

More of my photos from the day can be seen in my Flickr account.