Race Retro 2019
Photographing Race Retro 2019
Race Retro at Stoneleigh Park is touted as the largest Historic motorsports show in Europe. I'm not sure if they are talking visitor numbers or vehicles on display or a combination of both. It's definitely a large and important event on the motorsport calendar with over 20,000 people visiting over the three day event last year.
The unseasonably warm February we are having helped to draw in the crowds and on the Saturday we went there were certainly a lot of people enjoying the winter sunshine.
So what draws in the big crowds and why do they keep returning every year? The main event for Race Retro and a big crowd pleaser are the Rally Stages.
With over 120 Historic Rally cars from Group A, (Bonkers) B and C doing demo runs will always keep people happy. But add into the mix the original drivers reunited with their vehicles and you have something pretty unique.
The number of famous Rally drivers you will spot here is amazing, so if papping people is your thing make a note of the event for next year. If you are a casual Rally enthusiast like me the name McRae is synonymous with the UK and World Rally scene. So it wasn’t a surprise to see Jimmy McRae at this event sliding a variety of cars around.
What I didn’t realize until I was walking through the paddock was he had also taken out other cars, with varying degrees of success.
The elder statesman of rallying, Rauno Aaltonen, one of the original Flying Finns, was also putting on a show taking it a little slower in a Monte Carlo Mini. It was great to see this octogenarian in his natural environment piloting the classic mini in the sunshine. Later when I captured the Mini again I'm nearly sure this was Russel Brookes at the wheel. If anyone can confirm this drop us a message.
The other part of Race Retro is the Halls where there is an eclectic mix of autojumbles, historic cars and memorabilia.
Unlike the National Exhibition Centre where the other big motorsports shows are held and all the halls are connected, here you have to leave one hall to get to the next. Some are connected but it's worth wandering around outside as they were using one of the hangers as a Parc Ferme.
The autojumble was worth a visit, there is always something motorsports related to shoot in these environments. Even if you aren't in the market for a period correct flying helmet and brass hooter you can still have an enjoyable hour in here.
The Motorsport Hall of Fame is where the "A' list cars can be found. The lighting in here is not good so you will need to push the ISO up to get a decent shutter speed and aperture combination.
This year Race Retro was celebrating the Turbo era of Formula 1 with a great display of these cars. While looking for a good angle to capture these beasts I was lucky enough to notice John Watson, the F1 driver and now commentator looking round a F1 McLaren M29. These fantastic sounding cars fitted with the Cosworth double four valve V8 competing in the 1979 - 1980 season. Qualifying 7th Watson took the M29 to a 4th in the 1979 British Grand Prix which was McLaren's best result for some time.
The Bentley collection was my personal favourite in the Hall of Fame. It's always worth spending some time with these classics, the quality and detail of the traditional coach building craft can be seen all over these impressive vehicles.
Car 10 seen here is a 3 litre Bentley and was entered into the 1925 Le Mans 24 hour race, retiring on lap 19 after running out of fuel.
Back out on the Stages they were running the second session of the day.
The crowds were now bigger than before so there was no chance of getting to the front. However, I'm quite tall so was able to shoot over the masses. There was quite a lot of grumbling in the crowd due to the restricted view so why was the spectator area set out as it was?
The High Speed 2 trainline construction works had taken over part of Stoneleigh Park, so last years Stages area could not be used.
This was a shame, last year you were able to move round the Stages to see the action and get a great shot. This year the spectator area was very linear with 3 - 5 people deep restricting the view.
After grabbing a few good shots and a lot of images of the back of people's heads I gave up. Thinking on my feet I retired to the access road and captured some very slow shutter speed panning shots. Standing close to the cars required a wide angle lens, which is never good for this type of picture. But get it right and the results can be pleasing. 1/40 of a second and lower will get you this shot.
To the right of the main stages area is the passenger ride area. £25 gets you two laps of the Stage in a Historic Rally car with an experienced Rally driver.
This part of the show had the best views for the spectator photographer and the best driving. The passengers appeared to be getting value for money as the drivers screeched these classic cars into the corners.
The light was now starting to fade so we called it a day and headed home. Race Retro is a good event for the spectator photographer and if the weather is bad gives you the option of and indoor event to take cover between Rally Stages. I will put it in the calendar for next year and hopefully they can sort the viewing areas out so we can see all of the action.
Thanks to RW Photography for helping out with this article. Our next event will be more Rallying at the Donington Stages. To get the latest updates to the site follow us on Facebook or Twitter, I thank you.
Here are a few shots that didn't make the cut but are still worth a look.
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