One driver learns that at 200mph water isn’t as soft as it looks
My busy schedule hasn’t allowed me to shoot one of my favorite sports, Drag Boat Racing, in over a year so when I actually had a few days off, with the worlds fastest boats in town, it was an event I was not gonna miss.
Some of my favorite career photos have taken place while covering the 250mph fiberglass boats skipping across the water, this weekend would provide me more wild images. Continue reading to see the catastrophic results of a 200mph right turn!
Drag boat racers, unlike land drag racing, are faced with numerous obstacles that can’t be planned for. Whether that is wind (bad), rough water (bad) or parts failure (bad) the results of such situations can be a very painful and sometimes fatal.
Unlike land drag racing where drives can see lines and walls showing their lanes, water drag racers guide their boats between buoys marking the course.
Thursday practice was very boring and brought only one image that I didn’t hate.
The below driver got about as close as you can get to a buoy without hitting it (bad).
Nikon D3, 600mm, 400iso, f8, 1/2000th
Friday qualifying was also pretty boring for me with only a few pictures that weren’t total crap.
Any combination of rough water conditions or getting on the gas too hard can result in the boat bouncing around like a wild bull such as the below shot.
Nikon D3, 600mm, 400iso, f7.1, 1/2000th
Like their land counterparts, the faster drag boats rely on parachutes to slow down after a run. Normally the parachutes are hidden in the water from view but once in awhile you get lucky and catch a quick glimpse of every drivers friend.
Nikon D3, 600mm, 400iso, f7.1, 1/2000th
Saturday would be the day that made it all worth while.
The water of Firebird Lake contains a higher consentration of salt than the worlds oceans, yet you still see numerous birds flying around the desert mecca.
Nikon D3, 600mm, 320iso, f7.1, 1/2000th
While only two boats race at a time making it easier to get crashes, you still have a 50% chance of following the wrong boat when the other crashes. That happened to me today as one of the slower category boats (90mph) driven by Randy White lost control and spun out at the finish line tossing the racer into the water.
I saw the crash occurring out of the corner of my eye and threw the camera over and started shooting. Too bad the cameras focusing didn’t react as fast as my trigger finger.
Nikon D3, 600mm, 320iso, f7.1, 1/2000th
Nikon D3, 600mm, 320iso, f7.1, 1/2000th
Rescue personnel were quickly on the scene and scooped White up and took him ashore where he was tended to by medical personnel.
Nikon D3, 600mm, 320iso, f7.1, 1/2000th
A short while later it was time for the worlds fastest race boats as the 8000 horsepower top fuel hydros took to the water. These boats are capable of speeds of over 260mph kicking up roostertails over water for over 100 yards behind them.
John Haas (left) takes on Glenn Wilson during qualifying.
Nikon D3, 600mm, 320iso, f7.1, 1/2000th
On the next pass Jarrett Silvey made a good run and as he slowed to a stop the boat kicked up a wall of water that he drove through.
Nikon D3, 600mm, 320iso, f7.1, 1/2000th
After coming to a stop some flames trickled from the exhaust pipes but were quickly splashed out by a rescue member.
Nikon D3, 600mm, 320iso, f7.1, 1/2000th
The next pass (I didn’t know at the time) would end up being one of the wildest sequences I have shot in my 18 years of shooting boat racing.
Scotty Lumbert was in the far lane with James Ray in the near lane. Luckily for me right off the starting line Lumbert broke so it eliminated the chance of me following the wrong boat.
As Ray neared the finish line the boat bounced around a bit, nothing too unusual for these type boats though.
Nikon D3, 600mm, 320iso, f7.1, 1/2000th
Just when I thought he was gonna be fine, the boat began turning right (VERY bad at over 200mph!)
Nikon D3, 600mm, 320iso, f7.1, 1/2000th
Like a bad snowboarder (me) the boat caught an edge and flipped over.
Nikon D3, 600mm, 320iso, f7.1, 1/2000th
Nikon D3, 600mm, 320iso, f7.1, 1/2000th
In the faster boats such as this, the driver is strapped into an airtight capsule. While in a perfect situation the capsule will maintain integrity and float on top of the water after a crash. While that is the plan sometimes it doesn’t work out that way and the capsule opens or sinks, fortunately the drivers helmet is connected to a tank with 15 minutes of air to breath in the event of submerging in the water.
In the below photo you can see the capsule on the left separating from the boat (good).
Nikon D3, 600mm, 320iso, f7.1, 1/2000th
I will shut up now and let the photos do the talking as the boat disintegrated in a matter of seconds.
Nikon D3, 600mm, 320iso, f7.1, 1/2000th
Nikon D3, 600mm, 320iso, f7.1, 1/2000th
Nikon D3, 600mm, 320iso, f7.1, 1/2000th
Nikon D3, 600mm, 320iso, f7.1, 1/2000th
With the capsule containing the driver skipping off the water behind he shattered boat it caught air and did a backflip.
Nikon D3, 600mm, 320iso, f7.1, 1/2000th
Nikon D3, 600mm, 320iso, f7.1, 1/2000th
Nikon D3, 600mm, 320iso, f7.1, 1/2000th
By the time the high speed crash came to an end the boat was in thousands of pieces scattered across the water.
Nikon D3, 600mm, 320iso, f7.1, 1/2000th
The capsule did its job and stayed shut and floated in the water (on left)
Nikon D3, 600mm, 320iso, f7.1, 1/2000th
The rescue crew was quick on the scene and hoisted the capsule from the water to take to a waiting ambulance positioned near the end of the track.
Nikon D3, 600mm, 320iso, f7.1, 1/2000th
Nikon D3, 600mm, 320iso, f7.1, 1/2000th
The driver James Ray had broken his back in an accident just over a year ago so the medics were very careful as they slowly extricated him from the capsule to a waiting medevac helicopter to transport him to a local hospital for x-rays and further evaluation.
Nikon D3, 600mm, 320iso, f7.1, 1/2000th
Nikon D3, 600mm, 320iso, f7.1, 1/2000th
Here are some of the raw uncropped photos from the sequence. Much more full frame and I woulda been cutting out important parts and pieces. I’ll take good luck over skill any day.
-Mark J. Rebilas is a freelance sports photographer based in Arizona. His work is seen regularly in Sports Illustrated, ESPN The Magazine, USA Today and many others around the country. Visit www.markjrebilas.com to learn more about his work.
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