TOPEKA CARNAGE AS SEEN FROM THE GRANDSTANDS
Mon, 2010-07-05 16:20
This past weekend’s ADRL Independence Drags in Topeka, Kan., had a rather intense fireworks show but for the rain-delayed event the action was not 
in the sky but on the track instead.
Jeff Helmkamp was one of the many thousands of race fans who flocked to Heartland Park- Topeka to take in the Independence Day weekend’s schedule of doorslammer racing. Of those thousands, it was Helmkamp who stood out among the crowd.
Helmkamp is an avid photographer and while many race fans would give their right arm to shoot from the starting line, he prefers the grandstands as his studio of choice.
This past weekend’s ADRL Independence Drags in Topeka, Kan., had a rather intense fireworks show but for the rain-delayed event the action was notin the sky but on the track instead.
Jeff Helmkamp was one of the many thousands of race fans who flocked to Heartland Park- Topeka to take in the Independence Day weekend’s schedule of doorslammer racing. Of those thousands, it was Helmkamp who stood out among the crowd.
Helmkamp is an avid photographer and while many race fans would give their right arm to shoot from the starting line, he prefers the grandstands as his studio of choice.
“I never hope for anyone to get hurt but I’m not any different than any fan out there who wants to be kept on the edge of their seat but not at anyone’s expense of getting hurt or tearing up their cars,” said Helmkamp. “And this weekend, I was just in the right place at the right time.”
Helmkamp has a passion for the Pro Modified-style machinery because of their nature to get “squirrelly” and while he never wants to see anyone damage their race cars, he longs for the opportunity to catch this volatile breed of race machinery in compromising positions.
His weekend “catches” included nearly a half-dozen crashes and near-crashes from the lens of his Canon D-9 and a 70-300 lens.
He’s shared a few of his photos with Attitude’s CompetitionPlus.com.
in the sky but on the track instead.Jeff Helmkamp was one of the many thousands of race fans who flocked to Heartland Park- Topeka to take in the Independence Day weekend’s schedule of doorslammer racing. Of those thousands, it was Helmkamp who stood out among the crowd.
Helmkamp is an avid photographer and while many race fans would give their right arm to shoot from the starting line, he prefers the grandstands as his studio of choice.
This past weekend’s ADRL Independence Drags in Topeka, Kan., had a rather intense fireworks show but for the rain-delayed event the action was not
in the sky but on the track instead.Jeff Helmkamp was one of the many thousands of race fans who flocked to Heartland Park- Topeka to take in the Independence Day weekend’s schedule of doorslammer racing. Of those thousands, it was Helmkamp who stood out among the crowd.
Helmkamp is an avid photographer and while many race fans would give their right arm to shoot from the starting line, he prefers the grandstands as his studio of choice.
“I never hope for anyone to get hurt but I’m not any different than any fan out there who wants to be kept on the edge of their seat but not at anyone’s expense of getting hurt or tearing up their cars,” said Helmkamp. “And this weekend, I was just in the right place at the right time.”
Helmkamp has a passion for the Pro Modified-style machinery because of their nature to get “squirrelly” and while he never wants to see anyone damage their race cars, he longs for the opportunity to catch this volatile breed of race machinery in compromising positions.
His weekend “catches” included nearly a half-dozen crashes and near-crashes from the lens of his Canon D-9 and a 70-300 lens.
He’s shared a few of his photos with Attitude’s CompetitionPlus.com.
“I was focused in and the first words that come to mind were, ‘Oh Crap.’ I’ve been to a lot of drag races and seen lots of bizarre things happen,” said Helmkamp, describing the qualifying collision between Pro Extreme racers Aaron Wells and Jim Roberts. “I hadn’t seen many cars collide like that. I found myself wondering if I had just witnessed what transpired in the lens of my camera.”
“This was a weird one for me. I figured the action happened so far down track that I wouldn’t get any of it. It was the first wreck of the day, so I started pointing and shooting.”
“Three pairs later and this one happened right in front of me. I just happened to have been shooting the far lane at the time.”
“This was Burton Auxier in the second qualifying session and because of what happened underneath the hood, they didn’t return for Q3. The announcers were talking about how they couldn’t understand why Auxier didn’t return and I knew why. It was all by chance because I was shooting the far lane. When you’re shooting from the stands, you just focus in on the far lane and then you don’t worry about half of the wall taking up your shot. Most of the stuff just happened to transpire in the lane I was shooting.”
“Mike Bell went behind the other driver on this one. I was thinking for a moment that this was going to be a disaster. But instead Bell went behind him and it all worked out.”
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