Cowtown Lakefest Drag Boat Nationals in ft. worth

[MRCPix]

anyone going to this ?
http://www.cowtownlakefest.com/

[Ronnie]

i was thinking about it...but not sure yet

[DEMDeepEllumMusic]

Missed it last year but may go this year.

This is an event that you need the BIG Glass to get the best shots with so go out and rent that 300 2.8 or 400 4.0 and slap on a 1.4 or 2x convertor on them and use that monopod!

Heck if you can find a 1000 5.6 that you can rent for less than a price of a small new car get that baby.

Rather interesting that they toss in free pit passes with that coupon so the sub 20mm guys can get up close and personal and do all their fisheye work. I guess that SHINE thing on Friday is where they spit polish the boats for all to ogle over on dry land.

[bigv616]

Don't have a long lens than 200mm, with the free pit access on the coupon, don't you think 200mm plus 1.4TC might do the trick? I am thinking about going there.

[DEMDeepEllumMusic]

They pretty much race down the middle of the lake so I would say at least 400 yrds from shore or so (safety factor and if they make any turns they need that room) so not sure how tight a 200 with a 1.4 even with a 1.6 crop body will get you.

I'm thinking about going to this starting Friday and I have some longer glass, 300 (2.8), 400 (5.6) and even a 500 mirrored (slow as molasses though 8) along with a 1.5 and a 2x (anybody stack a 1.5 and a 2?) Nikon so will go on out with monopod and tripod and try to cover this baby. This could be real fun!

Just if you go USE SUNSCREAN and drink WATER!

[Davidtxs]

well i went to the website to see about 4 wheelers lol while they are NOT allowed you can rent a golf cart for 50 a day and NO COOLERS ALLOWED

[sooner_fan]

I went last year with some friends. Although it was hot, it was lots of fun. I used an 80-200mm zoom with a 1.4 teleconverter. The race is located in the southwest portion of Marine Creek lake; the lake isn't very wide there so audience has a good view of the race. The boats start on the west side and the finish line is towards the middle of the lake. The Pit area is on the southeast side of the lake (close to the parking) and is directly opposite from the racing lanes. I don't think you need a bigger lens unless you plan to set up on the levee or across the lake in the Pit area. You can see some of the photos in my photo gallery: http://www.pbase.com/rslee/cowtown_national_2006

[DEMDeepEllumMusic]

Sooner fan on http://www.pbase.com/rslee/image/65768465 about how far away were you? 100yards or less?
I'm still going to have my array of lenses with me so I guess my 400 with a 2x should get in tight. I pretty much will have any range from 1000mm on down to 20mm covered (some with 2x or 1.5x teles) without having to stack tele's.

[sooner_fan]

I got there early and was able to get a spot along the shoreline at the mid point of the race. I was about 25-30 yards aways from the near lane and about 60-70 yards from the far lane (definitely in the danger zone). The general public is further back from the shoreline for safety reasons. Normally, they would chase you away from the shoreline, but if you look and act like you belong there they may leave you alone. That area of the lake is a narrow cove, the viewing area is along the south side adjacent to Loop 820. The far side of the cove is off limits to the public and the police will chase you off. You can get close to the starting line and along most of the near race lane, but the finish line is just past the end of the cove.

[Ronnie]

Yeah, I was there last year, you're really close, a 300mm was more than enough.

[RiceRocketDave]

I think I'm gonna try to make it out on Saturday.

[elwoood]

Is there reasonable access to the finish line area? I have shot many boat drag events and like to set up my big glass ( 400mm and 600mm) on a tripod to catch the top end action. How many pro mod and fuel boats usually attend?

[sooner_fan]

Dave,

The finish line is just past the end of the cove. There is a small jetty of land that provides the closest view of the finish line. Other angles would be from the top or along the slope of the levee, that's where a 400mm or 600mm would be nice. If you want the straight-on view where the boats are coming at you, that view is only possible from the Pit area which is across the lake; you would probably need to add a teleconverter to your big lens or maybe use a 1000mm lens. One last option is if you can get access to either the press boat or the rescue boat.

As for how many pro and top-fuel hydro boats there may be, I am not sure. There are several different categories for the different boats. When I reviewed my photos from last year I counted approximately 20 of the capsule boats that participated in Saturday's races. They were the faster boats that day. The race starts out with the slower boats (wet bikes actually) then progresses to the faster boats. The hydro boats didn't start until late morning. Some boats did not race until Sunday because they had pre-qualified.

[Ronnie]

Last year there were only 4 top fuel boats (3 races)

[RiceRocketDave]

Originally Posted by Ronnie

Last year there were only 4 top fuel boats (3 races)

So are you saying its not really worth the $17 to go?

How fast are the majority of the boats out there? I have never been to anything like this.