2010 Syracuse Hydrofest

Went to the Syracuse Hydrofest over the weekend. ; This year I was able to attend on Saturday and Sunday. ; Enjoyed each day out on the course in a turn boat. ; Will add more photos to this thread as I edit down the 900+ photos that survived the first cut. ; Of course, you know I did some panning photography.

All taken with the Nikon 70-200VR f/2.8 lens and cropped for composition.


1/125s, f/13, ISO 200, EV +0.3, 200mm focal length


1/60s, f/20, ISO 200, EV +0.3, 200mm focal length


1/60s, f/22, ISO 200, EV +0.3, 200mm focal length

 

woooooooo how fast do these go?

 

These are some of the fastest of the inboard hydroplanes, 5.0 Liter V-8 class. ; They can reach speeds of over 115mph in good conditions. ; The day I took these, I'd guess they were doing around 100mph. ; It was windy with choppy water conditions.

 

I spent a day last year at this event but the weather was terrible and they only did a few races before canceling. ; This time I got two full days in. ; Yep, I posted some photos from last year, too.

 

Nice shots! ; I dont know if I could go that fast on the water!

 

Sweet! ; I love being on the water and the ocean, and I have ridden the magelv train in Shanghai and many coasters, ; but I don't think I would ever get on one of those! ; They just seem a bit unstable.

 

Jersey Skiffs are raced all over the eastern US under rules sanctioned by the American Power Boat Association (APBA). Roll cages and safety harnesses are now required, engines are restricted to 283 or 305 cubic inches with very strict specs to keep them as stock as possible, engines are usually Chevy Covette class and the hulls remain at 16 feet. ; With the hull design and weight distribution, the boats are barely in the water at times with just the aft and propeller reaching speeds in the 75 to 85mph range. ; A driver and a rider are onboard as a nod to the Jersey Skiff history as the passenger was a lookout during prohibition as Jersey Skiffs were used to run rum to shore. Today they serve the same purpose to let the driver know where the other boats are during a race.

The JS-99 "flying" over Onondaga Lake during Syracuse Hyrdofest on Sunday, June 20, 2010.


The JS-40 and JS-100 (orange hull) race side by side into a turn at Syracuse Hyrdofest on Sunday, June 20, 2010.


The last one is hardly cropped. Taken at 130mm (195mm FX), the boat I was in had drifted very close to the turn buoy. ; After the heat race, we repositioned. ; The racers seemed to enjoy us there as they kept waving at us during the warm up laps.

 

these are great shots thank for sharing them

 

good job Scott. must be hard panning while being rolled back and forth from the wake

 

Aye, anything under 1/60th didn't work as it would show both horizontal and vertical blurring. ; On shore, guys where able to go a lot slower. ; I stayed in the 1/1000th area except for the ones posted in this thread.

 

Don't want to disappoint, Dennis. ;

This photo is NOT cropped. With bright Sun out I took the Nikon 80-400VR. ; It's a slower focusing lens so I got more misses with it. ; When it hit, I got some close in photos.


Nikon D70/80-400VR, 1/800s, f/5.6, ISO 200, EV +0.3, 370mm focal length

Here's a 2.5 Liter Stock hydroplane heading into Turn 3.

Nikon D70/70-200VR, 1/1000s, f/4.5, ISO 200, EV +0.7, 200mm focal length

 

Here's some photos from the Pits.

Nice way to keep moisture from entering your exhaust pipes at night.


Abstract from a hydroplane's airfoil.


This is the size of the side mirrors these guys use on both sides of their crafts.

 

awesome shots!

 

A couple more pit photos for you.

The Grand Prix boat, The Crush, on the shore of Onondaga Lake. ; You can see the hoist just above the boat and the eye where they lift it up and into the water from.


The hydroplane Big Bird used a handicap tab to get a prime pit area near the shore. ;