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Merry Christmas...
Mixed Bag Photography would like to wish everyone a very merry Christmas. We would also like to say a massive thank all our Customers & Clients throughout 2017, we really appreciate it and look forward to seeing you all again (and of course any new customers) in 2018. As always, we will be looking forward to new projects and commissions throughout 2018, so if you have an event, commercial or private commission that you would like covering, please feel free to contact me using the form here.

Mixed Bag Photography - Event photography UK

If you have an event you would like me to attend, why not get in touch? From sports meetings to corporate, private or fundraising events, I'm more than happy to hear from you and to discuss your requirements. Click for details

Superb year and it's not over yet...
Blink and you miss it! Yes, the year, another one nearly done and dusted. I am sure it was only a few days ago I was writing about looking forward to 2017 and we're now at the back end of it but what a great year it has been. A superb mixture of motorsport, events, awards ceremonies and commercial photography and there is still 6 weeks left on the diary so there is no slacking just yet!
I get asked a lot what my favourite thing to photograph is and to be honest, the anwser is all of it. Yes there are some things which are more adrenaline filled than others, some more relaxed and some that are more challenging but I think it's the diversity I like as well as actually taking the photos - it's been hard work and stressful trying to get it off the ground but I think I am finally getting to where I want to be (and I don't mean rich, I mean just being given the opportunities to take photos for a living).
The 2018 diary is also slowly filling up too so if you have an event, party, gig, family portrait or commercial venture you would like covering, please feel free to get in touch and I'd be happy to talk it through with you and give you a quote.
I've added a few photos below that I think sum up 2017 in the small world of Mixed Bag Photography. I've done a lot of motorsport, events and commercial photography this year of which most can be found in the portfolio on the website (apart from those which are not for public viewing at request of the client) and I'm very much looking forward to covering the same if not more next year. I love being busy and love what I do!

The Autohorn Micklegate Soapbox Challenge...
August is a great month. It's kind of summer (in the British sense) so I'm not spending all of my time in waterproofs plus it's also time for the Micklegate Soapbox Challenge so when the two collide, it makes for a great day.
2016 was the Soapbox Challenges first year and, considering it was raining, a bit chilly and a first for the organisers, it was really good. This year, with the extra experience, feedback from the year before and weather that was cracking the flags, it was pretty awesome. There weren't many changes from last year but why would you mess with a formula and layout that worked well?! There were a couple of small tweaks though; the ramp was higher giving the soapboxers a faster, more adrenaline filled start, the spectators area was widened giving better access and more of a flow plus there were big screens at the top and bottom to give people an all round view.
There was also a fun fair and other entertainment for the first time ever on Ouse bridge which proved very popular and I'm sure will return for the 2018 run. Minster FM were also there with the roadshow and provided commentary throughout the day as well as music entertainment with bith Huge and Flat Cap Carnival playing on stage.
The teams returning from last year had upped their game on their Soapboxes and the new teams certainly seemed to know what they were doing too although there were those that I'm sure were there for the fun and entertainment of the day. There were 51 in total and there weren't two alike which I have to say is quite amazing; wheels, a steering wheel and a driver being the only similarities.
I can't say I had a outright favourite as I had friends from the motorsport world, photography/printer friends, general friends I've met over the years all taking part and of course there were the visually appealing ones. All in all (and to quote the late Bruce Forsythe), they were all my favourites.
Racing started at 10am but by 9am the streets were full of spectators! This year word certainly had got around that the Soapbox Challenge was on and people wanted to get their top spot for the day, whether that be at the start, the middle for the water splash/chicane or the finish for the final jump and the celebrations; to be honest, I tried all three and they were equally good fun!
The first set of heats all went perfectly which was great news for injury but I think those watching wanted a few more incidents (plus it would have made for some good photos!), however in the second heats, the teams went for broke - literally in some cases - and crashes were a little more frequent (glad to report all ok although there were the inevitable scrapes).
The top 10 shoot out was superb with the top place changing a few time until the eventual winners - York Digital Image (who had been quick all day) - set a course record for their final run; a sub 30 second run. A massive congratulations to them and of course all the teams who took part and raised money for various Charities throughout the Country as well as those closer to home in York and North Yorkshire. Well done to Micklegate Business Initiative for organising such an awesome day and really looking forward to the 2018 Challenge.

Triple Crown Challenge Round 2...
The Autograss season is moving along nicely now and with the Mens Nationals only 2 weeks away, it was time to sneak in Round 2 of the Triple Crown Challenge and this time it was Yorkshire Dales to host. In the lead up to the meeting the weather didn't look particularly good and as forecast it threw it down the night before! As always at YD though, the track needed it (and could take it) and with a bit of work and a few heats on it, it came good - well done to old man Almack for that, top job as always.

Mixed Bag Photography - Motorsport photography UK

Moving on to the racing, I did say on my last post that I wouldn't be updating points or who won what and true to my word, I won't be as I don't have a clue (taking photos AND watching what's happening is far too confusing!). What I do know though was that it was a good day with some really close racing throughout.
Having sold the Class 3 and jumped into Class 7 with a V8 Chevy engined Citroen, Lewis Brown seemed to love it out on track and the car went as well as it sounded! Nothing better than the sound of a V8 being put through it's paces although the V8/Citroen C3 combo takes a while to sink in as I've never heard a C3 sound like that before! However, sadly, playtime came to an abrupt end towards the end of the day with a bit of a coming together resulting in a few broken bits. Still, Lewis appeared to sound positive and once fixed, he'll be out again.
Class 8 is always a good class to watch; fast, furious and very close and this weekend was no exception although maybe a little close for Rich Jackson and Craig Barlett. As the track started to dry, the inside line was drying quicker than the rest and anything off that was, well, wet...and muddy. Craig appeared to just get a wheel on the wet stuff and spun (cue camera springing into action) and with Rich bearing down at full speed on the dry the result was inevitable. Thankfully, both were ok as it did seem to be a hard hit. Craig also made an appearance later on after getting fixed back in the pits. Tough lads are the Class 8 lot!
Helen Blake has raced her Class 6 for the last couple of seasons but if she hasn't got hers with her, she's happy to jump into another car if someone is kind enough to lend her one and this weekend, she managed 2 different cars and 2 different classes - Class 1 and Stock Hatch. Sadly I didn't get a decent photo of her in the SH but I did get one of her racing her mum in Class 1 - a first for both of them to be in the same race I believe!
Danny Wilson hasn't raced much in a while (or certainly not that often at the tracks I have been covering) but this season has seen the V8 Mini Pickup back out in action and after a few meetings with teething problems, the Class 7 is starting to come good. As with Lewis' above, there is something awesome about the sound of a V8 especially one that is uncovered in the back of a pick-up! Hope to see Danny out a lot more and getting the results he deserves after persevering with the issues early on.
On to the Ellison twins and first up is Brad who has recently sold his Class 6 and switched to a Class 10. Yes, you heard that right, from front wheel drive saloon to a rear wheel drive, twin bike engined open wheel special! To be fair, I was a little sceptical and did think he'd spend the rest of this season spinning round in circles whilst he got used to it, however he's come on leaps and bounds over the last few meetings and barring a few small mistakes would be challenging for more trophies. He's even learnt that ramming isn't quite the way to go in a special and has started to drive around competitors, rather than through them (sorry Brad). Certainly going to be one to watch for the future when he's got it set up how he wants it. Well done fella, keep it up.
Ayrton has a Class 8 but the last few meetings has seen him drive Brad's 10 and his Dad's 7, now he's decided that his 8 needs some tweaking and a little more power - I think there might be a moral in the somewhere. He put on a good show this weekend in the 7 and whilst wasn't quite putting in the pace of the bread van or Holtby's pickup, still made a good account of himself. He's definitely one of those that seems to be a natural driver and can jump into different cars and make them work for him. There's also a rumour that we could seem all three of them move to Class 10 but as yet, this is still a rumour (or if it wasn't, it is now)!
All in all, Round 2 was a good show and congratulations to those that won. Scunny is the venue for round 3, so look forward to seeing you all there for a bit more of the same. Good luck to everyone racing at both the Mens and the Ladies and Juniors Nationals during August!

BTCC & Cock O'The North...
I've said this before but the British Touring Car Championship is pretty awesome to watch live, especially when you have a trackside pass; getting up close and personal with these machines and the drivers is something special. That said however, I do have to record it to watch it back as I normally have no clue who did what as you can't see the whole track when tucked in behind the armco!
Saturday was wet, very wet. Camera covers and waterproofs on wet but as always we muddled through. I think the photo of the slicks was meant in irony at the time as there was no chance these were getting used that day. Most of the day went without issue, the usual paint swapping between BTCC, Ginettas and Clio's but up until the quali session, all was going well. Then, a blown engine out of Barcroft into Sunny, dropped oil/fluid onto a wet track and caused chaos. Twelve cars involved with 3 drivers being having to be taken to hospital - Jeff Smith, Luke Davenport and Aron Taylor-Smith although Aron was discharged that evening and was back in the paddock on the sunday sporting his new leg cast and being driven around on the teams golf cart. Jeff Smith had a number of injuries as did Luke Davenport who was put in an induced coma. Thankfully they are both recovering now (end of June) although it's going to be a long process for them both. Get well soon guys.
Sunday saw a much better day weather wise and the racing matched, superb action all day as expected from the BTCC and the support classes. Ash Sutton, Colin Turkington and Matt Jackson all took wins and Plato (and his troubled car) seemed to be back on form too which was brilliant to see.

The Cock O'The North is the second meeting of the year at Olivers Mount and I always find it's the one that it seems to rain on. April showers in, erm, June! Mind, we all know what the British weather is like so we just get on with it.
The racing, as always, was superb. It never ceases to amaze me how these guys wrestle their bikes round the corners and over the jumps on such a tight twisty circuit. I arrived wondering what the day would hold, who would be victorius and of course your mind is never too far away from thinking Dean Harrison is going to be there or there abouts. Well, as predicted, he certainly was - and how! Dean was once again crowned Cock O'The North with 2 laps records and 7 wins over the weekend - all with a touch of man flu. Good effort I say.
Down in the Bay it was Armed Forces Day and, as well as an amazing Spitfire flypast, the Red Arrows put in a little appearance over the circuit. Great to see them and thanks for the show, I swear one of them saw me and turned for a better shot! No? Oh well, you're probably right.

North of England Championships 2017...
The North of England Championship has always been a great meeting and this year was no exception. This three day meeting now incorporates the Cock, Hen and Chick of the North (taking place on Saturday) and the main NoE Championship taking place on the Sunday and Bank Holiday Monday.
Traditionally the weather plays a part and this year was the same although thankfully no quite as bad as was forecast, I'm guessing all the hot air and bluster from the drivers kept a good pressure over the track and forced the rain around. Saying that, Saturday was torrential rain (as it was where I was at Croft for the 750 Motor Club) and the decision was taken to postpone the Finals and run them on Saturday, a wise choice after seeing the videos.
First up on Sunday was the postponed Cock, Hen and Chick Finals and what a close run finals they were! The Juniors were first followed by a great Ladies race but it was the Mens race which had everyone talking. What an awesome final to witness, probably the best Champ of Champs I've seen in a long time and bar a couple of small coming togethers, was a superb show of Autograss racing at it's best and a testament to how well the track had been prepared. A good start to the day and congratulations to Marc Clayton (Cock of the North) in his Class 7, Claire Horner (Hen) in her Class 8 and Jake Lockwood (Chick) in his Junior Special. Looking forward to seeing you in 2018 to defend your titles.

On to the North of England Championships and a very sunny Sunday to kick the 2 day meeting off with. I do like it when it's wall to wall sunshine as I don't have to change settings on my camera too often for the light and I can just shoot away, plus it just makes it nicer to be out in all day although with the autograss it can get a little dusty when it's so warm - that said a good spinkling of water from the bowser keeps it down.
As you would expect from a Championship, the racing was great to watch from the off as everyone want's to be crowned the North of England Champion but it was the Class 3's that got everyone's attention early on. Class three is a great Class to watch with fast, close racing most of the time but it was both Simon Farrar and Chris Allanson who stole the show with their flame spitting antics! It was also nice to see Class 3 new boy, Franky Hindle, out in his new Peugeot. Franky is still finding his feet with rear wheel drive (having tried Class 8 and Class 5 too) but as the weekend went on, he seemed to fit right in and got quicker and quicker; I look forward to seeing him progress as the season goes on.
There are a few people that I chat to at Autograss that don't race, one of which was Graeme Slack. Well, up until this weekend that is! Graeme (and his cronies) have been updating me hourly (or so it felt) on the progress of the new Howland Racing Stock Hatch and this weekend was it's debut - and they broke it!. However, with help and a couple of new bits he managed to get back out during the weekend which was great to see. Well done guys, looking forward to seeing the beast out at a few more meetings although I'm not sure you'll be troubling anyone at the front just yet!
One Class 7 I mentioned at the beggining of the season was Andy Holtby's when I saw the sparkly new shell at the Autosport International Show at the NEC. I wasn't sure when we'd see that shell out on track, presuming it was reserved for the Mens Nationals. However, it made an appearance at the weekend and looked even more stunning in the sunshine. Whilst it was brilliant to see it on, I did think he was a little mad bringing it to the North of England Championships, however I suppose it's got to go on at some point and there is probably less chance of damage here than at the Nationals - well done Andy, it looked mint!
Staying with Class 7's there were a few little coming togethers over the weekend including newly crowned Cock of the North, Marc Clayton, and Andy Hornshaw. Turn two saw a small coming together which must have damaged Clayton's tyre then coming into start finish straight the tyre completely blew apart spining him round and unfortunately into the path of Andy. Thankfully, no one was injured and the cars weren't badly damaged either but it goes to show how quickly things can happen with these highly tuned monster saloons.
The finals saw the usual re-runs with everyone trying as hard as possible to be the Champion in their respective Classes however it was the Champ of Champs races which saw Claire Horner and Jake Lockwood become Ladies and Junior Champions and saw Martyn Pearcy in his Class 2 (yes, you read that right) crowned Mens North of England Champion.

Congratulations to all the winners throughout the weekend and well done to everyone else that took part and put on a good weekend of racing. A huge thank you and well done as well to all those that worked to put on the meeting including the Marshals, the track team, holding lane organisation, comentary, lap scoring and everyone else that helped.

Triple Crown Challenge Round 1...
Thankfully the Autograss season is well and truely underway with National Qualifiers taking place as well as normal race meetings. Easter Monday saw York Autograss Club host round 1 of the Triple Crown Challenge and what a great meeting it was with 150+ drivers signed on and ready to do battle over the next 3 rounds. The York track had long been in need of a good overhaul and this has certainly been the case over the closed season and with two meetings now under it's belt it seems to be bedding in and holding up well, a massive well done to all those who helped with this and continue to maintain it.
Anyhoo, the Triple Crown Challenge consists of 3 race meetings over the season at York, Scunthorpe and Yorkshire Dales and the drivers with the most points, win. Simple. Now, to be honest, I'm not the best at remembering who won what in which Class so I'll just write some general speil about the meetings and see how it goes. I'm sure I'll find out the final results so I'll post those after the 3rd meeting, happy? Good, then I'll begin.
The meeting kicked off with Stock Hatch which, as normal, provided close (some may call it contact, some may call it rubbing) racing, either way it's always great to watch and I believe it's slowly managing to get away from the lunatic's Class label (or just passed it on to Class 2). There also seems to have been an explosion of SH over the close season as the last couple of meetings at both York and YD have seen at least 3 grids of them, great to see and long may it continue.
Not quite as many Class 3's were there as I'd hoped as I do like a good Class 3 race, especially when they start spitting flames and giving me something to try to capture. Even with only a few racing, it still provides some great racing and is always good to watch - a good Class for clearing the track too. One note is that Kev and Carolines Fiesta is sporting its spare shell and to be honest I don't blame them, it does look far too good to be battering this early in the season. Rumour has it that it will make it's debut at Yorkshire Dales for the Yorkshire Open meeting - I look forward to seeing it on track.
Jeffo's Class 7 Polo (affectionately known as the bread van) was out in action again and put in a good show up against some stiff competion - personally I think Andy is just warming up and we are going to see something special this season. It could be the first time a bread van wins a National title and I also think it's the only Class 7 Polo. Anyone? What's also impressive is that he looks after a number of other cars too so his time is split between various cars, it must be hard enough looking after one, let alone several. Go on fella, lets get an award this year.
Class 6 - the loud, angry sounding Class is full of action from start to finish and always impressive to watch. Martyn Janes is usually somewhere up towards the front and the Nottingham based, AP Race Engined Nova really does sound and go well and he isn't shy of making his presence felt when racing, in fact most Class 6 drivers aren't shy when is comes to rubbing their way up the points! I think it's all part of why these guys go down so well with spectators.
First time ladies driver Niamh Mulvihill has been entrusted with sharing Dave Laughton's Class 2 for this season. Her first meeting at Yorkshire Dales didn't quite go to plan as there was an issue with the car meaning she went out in a Class 1. This meeting was actually 3rd time out and Niamh is showing improvement already without being too over confident with it. Considering she is new to the sport and just 16, I think she may be one to watch if she can only find 2nd instead of 4th after her starts!
The specials are always a great Class to watch, from Junior's up to Class 10's, there is something awesome about watching opened wheeled machines battle for position inches from each other. That said, sometimes it does go wrong and crashes happen however as safety standards get more stringent, those involved can thankfully walk away with little more than feeling very sore and a dent in the wallet. With the image below I was taking a panning arty shot (yes I know, my fault) when the crash happened so rather than attempt to change shutter speed I just followed it through. Most of the images are blurred but they still give a sense of the height and speed it was traveling at! Amazing to think he just walked away.
Whilst there are some spectacular crashes, there are also some slightly stranger ones too so I'll leave you with a Class 1 Mini sat on top of a Class 2 Corsa!

BTRDA Clubmans Rallycross...
Another event that escaped the weather was Round 1 of the BTRDA Clubmans Rallycross Championship which kicked off at Blyton Park. Primarily run on tarmac it's rarely going to be affected by the weather and it was certainly nice to see them back out again after the winter break.
I had seen some of the cars at the testing a couple of weeks earlier but testing is far different than a round competing for points and of course, they all looked a bit more finished with the stickers and sponsors on.
I only manage to catch these guys a couple of times a year, normally Blyton and Croft, but it's always a great day, friendly atmosphere and superb, close racing. There are also a few who I see a little more as they do a couple of rounds of the BTRDA and then compete in the MSA British Rallycross championship for the rest of the season - two of those being the Bellerby sisters who took the spoils in this opening round and also Tom & James Constantine who compete in the MSA Junior Rallycross Championship too.
I used to watch Rallycross a lot when I was younger until it kind of faded away and seemed to disappear from our screens. Over the last couple of years though it has been making a huge come back in the UK (which is superb news) and all rounds of the BTRDA Clubmans Rallycross Championship are being broadcast on Motorsport.tv (formally MotorsTV) and the free to air channel, Front Runner. Well done to all involved in getting this great motorsport back on our screens and I look forward to seing the round I can't get to.

Spring Dub show...
Well, as usual for this time of year, the Autograss season has been delayed with the cancelation of the reserve date for the Scunny shakedown and of Scarborough Autograss' first race of the season too. Damn you pesky rain, damn you!
What did escape the weather was the annual Spring Dub show in Harrogate and as always, it was well worth a visit. The range of cars on show is brilliant and what the owners have done to them is truely amazing. The good thing is, it's not always down to how much money you can throw at it as some of these cars are just really well looked after and cared for rather than modified to within an inch of their lives (altough some of the modified one are pretty spectacular!)
My particular favourites are the rat look ones, there is just something cool about them; spending money to make a car look old and ratty. Brilliant. I use the word 'cool' as I'm 42 - rest assured if I was younger and could get away with it I'd use 'sick' which, as it happens, was how my photos of one car were described. I'm chuffed, I think? My photos are officially 'sick' or if we were back in my day, they'd be rad! Right on dude.
I chatted to a few of the owners and some really have put everything they've earnt into their cars and it shows. Engine mods, specialist paints, wraps, suspension, audio, the list goes on to produce to truly nice looking cars.
I know there are a lot of these events around the country and I couldn't do them all due to other commitments but there is something relaxing about them and if there is one in your area, I would suggest going to have a look, you won't be disappointed.

Local Hero Awards...
February is always a great month as the winter is nearly over, the motorsport season returns and of course it's the Minster FM Local Hero Awards.
I've been lucky enough to have been asked to cover the Minster FM Local Hero Awards for the last few years and I really enjoy it. The evening is concentrated around those people in North Yorkshire who go above and beyond to help someone else or overcome adversity themselves. It really is an evening of glitz, glamour, tears and laughter and one that I genuinely look forward to covering each year.
The music is always good too and this year was no exception with Earl on stage before the awards with her blend of soul/blues. I have to say I hadn't heard her music before but, after listening to the few songs she performed, I will be looking out for her in the future. Give her a listen online and I'm sure you'll agree she has a pretty amazing voice.
All in all, the whole night was really inspirational and the winners were incredibly deserving, well done to all.

Non MSA test day...
Well, that's it, winter is over and the start of the motorsport season is officially here with the non-MSA test day held at Blyton Park circuit and then the Autograss shakedown at Scunthorpe Autograss (although this has been postponed until the weekend after).
The motorsport season is always a busy one and this year is no exception with bookings and events right through to the middle of November - it also starts and finishes with BTRDA Rallycross so Blyton is always a good place to start and the season end see's Croft play host.
The test day (which seemed to be mainly rallycross/rally) saw some familiar faces in new cars as well as familiar cars with new faces in them which is always good to see and sets up another good year for BTRDA RX. Autosport and Toyo Tyres have also re-signed sponsorship deals which is great news for the championship.

York Autograss Club Awards evening 2017...
Another weekend and another superb awards evening, this time it was the York Autograss Club presentation evening held at the Mercure Fairfield Hotel in York.
I got there a little early, as I tend to do, so I could get some shots of the trophies, tables and set my cameras up for the evening and quickly realised I wasn't the first there (apart from those that had organised the event obviously). There were a few that had taken the opportunity to have a libation or two prior to it starting and I could tell we were going to be in for a fun evening and possibly a few sore heads the next morning.
Once the meal was out of the way, the awards got underway. Mark Liversedge hosted the evening with Club Chairman, Martyn Tinker, acting as his glamourous assistant handing out the trophies (expertly co-ordinated by John Howland who can actually be seen lurking around in the background of some of the wider shots).
If I'm honest, I think the presentation of awards would have lasted about 20 minutes or so but with Mark's, erm, unique? style on the microphone, it lasted a tad longer and included some (well actually a lot) of banter and occasionally turned the air a little blue. Still, eveyone seemed to enjoy themselves which was the whole point of the evening, well that and picking up an award of course.
I would like to say a massive congratulations to all those who won trophies (a special mention for Caz Watson who won Class 11 in her first year in Autograss), a full list of winners is below. I would also like to say well done to the runners up too, especially James Clayden in Mens Class 1 and Steve Payne in Mens Class 2, both of whom managed runner up in their first year at the sport. Another well done goes to Sue Herdman, Phil Thompson and Katie Addyman who were also awarded for their achievements at the Nationals. Lastly, well done to Brad Ellison on obtaining Y1 for the 2017 season, the question is, can he hold on to it?

The winners were:

Mens Class 1 - Mark Watson
Mens Class 3 - Phil Thompson
Mens Class 5 - Danny Macvarish
Mens Class 7 - Richard Blockley
Mens Class 9 - Rob Schofield
Mens Class 2 - Sam Begley
Mens Class 4 - Adam Henley
Mens Class 6 - Brad Ellison
Mens Class 8 - Ayrton Ellison
Mens Class 10 - Joe 'Speedy' Reiblein
Mens Stock Hatch - Tom Farrow
F600 - Roy Clark
Ladies Class 11 - Caz Watson
Ladies Class 12 - Sharon Goldsmith
Ladies Class 13 - Michelle Arnett
Ladies Class 14 - Nicola Jesse
Junior Saloon - Jess Rowbotham
Junior Special - Jack Broughton
Mens Driver of the Year - Brad Ellison
Ladies Driver of the Year - Caz Watson
Junior Saloon Driver of the Year - Jess Rowbotham
Junior Special Driver of the Year- Jack Broughton
Pete Johnson memorial Trophy (Mens) - Wez Tinker
Pete Johnson memorial Trophy (Ladies) - Michelle Arnett
Pete Johnson memorial Trophy (Juniors) - Harrison Blockley
Least points gained - Phil Reagan
Most entertaining on and of the track - Tom Farrow
Towed off the most - James Smith

Whilst not everyone could make the evening to collect their award, a few images of those that were able to are below. The full portfolio from the evening can be found here.

Mixed Bag Photography - York Autograss Presentation evening 2017

Yorkshire Dales Awards evening 2017...
What a great night at the Yorkshire Dales Autograss presentation evening, thoroughly enjoyed it and a huge well done to those that won trophies.
I spend a lot of time photographing people in their cars so it was also nice to see everyone scrubbed up, out of their racesuits for a change and of course having a pint or two.
To take part in any form of motorsport, whether it be grass roots, BTCC or on two wheels at the Isle of Man TT, there has to be a certain level of commitment and that's something there never seems to be a shortage of in Autograss - from Marshals to organisers to the drivers themselves, they all commit themselves to a season of racing.
With any racing there has to be winners and the evening naturally focuses on these men, women and juniors who, in the 2016 season, came top of their respective Class.
As Phil Sherwood, Chairman of the Yorkshire Dales club, did on the evening I would also like to congratulate those winners and look forward to seeing you all back out to do it all again in 2017! Phil, incidently, did a great job considering he was recovering from either actual flu - or worse still a more serious case of 'Man-Flu'! Either way, hope you are feeling a bit more yourself now.

The winners were:

Mens Class 1 - Jody Lovatt
Mens Class 3 - Will Langstaff
Mens Class 5 - Peter Janes
Mens Class 7 - Graham Blackburn
Mens Class 9 - James Bowe
Mens Class 2 - Dan Grufferty
Mens Class 4 - Jamie Smith
Mens Class 6 - Dave Falvey
Mens Class 8 - Andy Jobling
Mens Stock Hatch - Callum Wing
F600 - Chris Chilvers
Ladies Class 1 - Tracey Bainbridge
Ladies Class 2 - Beth Wood
Ladies Class 6 - Sarah Haigh
Ladies Class 7 - Pam Blackburn
Ladies Class 8 - Kelly-Jayne Johnson
Ladies Stock Hatch - Leanne Hennessey
Junior Saloon - Elliot Payne
Junior Special - Elliot Payne
Peter Crellin Trophy - Lucky
Ladies Club Champion - Tracey Bainbridge
Junior Club Champion - Elliot Payne
Mens Club Champion - Jody Lovatt

Whilst not everyone could make the evening to collect their award, images of those that were able to are below. The full portfolio from the evening can be found here.

Mixed Bag Photography - Yorkshire Dales Presentation evening 2017

Elliot Payne receiving his British Autograss Series 3rd place trophy.

Jody Lovatt - Mens Class 1

Graham Blackburn - Mens Class 7

James Bowe - Mens Class 9

Andy Jobling - Mens Class 8

Callum Wing - Mens Stock Hatch

Tracey Bainbridge - Ladies Class 1

Sarah Haigh - Ladies Class 6

Pam Blackburn - Ladies Class 7

Elliot Payne - Junior Saloon

Elliot Payne - Junior Special

Lucky - Peter Crellin Trophy

Tracey Bainbridge - Ladies Club Champion

Elliot Payne - Junior Club Champion

Jody Lovatt - Mens Club Champion

Autosport International Show 2017...
Back in the office after three days at the Autosport International Show at the NEC and I have to say, I absolutely loved it. Wasn't sure I would be able to fill my time but everywhere I went I seemed to spot something or someone different, I swear they were changing things constantly as I walked around, either that or it was way bigger than I thought!
I was asked if I had a favourite bit of the show and, to be honest, I think it was the variety that I liked the most. With so many different cars, motorsports, clubs & manufacturers, there was so much to see and so many different people to talk to as well as so many different things to watch and/or take part in.
A definite highlight for me though was watching the brilliant, yet surreal, Williams Martini F1 guys performing a slow motion pit stop over near the main stage. Having seen plenty of full speed pit stops on TV (the fastest being 1.92 seconds by both Red Bull & Williams) to watch this was really quite strange and actually quite difficult to describe other than saying it was a pit stop in slo-mo which really doesn't do it justice - it was more moving art than a pit stop.
The M-Sport stand got a lot of attention on the Thursday too as they had Sebastien Ogier's brand new WRC Fiesta on show and it really was something to behold both graphically and technically. Sadly it disappeared on Thursday evening and was replaced by the Bentley GT car which, whilst not quite as bright, was still an impressive machine in itself.
There was also a full grid of Formula 1 cars as well as a number of BTCC cars both on the main stand and scattered around the rest of the arena on various stands. The new Shredded Wheat backed Motorbase Focus headed the main stand and was flanked by the AMD Tuning Audi and the Motorbase performance Pirtek BMW. They also had a number of interviews throughout the show and it was nice to see the drivers and team owners in a more relaxed atmosphere and giving their thoughts on the new season ahead.
It wasn't just about the big named motorsports though as the weekend saw halls 9 & 10 change from being dedicated to the Engineering Show to Oval racing and The Experience Zone including BRISCA, Ford-Mania, BTRDA, National Autograss and Gymkhana/Fueltopia. There were a superb range of cars throughout and some of the cars on the Ford-Mania stand really caught my eye - the attention to detail on most of them was second to none.
There were also a number of different classes of Autograss cars which was brilliant to see, from Junior Saloons/Specials to Class 7 super saloons and the monstrous Class 10 specials. Whilst all the cars on the stand looked really good, it seemed the most attention was given to both Andy Holtby's Class 7 and Kev/Caroline Bowes Class 3 - both of which did look pretty awesome. Such a shame the looks won't last as the Autograss season starts in just over four weeks with testing at Scunthorpe.
The BARC stand seemed to be constantly busy as did the 750 Motor Club stand. Both stands had a range of motorsport classes which gave a good idea to those visiting the types of cars that race and of course the staff being on hand to give out information on how to join or get started made all the difference.
Of course, there was so much more to see and I could go on forever, however, as this is a small blog and not war and peace, I won't write everything down and risk blame claims for failed eyesight! It's safe to say though, if you went I'm sure you enjoyed it and if you didn't, seriously think about going next year, you won't be disappointed (unless you are into knitting & cookery then maybe you will be).
Lastly I'd like to say a big thanks to the media/PR team who were brilliant and kept me up-to-date during the event, something I would imagine could be quite a thankless task. All in all it was a really good show and well worth the visit, something I'll be doing again in 2018 hopefully.
Below is a slection of images and the full portfolio will be up shortly. Enjoy.

Mixed Bag Photography - Autosport International Show 2017

This was an awesome looking car on the Nankang tyre stand.

Not sure who drove this Ferrari but I like both Kimi & Seb so happy either way

Sebastien Ogier's awesome looking M-Sport WRC Fiesta

Clio Cup car on the BARC stand

The BTCC stand

The brilliantly surreal slow-mo Williams pit stop team

Andy Holtby's awesome looking Class 7 Autograss car

Dmitrij Sribnyj's Fueltopia/Gymkhana Grid Impreza.

Happy New Year!...
Happy New Year to all Mixed Bag Photography customers, clients and friends both new and old. 2016 is now consigned to the history books and with 2017 upon us, I am going to try to make the most of the next 365 days bringing you as many events as possible.
The diary is already looking busy but, as always, I'll be looking for new projects and commissions throughout this year, so if you have an event or series of events that you would like to be covered or you would like to hire me for a private/corporate commission, please feel free to contact me using the form here.
I'm really looking forward to what 2017 brings and wish everyone a happy and healthy year too.