Drag Illustrated Issue 150, November 2019 | Page 10

like I knew what the “Iceman” had in mind. It was at that moment that I started praying that there’d be someone else besides me tak- ing photos of this potentially historic happening. As we reached the top of staging lanes and the team went through their final preparations – Wayne Davis closing up the bellhousing, the late Steve “Wormy” Hel- kin checking the ni- trous bottle pressure – I noticed the team manager and then Speedtech Nitrous market- ing manager Jason Sharp grabbing a massive Canon camera with a nearly two-foot-long lens off the floor of the golf cart. “Don’t worry,” he said. “We’ll get you some pictures.” Following him out to the guardrail, Sharp explained to me that he’d worked the last several years as a professional photographer, and would be happy to work with me as we moved forward. Teaching me about the craft, but more importantly work- ing with us to pro- vide photography for stories. When Shannon finally pulled into the water, I snagged a few pictures as he smoked the tires across the line, but decided to put my camera away for the run. It was a big moment for me, something it felt like I’d waited my whole life to see, and I didn’t want to watch it through a viewfinder. Plus, I knew my photos would likely suck, and Jason’s probably wouldn’t. Shannon clicked off a 3.992-second pass at 185.66mph. The car moved around a lot through the middle of the track, but it didn’t matter – his- tory had been made, and I’d witnessed it firsthand. Jason reviewed the shots he’d gotten – we were golden. Plus, I’d learned a valuable lesson: Find people that are good at what they do, and let them do it. And that’s been the strategy ever since. I’ve played around taking a few photos over the years, but I respect the craft too much to be so arrogant as to think that I’m going to pick up a camera here and there and produce the type of imagery that I want for this magazine and that our read- ers expect. Following that weekend in Georgia, Sharp went on to shoot nearly 50 consecutive magazine cov- ers for us, and continued to play an integral role in this magazine’s photography for nearly a decade. Since then we’ve developed a small network of the most talented photographers in drag racing – bar none – and we’re thrilled to showcase their best work from 2019 in this issue. DI DI DI DI DI DI DI DI DI DI Wesley R. Buck Founder & Editorial Director 10 | D r a g I l l u s t r a t e d | DragIllustrated.com I invite you to email me at [email protected] and follow me at facebook.com/wbuck and wesbuckinc on Instagram. Issue 150 FOUNDER’S LETTER