After more than two hours of walking through an empty, cold and wet paddock, I just wanted to go home. It looked like my trip to Tierp Arena was simply a waste of time and petrol. I like walking through the paddock, but only when there is something happening there. At that point, the cars were just standing still, the toolboxes were closed and all the people were just hiding from the cold. The scene was set for a very sad ending to the season. Fortunately, around noon, the sun started to break through the clouds, warming up the tarmac and allowing the event to finally begin.
SpeedEvents Finals at Tierp Arena was intended to be the culmination of a season-long rivalry on the Swedish drag racing scene. The event's progress was, however, anything but straightforward. The weather gods clearly hadn't received their payment, and the event struggled against ever-changing conditions. On Friday, everything went smoothly, with sunny weather and spirits high. Unfortunately, the following day offered no chance to see even a single run. Rain tyres for drag racing? No, that wouldn't work. The weather forecasts for the final day were optimistic – a sunny day was expected. However, when I arrived at Tierp Arena on Sunday morning, I found conditions far from ideal for racing. It wasn't raining, but fog and thick clouds kept the temperature far too low for the tarmac to dry out and allow the duels to finally begin.
I was wandering aimlessly around the paddock, seriously considering going back home. Entering the silent arena seemed pointless. But when I finally did, I found some extra motivation to stay. I looked at the grandstands and saw how many wet and cold spectators were still patiently waiting for the racing to begin. This is the dedication of a real fan! If they can endure this, so can I!
Finally, our patience was rewarded. Hearing the first V8s waking up was such a joy! I quickly made my way to the staging area, where the racers gather before their runs. I never thought watching junior dragsters roll up to the line could bring me so much joy.
The first runs weren’t that spectacular, unfortunately. The cold surface of the strip didn’t allow the tires to heat up properly. For me, that meant less smoke and less spectacular photos. For the drivers, however, the consequences were much more serious – lack of traction, poor launches and having to fight the steering wheel to keep the car in its lane. Fortunately, as the day progressed, the sun was able to warm up the track surface, allowing the racing to proceed normally. The intense racing and sunny weather helped us forget about the unpleasant start to the day.
It looks like the weather plays a more important role in this story than the racing itself. That doesn’t reflect the true character of the event, but I have a couple of good excuses for why it might seem that way. Firstly, the weather left an undeniable mark on the day, and secondly, I hope the photos speak for themselves. After all, I’m a photographer first and foremost. Text comes second in most of my stories.
It would have been a shame if the entire season of action-packed Swedish drag racing had ended with a wet and silent Tierp Arena. Fortunately, that wasn’t the case. The action continued right up to the final moments of the event. Racing on Sunday afternoon was intense, as the organisers had to catch up on all the runs that couldn’t take place on Saturday and Sunday morning. Qualifying and elimination runs followed one another in quick succession. By the end of the day, no one could complain about a lack of action.
