Out of the Gates: Valentines day coincided this year with the finals of the annual cutter races at Melody Ranch. The event is a BIG DEAL, benefiting many children at the Shriner’s Hospital. You can read a lot more about the event and the fundraising on the Shriner’s official site: Jackson Hole Shrine Club » Cutter Races
This page contains a few photos I took in the afternoon of the last half dozen races.
Ready to Load: They say it “take a village” to raise a kid. It takes a lot of dedicated volunteers to make this even happen.
Young and Old: This driver just turned 90 years old and is still going strong. Amazing!
All Eight Off the Ground: I captured several shots with all hooves off the ground. I was shooting at 1/2000th of a second at F/11, with auto ISO bouncing around at roughly ISO400. I used my Nikon D810 and Tamron 150-600 on the long shots and a Nikon 14-24 on the close shots by the gates. The horse on the left seemed to be laughing.
Down the Track: The first 30 feet of the track is groomed soft gravel. Afterwards, the track is all snow.
Lighter Side: The races are dead serious, but some of the contestants find room for some fun.
Start Gates: Lots of action near the gates! (Nikon D810 and Nikon 14-24mm lens)
The Track: I spent most of my time today near the start gates. This shot was taken down the track. Most of the spectators, announcers, concession stands, and action happens down the track near the finish line. The finish line is a great place to stand for photography, as the horses come more or less straight at you for a long time. A zoom lens allows for a lot of shots of a single race.
Boot, Stirrup, and Chinks:I find cowboys and wranglers to be some of the most friendly people on earth! This cowboy turned his horse to the light for me to get off a few shots. I was using a 14-24mm lens, which meant I had to be close and the horse was not exactly sure if he liked it. The cowboy made it happen! There were probably thousands of photographic possibilities at the races if I had dedicated more time this year.
Up Close and Personal: This is a great photo to end on…the horse is still smiling! The beauty of the Shrine Club Cutter Races is how close a photographer is to the action. Unlike some horse race events, spectators are literally right beside the track as seen above. I was probably less than 20′ away from the horse and racer as they flew by! If you happen to be near JH next February around the middle of the month, plan on going to the event. The $15 entry fee is well spent.
Here’s a link to a previous page for this event: Jackson Hole Cutter Races: February 2014
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