News / Blog

I was assigned to cover the Priaulx League football game at St Peters on Saturday. I was looking forward to seeing how the Alderney side is shaping up this season and the game against Sylvans promised plenty action.

I wasn't disappointed with the pace of the game which kept spectators attention. I had turned up early having just left the 2-Day Motocross event and I settled in to capture the action.

What I hadn't anticipated was the clouds rolling in after the first thirty minutes of play... then the heavens opened and we all had to endure the uncomfortable heavy persistent drizzle. I and my kit got soaked through as I hadn't dressed accordingly!

Perhaps fortunately (I don't like getting wet!), I only had time in the schedule to cover the first half and when I left Sylvans were leading. But as I found out later Alderney showed their character and determination and pulled a win out of the hat with a final score of 3-4. Well done chaps.

I have uploaded a few pics to a gallery. Follow this link to view them:
CLICK TO VIEW PICS OF SYLVANS v ALDERNEY

Those who know me will be aware that I love live music and that I combine this passion with my profession in the form of my music photography.

But those who really know me will know that I also enjoy mixing a few pints of Real Ale into that mix. This is an entirely natural and obvious pairing to me!

So I was one of many visitors to this years Vale Earth Fair who were aware that something was missing. It just wasn't quite the same.

During the past year the Vale Earth Fair Collective... and indeed all of us, lost one of Guernsey's special ones. Errol Groves passing left a massive hole in the heart of the VEF music festival. It also left me without my favourite landlord, even if he was that for just one day a year.

But we can all be sure that the quiet, caring, thoughtful, likeable and memorable guy who was friend to so many will live on at the VEF as his real ale bar has been renamed as 'Errol's Bar'.... which of course it always was.

I'm pleased to say that Errol's Bar continued his fine work by serving many a satisfying pint. I, as did many others, drank an extra pint just for the great man.

My edit of the many pics I took of the VEF 2019 (fueled by many pints) will take a while to edit as I actually still have to finish the Chaos Festival edit. That too was fueled by music and real ale!

For now I've added a small picture gallery featuring my Press edit that had to be submitted overnight for publication.
CLICK TO VIEW THE 2019 VEF PRESS EDIT

Once again this year I was asked by the Guernsey Press to help them cover the opening by students of their 2019 GCSE results.

This year I had to cover this event at Elizabeth College and the Ladies College.

This is a most enjoyable event to cover as a photographer finds himself 'in the middle of' what is a quite happy and emotional occasion where students discover that their ambitions and future is falling into place.

I've added a small gallery featuring my pics to this website. It is password protected as it features young people. You can Email me to get the password.

This is a link to the Gallery:
CLICK TO VIEW THE 2019 GCSE RESULTS GALLERY

I'm getting back into the swing of picture editing after a very busy period since the New Year.

This year has seen Carol and myself moving from our family cottage home of over forty years. We had to move into temporary holiday accommodation for several months. It is that which was so disruptive!

We are now in our new place - which is still far from finished. We have swapped that nearly 200 year old cottage for a bungalow which, whilst being built in the sixties, can now been considered brand new after the huge amount of building work and re-refurbishment that has been done.

All this upheaval has meant my attention has been distracted from my work. But, slowly, I'm sorting out a few of the edits and adding picture galleries to this website.

This Blog announces two new updates in the Sandracing Galleries. Pics of Rounds 7 & 8 are now online here:
CLICK TO VIEW PICS OF ROUNDS 7 & 8 OF THE SANDRACING CHAMPIONSHIP

We were treated to any extra hour in bed before today's Guernsey Triathlon Club Amarreurs Uber Sprint Triathlon & Aquabike race.

Often we have to be up and about for a 7am start but the more relaxed 8am race start was very welcome... at least for those of us who were just spectators!

For competitors the sea swim must have been as bracing as ever.

Maybe if you are a disciplined triathlon athlete you never carry a hangover from the Saturday night? But that early swim would certainly blow the cobwebs out of your system pretty quickly if you had weakened and let the training regime falter.

I was pleased that it was a bright morning... this helps capture some nice dynamic shots. My pics can be viewed here:
CLICK TO VIEW THE AMARREURS UBER TRIATHLON

On Saturday night I took the steep Stairway to Vale Castle to see a tribute to one of my favorite bands... actually is was a steep pathway but that didn't quite work with my analogy!

The previous comment should be enough of a clue to any rock music lover of my era as to who the tribute was for.

One Louder promoted a special event within the historic walls of Guernsey's Vale Castle featuring Europe's finest Led Zeppelin tribute band.

Letz Zeppelin powered through two sets of the originals finest songs and had the crowd (which were mostly of a 'certain age' - like me!) rocking like the years had dropped away!

The event could have done with a few more people... the band certainly justified gig goers making more of an effort. But for those who had made their way to the castle it was a memorable gig.

This Gallery of pictures should give you a flavour of the night:
CLICK HERE TO VIEW PICS OF LETZ ZEPPELIN

It had been about a year since I last visited the Delancey Flyers on one of their evening training sessions.

It was good to see that the enthusiasm for cycling was still just as strong with dozens of youngsters joining in a varied range of trials, races and coaching.

Once again there was a great atmosphere... no doubt helped by a warm summers evening.

Many parents had decided to sit in the park and relax for an hour whilst being relieved of the responsibility of looking after their children.

I've added a Gallery of pics which should illustrate what was going on in Delancey Park:
CLICK TO VIEW PICS OF THE DELANCEY FLYERS TRAINING EVENING

Once again the SoPM Summer Gig at The Fermain Tavern proved to be one of my favorites gigs of the year.

The 2019 version had a fantastic atmosphere and it is great to see the progress students have made since their last performances. Well done to teachers and students alike for organizing such an enjoyable evening.

I was invited to capture the performances and my Gallery of pics is now online here:
CLICK TO VIEW PICS OF THE SoPM 2019 SUMMER GIG

Darren Warwick has received a sponsorship deal from Zef Eisenberg's MADMAX Race Team allowing Darren to race the last three rounds of the 2019 FIA European Hillclimb Championship.

This Championship series is very expensive to compete in as the Hills are spread across many European countries. The overall cost has meant that currently no British driver takes part.

There is also the added challenge that Darren will be competing against many big budget teams and drivers.

However we have our hopes raised that Darren does enough during this short run of events to attract a big headline sponsor in 2020 to allow him a real opportunity to try for his Class title.

As well as the MADMAX logos Darren's car also features Zef's new ITV4 series 'Speed Freaks'.

This gallery features my pics of Darren and Zef shaking on the deal.
CLICK TO VIEW PICS OF DARREN WARWICK & ZEF EISENBERG

Whilst it was a shame to see a reduced number of racers signed on to compete in the latest Guernsey Kart & Motor Club Hillclimb at Le Val Des Terres this did mean that those who turned up enjoyed a packed day of racing.

This was also helped by the Club's Motocross Section taking responsibility to man most of the Marshall posts.

The result proved what can be achieved if all Club members play their part in running a successful event.

My pics of the day are now online here:
CLICK TO VIEW THE LATEST GK&MC HILLCLIMB PICS

The Guernsey Autocross Club celebrated the 50th anniversary of their first ever race meeting by returning to St Sampsons Harbour for a special race.

Judging by their smiles, Drivers didn't seem at all bothered by the sticky, smelly mix of sand and mud. The high harbour walls formed a perfect arena and were packed with spectators enjoying the mucky action.
Let's hope we don't have to wait another 50 years before race action returns to this natural 'stadium'.

The Autocross Club committee and active members should be congratulated on reaching such a great milestone of half a century of this fun, and relatively cheap, form of Motorsport. Most other genres of Motorsport are becoming expensive and more and more regulated. Guernsey's 'Banger' racing remains quite unique and a fantastic sport that brings smiles in equal measure to both racers and spectators alike!

I enjoyed photographing the historic racing from the slippery harbour floor and surprisingly avoided going horizontal on my back!

The results of my work can now be viewed here:
VIEW PICS OF THE 50th ANNIVERSARY AUTOCROSS MEETING

Visitors to the 2019 Motorsport Seafront Sunday and Twisty Sprint enjoyed a beautiful Guernsey summer's day and were well entertained by the racing, noise and action.

A large crowd was drawn to North Beach where the Twisty Sprint and demonstration runs showcased some of the many genres of Motorsport that are organized within our small Island.

I think the Motorsport Seafront Sunday attracts more people than any of the other Seafront Sundays and the families who visit certainly hang around for longer as the action comes fast and thrilling. The Twisty Sprint gives spectators the chance to get really close to the racing... they feel the rush of air as the competitors speed past them, the smell of brakes and overheating clutches all with a whiff of tyre smoke!

Well done to the Guernsey Clubs for working so closely together to organize such a successful event.

I've uploaded a few pics that offer a small taster of some of the Twisty Sprint and demo run action:
CLICK TO VIEW PICS OF THE 2019 MOTORSPORT SEAFRONT SUNDAY

The Guernsey rounds of the 2019 Avon Tyres/Wynn Developments Motorsport UK British Hillclimb Championship will be remembered for the great performances made by local competitors.

Once again the national contenders arrived with their specialist racing cars. As always they were spectacular, fast and bristling with the latest technology.

But Guernsey and Les Val Des Terres must give them one of the toughest of challenges among the whole seasons championship.

This Island has developed driving talent way beyond what you would expect from such a small population and those racers have hand built and modified their dated machinery to such a high level that only the very fastest national competitors can get the better of them!

Five locals made at least one run off. Darren Warwick, Nick Saunders, Tim Tulie and Paul Le Messurier all qualified for both rounds with Ian Le Messurier joining them for the round 22 run off.

So Guernsey should be proud of these racing hero's who fly the chequered flag so high for us.

My pics of the event are now online here:
CLICK TO VIEW THE 2019 BRITISH HILLCLIMB CHAMPIONSHIP

A notable anniversary deserves a special effort to celebrate it and that is what the SoPM team made to mark their fifth year supporting the musical population of Guernsey.

Hundreds of children and adults have benefited from the talent and enthusiasm within the young, energetic SoPM team of tutors. I've been lucky to have covered most of the SoPM special events and the latest anniversary concert was organized in the modern Performing Arts Centre.

Once again the talent was amazing as performers did their thing in front of a packed audience.

The SoPM goes from strength to strength each year with a stream of new ideas and events designed to keep their many students exciting and enthused.

My pics of the anniversary concert are now online. Check them out here:
CLICK TO VIEW THE SoPM 5th ANNIVERSARY CONCERT

Now firmly established in the Guernsey Motorsport calendar the GK&MC Reservoir Speed Event maintains a special status as it only runs on alternate years.

The 2019 event was eagerly awaited and several competitors were out to try the twisty course for the first time. More than a handful of Class records were re-written as the day was warm and dry.

I was only able to cover the morning's racing due to other commitments but this was long enough to capture plenty action.

Follow this link to view the picture gallery:
CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE 2019 RESERVOIR SPEED EVENTY

No record was safe from attack at the 'Terres on Bank Holiday Monday. I'm not sure what was in the air but something must have permeated down the hill as nothing was holding the competitors back.... apart from a few 'abrupt stops' when the grass banks got in the way!

Sadly there were so many activities organized Island wide on this Bank Holiday that the crowd numbers of spectators were smaller than usual meaning that many missed such an entertaining day.

One thing is certain though, the racers had great fun with many taking away stories to tell how they were on the absolute limit and beyond to lower their Class record.

I was track-side capturing some of the action:
CLICK TO VIEW PICS OF THE BANK HOLIDAY HILLCLIMB

Sadly I was only allocated a short time to cover the day-long British Showjumping Spring Show in Guernsey. This meant only two of the Classes are featured here.... the Scope Furnishing Trophy & the Junior Foxhunter Trophy.

Click the link to view the pics:
CLICK TO VIEW PICS OF THE BS SPRING SHOW

Chouet beach was lined with a large crowd of spectators for the end of season Autocross Fun Meeting.

In recent years the format of the Fun Meeting has become a sort of Motorsport 'Muratti' with a growing contingent of Jersey cars and drivers coming over to enjoy some fun on the Guernsey sands.

This year the action was non-stop and, unlike our local football team, the Guernsey Banger racers took the Trophy with a very strong performance.

I've added a new Gallery of pics featuring the action. Follow this link to view the pics:
CLICK TO VIEW PICS OF THE 2019 AUTOCROSS FUN MEETING

What a nice day in the office. Sun, sea, sand were all enjoyed by the Sandracing 'petrol heads'.

There was plenty of action to entertain the crowds who were encouraged by the seasonal sunshine.

I was on the sands capturing all the action. Follow this link to view my pics:
CLICK TO VIEW PICS OF ROUND-4 OF THE SANDRACING CHAMPIONSHIP

The latest Gallery features another of the weekends photoshoots.

Vazon beach was the perfect place to spend some time on Saturday afternoon. Sadly because I had other assignments booked in I could only stay for a few races... but it was worth it.

There is a new Gallery online featuring some of the action:
CLICK TO VIEW PICS OF THE 2019 SAND RACING CHAMPIONSHIP