SnoCross Racing Gets Polecam Treatment

Polecam operator Steve Rausch has completed his second season capturing ISOC National SnoCross Racing (SnoX). Nine events were organized by the International Series of Champions during winter 2009-2010, each race being streamed live on the internet and later edited into a one-hour show for transmission on the Versus cable TV network.

The winter favorite of motocross racers and snowmobile riders and fans, SnoCross Races are held at various locations over the snowy states of the USA and Canada, with amateurs racing the same tracks as the professionals.

“Cameras provide video to a Jumbotron which then feeds a live video stream to the web,” says Rausch. “This feed gets a lot of international attention, especially from Sweden.”

Longhaul Productions out of Minneapolis is responsible for the production and produces a magazine show about the SnoX races that airs regionally on Fox Sports affiliates.

“When I purchased my Polecam in 2009, I knew it would benefit the production so I met with the producer for a demo,” explains Rausch. “Longhaul liked what the Polecam could do and added it to the mix for the 2009-2010 season.

Rausch says Polecam is a great system for covering the races especially with the conditions and terrain being extremely challenging.

“My gear consists of a five-section Polecam with a Camera Corps HD Mini Zoom, recording to Convergent Design Flash XDR,” he explains. “I sometimes fit a Hamas HR.5x wide angle adapter and Tiffen filters. We can position our rig on the starting line or on steep corners and even move it between heats for completely different views.”

The lightweight construction of Polecam allows it to be placed on slopes where pedestal set-ups are just not practical. “The Polecam also enables us to get shots from angles that would otherwise be impossible,” says Rausch. “And it is far safer than the heavy steel of a traditional crane when you are operating near fast moving objects on ice or snow.”

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