Hayley Turnz is an accomplished drag racing photographer in Australia, and at the Auto Club NHRA Finals, she realized a lifelong dream of being able to photograph an NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series event. 

As a credentialed photographer shooting the action for CompetitionPlus.com, she was able to stand tall alongside the wall and shoot everything from the 10,000 horsepower nitro Funny Cars (something not available in Australia on the national series) to the wheelstanding Stockers. 

“It was amazing.  I couldn’t get over the Nitro Funny Cars and being that close to it,” Turnz admitted. “When they first went past me my eyes were watering and my lungs just filled with nitro and it was amazing.”

Turnz has been shooting championship drag racing Down Under for eight years and outside of her first opportunity to shoot the NHRA, experienced her finest moment at the American drag strip. 

“Yes oh my, gosh my first American hot dog,” Turnz said excitedly. “It was loaded and I loved it.”

Turnz quickly admitted the American cuisine ranked high on her list of experiences but not as high as meeting NHRA official starter Mark Lyle. Not many photographers stay on the line from the first car down the track until the last, and this caught Lyle’s attention. 

“Mark Lyle came up to me and said that you don’t usually see people who stay here this late to watch all the Super Gas and Super Stock cars,” said Turnz. “We don’t have those sorts of cars, maybe only six of them, and to see the amount of them that are here, I had to watch all of it. I just loved it.”

On a weekend when the Aussies were standing tall from Holly Holm knocking out UFC champion Rhonda Rousey, Turnz was intimidated amongst the Americans. 

“Massively intimidated!” Turnz admitted. “I didn’t want to go out there and step on other peoples’ feet.  I just wanted to be polite and make sure that I wasn’t in anybody else’s way.”

And in the end, the visitor fit in just fine.