P1 Powerboat racing - Which lens?

Hi All,
I'm hoping to get to a weekend of powerboat & jetski racing at the end of this month (For the local folk, 30 & 31st May, Scarborough - Welcome to P1 Superstock - P1 Superstock )

I was wondering if anyone here has been to a similar event, and if so what lens would you recommend? I am assuming that a 70-200mm is going to be too short, but then I don't know how far off shore exactly these things go?

I'm thinking as it's a one off, I will most like rent a lens for the bank holiday weekend, and am leaning towards either 80-400mm D (£76.99 / week), the Sigma 50-500mm (£69.60 / week) or the Sigma 150-600mm Sport (£99 / week)

The 80-400 is a bit slow on focus and the copy i used a bit soft @400mm,the 150-600 would allow you to get it out of your system or break your heart sending it back,think i would go for the Tamron.

mikew said:

The 80-400 is a bit slow on focus and the copy i used a bit soft @400mm,the 150-600 would allow you to get it out of your system or break your heart sending it back,think i would go for the Tamron.

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Thanks for the info about the 80-400 Mike! My preferred rental company (Preferred because they don't ask for any deposit, others ask for ~£1000) don't do Tamron lenses - I asked when I rented a 70-200 and they replied that they don't stand up to constant heavy use as well as Sigma, Nikon & Canon - I don't have anything against Tamron, but that was just their answer.

On the up side, I rented a Nikkor 70-200 in December, and 5 months later the wife was all for me buying one..... So, about that Sigma.......

nikonpup said:

get the tamron 150-600mm. My tamron 70-200 has not given me any problems. It is odd the the 150-600mm is the more expensive, here in the states it is the less expensive option.

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It's the Sigma 150-600 Sport, not the Tamron The rental company I prefer to use don't carry Tamron lenses

If you can manage the weight the sigma should be great

It certainly looks like a weighty beast - I think before I decide I will have to check my monopod + head load limits!

nikonpup said:

when i see 150-600mm my brain is stuck in "tamron"

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Same with mine

There is another company that rents out the Tamron, but they want £1000 deposit + the rental. I'd buy one, but there's no way that's getting past the wife so soon after getting a 70-200!

It sounds to me that you are using Lensforhire ?

I used them a couple months ago for the Sigma 50-500 to take to the F1 test and they were awesome and so was the lens, I found it a really good lens and focused quickly with the speed (I would see them comparable in speed to a P1 Boat

Great reach on a crop sensor camera too

Here is a shot I took of Lewis at pretty much full reach of the lens, only thing I had to get used to is the focus zooms out Anti Clockwise instead of the typical Clockwise on a normal lens