Private view: a 'you were there' special

Autumn in upstate New York has always been a time to savour – particularly when the United States GP visited Watkins Glen 

Customarily it takes only a few minutes to stitch together the key elements of this feature. Images often arrive carefully packaged and eloquently captioned, complete with details of the photographic equipment used. Sometimes, though, the supplied information is a little less complete. The adjacent photographs arrived on a CD entitled simply ‘Watkins Glen in the late 1970s’, but the content was familiar enough. They were sent by John Payne of Alton, Virginia – and we’re delighted that he took the trouble.

John submitted a blend of action, portraiture and atmosphere embracing Watkins Glen GPs from 1976 through to 1980, the 20th and final time that it was included on the Formula 1 world championship schedule. We don’t know whether he had formal accreditation, but he certainly obtained good access. 

 The modern United States Grand Prix has a fine home at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, but there is constant talk of the country taking on a second annual F1 fixture. Back in 1976 it had both Long Beach and Watkins Glen – a combination whose appeal will perhaps never be surpassed.