A couple of message boards more geared toward that kind of general shooting information:

www.dvxuser.com
www.dvinfo.net

At the very least, get yourself a tripod (even a moderately priced $90 pod will be a big help.)

Rossco, that is a question with a million answers (give or take a few). Colleges run whole courses on this.
In essence what you're doing is telling a story. If you're telling it to yourself then you can probably manage without any real structure, since the images will remind you of events videoed. If you have a wider audience then you need to identify what you're telling them and structure it to get this across. Meaningful images that together tell the story.
Now, camera technique. First rule: don't move the camera. 2nd: don't zoom. 3rd: build sequences as you shoot. Now rules 1 &2 can be broken once you have some idea of what you're doing, and you can hardly video a trucking rodeo with following the action.
Exciting action scenes are generated by fast cutting of great images. Each image must build the impression of excitement and may be just a few frames. The "rush" you get from being amongst the action (eg. "following the lead truck") has to be translated onto the screen. Guess whoever said "the camera doesn't capture emotion" had it about right.
I think you identified a key problem---footage must not be jerky (impossible to watch). Live events contain the problem that they don't wait. You have to be expert with your gear (no fumbling), be thinking fast about what you need for your story (being built as you go) and getting the shots. Remember cut-aways. Lots of them. Reactions to action, people watching, competitors waiting. All that stuff you'll need in editing to tell as story.

Great reply Serena - you made my cut & paste folder entitled "the Best of Vegas Forum."

The point you make about needing to edit as if you were not there is priceless.

Michael

Start by learning and practicing the "Rule of Thirds". There are many free resources online for learning how to shoot, including This One.

When following moving objects - left to right - keep the object on the left side third - so that it appears as if it is moving into your right side frame. if you put the object on the right third, and it is moving right, the eye will not like this! The same is true for right to left.

Jay Mitchell

Hi all,
and thanks very much for the info and links, very much appreciated and will be well absorbed :)

Dach,
the racing was on a standard race track (not just oval, but one with hairpins and Esses etc) and over here we have Holden and Ford that compete head on with V8's. This weekend was the first over here for V8 utes (basically a 2 seater with a tray at the back) and also they had Super Truck racing, which is Kenworths, Macks, Detroit etc truck racing around at between 160kmh and 200kmh, a really awesome site to see close up, these huge machines being tossed around a racetrack like toys :)
I was mainly dissappointed with camera movement and tracking as I was trying to follow the lead trucks etc, found it really hard to keep relatively smooth movement etc.

Serena,
thanks for the info and tips, it seems I have broken every rule you mentioned and some LOL. Really appreciate the story info and lots of cuts, as after watching it again, I thought well, even if it is just for me, there is heaps I don't want to keep, so with your tips in hand I am going to make a story of the whole day with some fast cuts etc. plus I will remove any jerky bits, heck they make me feel sick, so I can only imagine how others would feel :) :)

David Jimerson,
thanks for the links, really good info there :) Much appreciated.

dand9959,
yep, got Tripod...BUMP - but forgot to take it with me DOH! :)

Jay Mitchell,
Thanks for the info and link, they mentioned "rule of Thirds" in the camera manual also. Manuals? are we supposed to read those??? LOL

Thanks all for your help, really appreciated from a real green newby ;)

cheers
Rossco

I highly recommend Izzy Video

It's a bunch of short and simple video tutorials that cover topics such as:
Exposure
Opacity
Montage
Using Room Noise
The Difference One Light Can Make
Close-Ups and Wide Shots
Cut Away Shots
Sound Options
Intro to Key Lights - Positioning
Hard and Soft Light
Filters
Dolly Shots
Camera Angle
Shutter Speed
etc...