Rob Hatch

[RedheadDane]

2) You probably have a scroll bar...

Yes, and damn it gets used so I can get down to the important stuff. Just a weird priority from Axelgaard...

 

[tobydawq]

Yes, and damn it gets used so I can get down to the important stuff. Just a weird priority from Axelgaard...

I think it's fairly normal to present the race first, then its competitors?

 

[BR2]

That's really taste, isn't it? I am definitely more on Redhead's side here.

And actually I find the historical stuff super annoying. Not that I don't have interest in history, lol, but in which year xy won/raced/passed through, whatever, I absolutely don't care. Karsten Migels does that a lot on German ES and obviously many cycling fans appreciate it, but I find it such a weird fixation cycling has... I imagine football commentators talking about past games half of the time... everybody would be like "who cares! comment on what's happening".

Regarding the cultural scenery I would appreciate more real knowledge. Otherwise they can just leave it be as well. It's often cringe.

 

[Samu Cuenca]

I have an idea for a screenplay: The female lead has made a living out of giving advice and guidance to young and hopeful sports commentators. But then one day she herself is offered the opportunity to sit in front of the mic during a big sporting event.

Will she be able to stick to her own "rules"? Will the viewers enjoy it, or will her lack of knowledge prove an issue?

Pre-order your own 360p copy of "Hatch" today.

 

[tobydawq]

That's really taste, isn't it? I am definitely more on Redhead's side here.

And actually I find the historical stuff super annoying. Not that I don't have interest in history, lol, but in which year xy won/raced/passed through, whatever, I absolutely don't care. Karsten Migels does that a lot on German ES and obviously many cycling fans appreciate it, but I find it such a weird fixation cycling has... I imagine football commentators talking about past games half of the time... everybody would be like "who cares! comment on what's happening".

Regarding the cultural scenery I would appreciate more real knowledge. Otherwise they can just leave it be as well. It's often cringe.

I think this is up there with the most surprising posts I have seen...

 

[Samu Cuenca]

Imagine football commentators talking about past games half of the time... everybody would be like "who cares! comment on what's happening".

There are definitely football commentators who does that.

 

[Kaptain Kool]

I'm also with RhD here. Hatch knows history better than Kirby but is worse at filling in the boring-time gaps (although Hatch is much better than others like Jez Cox).
Anyway, if you need cycling history, the analyst usually can provide it.

 

[Carrick-On-Seine]

I'm also with RhD here. Hatch knows history better than Kirby but is worse at filling in the boring-time gaps (although Hatch is much better than others like Jez Cox).
Anyway, if you need cycling history, the analyst usually can provide it.

I think Kirby knows more; there's a difference between knowledge and reeling out PCS stats or whatever Cillian Kelly texted you.

 

[RedheadDane]

I'm also with RhD here. Hatch knows history better than Kirby but is worse at filling in the boring-time gaps (although Hatch is much better than others like Jez Cox).
Anyway, if you need cycling history, the analyst usually can provide it.

Filling in boring-time gaps is exactly what historical knowledge is for.

 

[BR2]

There are definitely football commentators who does that.

I haven't experienced that apart from an occasional 20 seconds mentioning maybe here or there. But definitely not as a relevant part of the commentary. Is it common in Denmark?

 

[Netserk]

I haven't experienced that apart from an occasional 20 seconds mentioning maybe here or there. But definitely not as a relevant part of the commentary. Is it common in Denmark?

I would think that it's common to refer to previous El Clásicos when Barca and Real play.

 

[Samu Cuenca]

I haven't experienced that apart from an occasional 20 seconds mentioning maybe here or there. But definitely not as a relevant part of the commentary. Is it common in Denmark?

It's not common at all, cause of course there isn't usually the same amount of dead air to fill during a football match as in a bike race.

But EURO 1992 champion Morten Bruun is often quite good at making references to past fixtures that may or may not have much to do with the game he's actually commentating on.

 

[Zoetemelk-fan]

This is hillarious.

Why insist on watching a channel when unsatisfied with commentry here?

Today's streaming services delivers so many choices of watching pro cycling coverage on almost every spot on the globe, and it's a fully free choice to seek other channels. Myself doing this (shopping back and forth in coverage with more insightfull commentators) since 1994.

GCN coverage I've only watched less than two handfulls on occasions via YT and have no positive words to say of any what I've heard from here so far;
Often way too simplistic and one-dimensional, and I fully understand CN Forum becoming both simplistic and toxic if GCN is their main - or even only- gateway to watching pro cycling.

 

[ashhutch1997]

As much ad Hatch annoys me, he's earning his money in this years Giro, trying to keep a small bit of hype in this years race

 

[Ilmaestro99]

From my experiences listening these guys it's quite simple.

Put Hatch in the classics because he is very good at quickly recognising race situations and identifying riders. You would no want Kirby calling the last 50km of Roubaix for instance

Put Kirby in the stage races because he is good at telling stories about culturing things not always related to cycling. Hatch is so dull when there is a boring Giro stage . Kirby can talk about local farming methods

 

[BR2]

I would think that it's common to refer to previous El Clásicos when Barca and Real play.

Referring, yes. Telling the whole story, not that I remember.

 

[Netserk]

There's not really any story to be told of a ball game. A bike race is a narrative on wheels, always moving forward.

 

[BR2]

Of course it really depends on when it happens. If they talk about it while absolutely nothing happens, fine. That's the "cheese talk" to me, I don't care if they talk about how some sort of cheese is produced or what exactly happened here in 2007. Often I turn off the commentary anyway.
What I really hate is when they do it with about 5 km to go for instance, when the race is really on. Migels has the tendency to fabricate long sentences then in which he tries to build a relation between something that happened in the past and what is happening in that moment, sometimes it doesn't even have that much actual relation, though, but anyway - when the race is on I want a commentary for ONE reason, that is a kind of "do you see what I see/do I see this correctly", some help to get an overview of what is happening and a co-viewer (since I usually have nobody at my side who's interested in the race). In such moments any cycling history talk annoys me to death.

 

[BR2]

There's not really any story to be told of a ball game. A bike race is a narrative on wheels, always moving forward.

I would disagree on that first sentence. However I think it's for articles and maybe even books, not for live commentary.

 

[ashhutch1997]

From my experiences listening these guys it's quite simple.

Put Hatch in the classics because he is very good at quickly recognising race situations and identifying riders. You would no want Kirby calling the last 50km of Roubaix for instance

Put Kirby in the stage races because he is good at telling stories about culturing things not always related to cycling. Hatch is so dull when there is a boring Giro stage . Kirby can talk about local farming methods

I think Kirby tries to model his commentary on the late great David Duffield. He could literally spend the whole of a 200km boring flat stage talking about local cheese, while asking Sean Kelly for updates every 30 minutes.

 

[awavey]

I think Kirby tries to model his commentary on the late great David Duffield. He could literally spend the whole of a 200km boring flat stage talking about local cheese, while asking Sean Kelly for updates every 30 minutes.

I think theyre similar characters, Kirby doesnt try to model himself on Duffield, he's always had that raconteur commentary style, give him a glass of vino and he can talk for hours about literally nothing and be quite entertaining with it. I always remember him popping up during Eurosports Le Mans coverage and theyd give him the night shift when theres little in the way of on track action to commentate, and he'd tell all these stories about some French bistro he'd found or the gite he was staying at, the wine or cheese theyd be served at dinner, and every so often read the timing screen to say who was where etc.

whic is the same style he brings to the cycling in the boring bits, I remember one year the tv crews kept showing cows in fields, and he must have spent the next week every so often when it got boring and another cow appeared on screen, talking about herds of cows, and how the farmers looked after them and the history of the breed or its association to the region.

fwiw on the history stuff, I thought on GTs as well as the road book, they produced a media history/local region guide so that when they show all those pictures of monestaries (insert Kirby joke about them always being shut when he visits or the bells are ringing) or chateaus that the commentators can flick to the right page in the guide and say something knowledgeable about them, they dont have to have researched or learnt all that stuff.

 

[BR2]

fwiw on the history stuff, I thought on GTs as well as the road book, they produced a media history/local region guide so that when they show all those pictures of monestaries (insert Kirby joke about them always being shut when he visits or the bells are ringing) or chateaus that the commentators can flick to the right page in the guide and say something knowledgeable about them, they dont have to have researched or learnt all that stuff.

That's the worst part. They usually have no idea what they are talking about there and it shows. It's usually just random bits of "xy built this in 1879" without real context and therefor "unnecessary knowledge". Nobody will remember the date next time they come around and why should anyone?

 

[RedheadDane]

Today's streaming services delivers so many choices of watching pro cycling coverage on almost every spot on the globe, and it's a fully free choice to seek other channels. Myself doing this (shopping back and forth in coverage with more insightfull commentators) since 1994

Well, I'm cheap! I don't want to have to pay for multiple different streaming services, half in languages I don't even talk. With TV2 Play, and GCN+ I'm pretty much covered.
However, now someone just needs to explain to Brian Holm that there's no 'i' at the end of Armirail.

 

[Zoetemelk-fan]

Well, I'm cheap! I don't want to have to pay for multiple different streaming services, half in languages I don't even talk. With TV2 Play, and GCN+ I'm pretty much covered.
However, now someone just needs to explain to Brian Holm that there's no 'i' at the end of Armirail.

Well, that's what I ment by 'shopping back and forth', me neither having it all at one and same time

Btw, speaking Brian Holm. IMO both Holm and Thomas Bay are fading on sharpness, compared to previous years.
However, must credit the Danish Eurosport Premium team for stepping up on the giro with full coverage, in-depth pre race analysis, intellectual aspect by Bastian Emil, their man onsite Mielke with insight knowledge, also on the nerdy technical field, and then post race sum up.
Good commentators have the ability to interrupt themselves in e.g. intellectual dozing of local regions or own personal stories by seizing the moments, previously Bay&Holm have had better standards here. But must admit I've not had the time for watching every single stage, could in general be better of what I've witnessed, but remember some spring classics with pinnacle commentary from both guys.

But now a bit of a rollercoaster for both, just like in the days of David Duffield like someone mentioned, and some occasions with litterarily a rollercoaster experience, when Duffield commented on quirky downhill sections, the camera MC bikes not able to follow a JaJa or a Savoldelli in full downhill attack mode

And yes, noticed Holms fallout of Amirail's family name, and though a bit fading on Bay&Holm, still OK, and for the entire package still more than OK for me.
But as I stated, I've switched back and forth and just finds something better instead of using energy on grumpiness

 

[RedheadDane]

Well, that's what I ment by 'shopping back and forth', me neither having it all at one and same time

Would be really hard to know when I'd need to have which one.