Just ignore the dreadful commentary and 2nd-rate coverage. Unlike ITV4's format for the Tour de France, Eurosport doesn't show you the map of that day's race on the evening highlights, so you're left having to look up the map for yourself. Weirdly, they do show the next day's race route at the end of the evening programme. And in similar contrast there's little information about the local areas they're passing through. And don't get me started on the race commentary - it's like some mad stream of consciousness crossed with a parody of Ulysses. And the Irish guy who starts every comment with "Yes, well ..." and whose sentences I genuinely can't parse. And yesterday, it was a Brit who won the stage and he barely got a mention in the commentary or post-race analysis. Anyway, rant over.
Yes, the scenery is nice and today's Aosta Valley looked lovely.
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Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
@LaForet, The reason that Simon Yates didnt get much of a mention is that, as he said himself, he came to win the race not stages and he is completely out of contention for the overall. Saturday's stage was one of the best in recent years, raced very aggressively around the streets of Turin. The "Irish guy" in the commentary team is Sean Kelly who was one of the best racers in the past 50 years, not much he doesnt know about the art of bike racing. Commentary is a challenge, a sprint stage is 4 hours of nothing happening followed by ten minutes of "action", an awful lot of time to fill up with chat about the scenery and cycling gossip.
The race this year has missed out on the high alps (personally think a shame), with the high point of the race, the Passo Pordoi, coming on Saturday
After all it is free
After all it is free
Sean Kelly is a riot, his pronunciation (murder) of some of the riders' names.
My favourite being Caleb Ewan which comes out as Cala Balloon!
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To be fair to you I've always thought that Kelly spent the early part of his life doing something he was brilliant at, then decided to spend the latter part doing the opposite.
Ski the Net with snowHeads
Ski the Net with snowHeads
We considered a drinking game for Sean Kelly and his "Yes, well, er.." sentences, but decided it was going to be too hard on the liver.
But if you can get past that, he does have some useful insight - well, perhaps one or two per day. We find Robbie McEwan is a breath of fresh air, and wish he was on for longer stints.
With the Breakaway, Orla is always worth watching (ahem), her hair style changes from day to day are something we generally comment on.
But agree, the lack of maps and profiles is a real missed opportunity.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
To be fair he was apprentice to Duffers Duffield when he started commentary so never had much chance.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
@Arctic Roll, Fully agree about Robbie McEwan. And Orla, whose choice of attire usually provokes a whole load of unnecessary vitriol from the missus, which is entertaining in its own right.
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
+1 for Robbie McEwan.
Sean Kelly is good, but I find myself having to mute the commentary when he is on as he normally partners with Rob Hatch. He (Hatch) needs to understand that he should only add to what we can see on screen and not make it all about his (over) pronunciation of riders names and the sheer speaking for the sake of it.
..Nick
You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
@Riccardo, I can watch that clip again & again. Especially given that it was towards the end of his career it was a very impressive feat (of course no disk brakes, aerodynamic head gear, carbon fibre frames etc, not sure if the gear change was still on the downtube at that point!).
I find Robbie McEwan irritating but then I quite like Carlton Kirby chuntering away but know that he only has minority appeal
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
I just read the book where a British author attempts to replicate the murderous 1914 giro. An ancient bike where the gear consist of one chain wheel on either side of the rear wheel and the brake blocks of corK. With stages over 200km and some taking over 20 hours. Current stages all appear to be sprints.
Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
@johnE, He's also written one about following TdF route and cycling down route of Iron Curtain on a shopping bike. Both worth a read
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
munich_irish wrote:
@Riccardo, I can watch that clip again & again. ...
The complete deflation in Argentins body language when he sees who's coming! I saw or read an interview with him where he was asked about it and what went through his mind at that moment... "Second!"
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
I appreciate that Sean Kelly is a successful and experienced rider, but he's just hopeless as a commentator. And as mentioned, it's not helped by Rob Hatch's English Guy Ordering in An Italian Restaurant* surname pronunciation fetish. To be fair to Kelly, all he needs is some tutoring and practice, and I'm sure he'd be a hundred times better, but it doesn't seem like his employer can be bothered, which is a shame, given his insight. Plus his colleagues could go some way to coordinating their commentary so they're not suddenly asking him to say something out of the blue, or truncating his comments.
[*"I'll have the eeensallarta treecollloreh to start with, and a bottle of the peeenogah greegggheoh ... etc"]
@LaForet, You obviously didn't hear Kelly in the few years after he retired I think he's had a lot of tutoring.
Agree on Rob Hatch's pronunciation though (didn't know it was him...). Drives me mad!!
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
munich_irish wrote:
@Riccardo, I can watch that clip again & again. Especially given that it was towards the end of his career it was a very impressive feat (of course no disk brakes, aerodynamic head gear, carbon fibre frames etc, not sure if the gear change was still on the downtube at that point!).
I find Robbie McEwan irritating but then I quite like Carlton Kirby chuntering away but know that he only has minority appeal
@Arctic Roll, Fully agree about Robbie McEwan. And Orla, whose choice of attire usually provokes a whole load of unnecessary vitriol from the missus, which is entertaining in its own right.
Got love her choice, my missus reckons she wears some of it for a bet.
I love watching all the cycling on eurosport I took a cheap offer on their player for a year. 9.99 it's now about 25 I think blooming good value
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
I just paid £19.99 for a year - i think the full price is £39.99 but there’s nearly always an offer on.
After all it is free
After all it is free
Just got to watch the auto renew so you can get the deal
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
@robs1, Just got hit by auto renew after taking up £19.99 offer last year
Still, not bad if you watch all the skiing and cycling. Big day in the Giro d'Italia today, nice to have the heli shots of the mountains on the TV
Ski the Net with snowHeads
Ski the Net with snowHeads
LaForet wrote:
Just ignore the dreadful commentary and 2nd-rate coverage. Unlike ITV4's format for the Tour de France
I like the ITV evening highlights but I'll always stay loyal to the Eurosport daytime coverage. Eurosport pioneered all-day cycling coverage (from the early 90's) and they have stayed true to the sport throughout. Sean Kelly is a legend; he happily explains every little nuance to the layman, and he has the respect of the whole cycling world. I've followed many grand tours around Europe, and if you go into a bar in France or Italy, during daytime, they usually have Eurosport cycling on the TV, albeit in a different language. Long may it continue!
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
The Giro approaches the Mortirolo the steepest mountain I’ve ever cycled up!
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
It is great cycling country.
I remember doing the Mortirolo - Gavia loop from Bormio. Down the road to Mazzo, then up over the Mortirolo down to Pont di Legno, up the Gavia and down into Bormio.
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
So if you're just off somewhere snowy come back and post a snow report of your own and we'll all love you very much
jellylegs wrote:
LaForet wrote:
Just ignore the dreadful commentary and 2nd-rate coverage. Unlike ITV4's format for the Tour de France
I like the ITV evening highlights but I'll always stay loyal to the Eurosport daytime coverage. Eurosport pioneered all-day cycling coverage (from the early 90's) and they have stayed true to the sport throughout. Sean Kelly is a legend; he happily explains every little nuance to the layman, and he has the respect of the whole cycling world. I've followed many grand tours around Europe, and if you go into a bar in France or Italy, during daytime, they usually have Eurosport cycling on the TV, albeit in a different language. Long may it continue!
And I forgot to mention there's the lovely multilingual Orla Chennaoui on Eurosport. What's not to like!
You know it makes sense.
You know it makes sense.
Comparing Eurosport’s coverage of the Giro with the Tour de France is a bit pointless.
Eurosport (and now GCN) has no competition for covering the majority of races. Their highlights package is the same for most races - they just show footage of the race. If you watch the stages live they will show the map and course profile along with interviews etc… they just don’t in their highlights. Eurosport often doesn’t bother with fluff as they quite often bomb about from one live sport to the next (although they are trying a bit more with analysis programmes like the breakaway).
When it comes to the Tour they do put a bit more effort in. They’ll have someone (John I think) who interjects occasionally with a recipe choice from the local area or some useless historical fact. You’ve got to remember that they do most of their commentary from a box in London. Whereas at the Tour they tend to actually follow the race around.
As for Rob Hatch and his pronunciation of names… he’s fluent in 4 languages, trained in Europe and not the U.K. He finds out how a rider says their name and uses the correct pronunciation. It’s hardly a big crime. I have noticed he’s a bit more interruptey when he notices something has happened and someone else is talking. He used to apologise for interrupting, now he just interrupts.
As for Sean Kelly, he’s just great. Although I do find his voice kind of hypnotic. I quite often nod off when he’s talking!
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
NoMapNoCompass wrote:
It is great cycling country.
I remember doing the Mortirolo - Gavia loop from Bormio. Down the road to Mazzo, then up over the Mortirolo down to Pont di Legno, up the Gavia and down into Bormio.
It’s amazing how easy they make 200km and 5000m of climbing look!
Poster: A snowHead
Poster: A snowHead
@BobinCH, I find 60km with 300m of climbing a big enough challenge
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Quote:
When it comes to the Tour they do put a bit more effort in. They’ll have someone (John I think) who interjects occasionally with a recipe choice from the local area or some useless historical fact. You’ve got to remember that they do most of their commentary from a box in London.
I watch it more or less as an extended travel show. The actual racing is giving a route to the presentation. It is slow TV and good for that. Sometimes I see a town or a place and think "I've never heard of that place. It looks good for a visit." At other times "isn't that the rock we park behind when climbing on the Hexenstien" I love it burbling away in the backgound.
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
As a farmer I love seeing all the agriculture as well as the mountains and seeing how they look in summer compared to how we have seen them with snow on, the helicopter shots are stunning
It is just one long, glorious travel show.
Today's stage goes right through Snowheads territory and should be wonderful to see the meadows in summer that we all ski on in winter
Probably free somewhere - if not.pay the Eursport 5 quid for the month and get some of your favourite French resorts in the Dauphine
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
Then you can post your own questions or snow reports...
I'm not sure why Orla deems it necessary to present in a belt thickness mini skirt though.
After all it is free
After all it is free
My wife follows her on Instagram or something she gets the guys to do some dance everyday , she has made the highlights programme more fun and that can only be good for the sport, that said the guys must catch an eyeful with some of the skirts she wears.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
@cameronphillips2000, Maybe not necessary but worthwhile
FAQ
Poster: A snowHead
the steepest mountain I’ve ever cycled up!
