Carlton Kirby

takethehighroad

Yeah far be it from me to defend him too much, but credit where it's due he does similar amounts of prep to the rest

He's posted pictures of his codex (I think that's what it's called) showing favourites etc. It's why he knows so much about roundabouts

DeVlaeminck

I can't argue with any of what you all say but I still don't mind Carlton. He just comes across as likeable and doesn't take it too seriously.

I can't claim he's my favourite commentator but he doesn't spoil the race for me. Some of his gaffes are quite funny - I swear during an extended wheel change on Sunday he said "I bet he wishes he had clincher brakes" - it's entertainment.

Some of the ex riders can overdo the explanation - I already know how echelons work etc etc I don't really want it explained every time it happens.

ibr17xvii

takethehighroad said:

Yeah far be it from me to defend him too much, but credit where it's due he does similar amounts of prep to the rest

He's posted pictures of his codex (I think that's what it's called) showing favourites etc. It's why he knows so much about roundabouts

I believe that's what he used to flog as tea towels during the Grand Tours for charity?

I don't mind him if I'm honest, he certainly doesn't ruin the coverage for me anyway.

gsk82

I didn't find him that annoying on Sunday, for once.

blazing_saddles

gsk82 said:

I didn't find him that annoying on Sunday, for once.

Not sure how he managed that, given his commentaries are pretty much all the same.

davidof

blazing_saddles said:

Apparently Rob Hatch has been doing the host's English language feed for all of their races.

Would that be Rob "you've just watched the race of the century" Hatch (while commentating on the school sports day)

Rod11

I can almost forgive his slightly over-the-top style of commentating, with all his odd phrases - I get it, it's personal preference, some people like that about him (I don't).

What I can't forgive is when what he's saying just doesn't match up with what is actually happening, for example when he said WVA was going back into a group when actually he'd already joined that group then gone off the front of it, or when he kept saying Asgreen wasn't going to pull through (and he did). Yes he's obviously prepared and does his homework, yes some people like his enthusiasm, but he just can't seem to read/follow a race.

bobmcstuff

Exactly - it's stuff like this:

kingstongraham said:

"Well I don't think Iturria is going to take the intermediate sprint from that position at the back of the group"
"He just won it, Carlton."

Multiple times per race he makes calls that are obviously incorrect, which is not really forgivable.

daniel_b

bobmcstuff said:

Exactly - it's stuff like this:

kingstongraham said:

"Well I don't think Iturria is going to take the intermediate sprint from that position at the back of the group"
"He just won it, Carlton."

Multiple times per race he makes calls that are obviously incorrect, which is not really forgivable.

Agreed, but he is consistent I suppose!

DeVlaeminck

Yes his job isn't to inform you it's to add colour. His commentary is about the intonation more than the actual words used.

rick_chasey

DeVlaeminck said:

Yes his job isn't to inform you it's to add colour. His commentary is about the intonation more than the actual words used.

What?

daniel_b

DeVlaeminck said:

Yes his job isn't to inform you it's to add colour. His commentary is about the intonation more than the actual words used.

A raft of other commentators manage to both inform and add colour, without the need for constant talking, puns, and over used cliches. Maybe he makes the mistakes because he feels the need to talk seemingly all of the time, and doesn;t then have the time to actually check facts out.

As I mentioned a page earlier, seeing him stand alone for other races I kind of tuned out of that aspect of it, and he was bearable, but literally hearing him a second after Lloyd and Blythe finished really clarified why I find him so very poor (Or even detrimental) at commentating on any race.

blazing_saddles

DeVlaeminck said:

Yes his job isn't to inform you it's to add colour. His commentary is about the intonation more than the actual words used.

That's not how you spell irritation.

poweredbyidris

davidof said:

blazing_saddles said:

Apparently Rob Hatch has been doing the host's English language feed for all of their races.

Would that be Rob "you've just watched the race of the century" Hatch (while commentating on the school sports day)

You mean Rob "you've just watched the race of the century... *slightly more gravitas*...You've just watched the race of the century" Hatch

ibr17xvii

DeVlaeminck said:

Yes his job isn't to inform you it's to add colour. His commentary is about the intonation more than the actual words used.

I would say part of his job is absolutely to inform you.

kingstongraham

Problem is, if he tells you the name of someone who has launched an attack, you've no idea if it's true or if it's someone in a similar kit.

rick_chasey

kingstongraham said:

Problem is, if he tells you the name of someone who has launched an attack, you've no idea if it's true or if it's someone in a similar kit.

You have no idea if the person has actually launched an attack when he's on comms unless you're watching yourself.

bobmcstuff

blazing_saddles said:

DeVlaeminck said:

Yes his job isn't to inform you it's to add colour. His commentary is about the intonation more than the actual words used.

That's not how you spell irritation.

Even if his job wasn't to inform you, surely it's not to disinform you - his commentary is often worse than useless because he is actively wrong about things several times per race.

If you were just going by intonation then you would assume there was an attack all the time - I've been getting a drink from the kitchen, rushed back in because of some frantic shouting from Kirby, and it turns out to be an interesting roundabout. Or someone moving up in the bunch, or dropping back to the team car etc etc.

yorkshireraw

rick_chasey said:

kingstongraham said:

Problem is, if he tells you the name of someone who has launched an attack, you've no idea if it's true or if it's someone in a similar kit.

You have no idea if the person has actually launched an attack when he's on comms unless you're watching yourself.

Or if the named person is actually in the race.

blazing_saddles

“Hugh Carthy is quiet today and when he’s quiet his legs go loud.”
Yes he’s gone full glue sniffing mode today and is totally disinterested in delivering race commentary.

kingstongraham

Sound off until the last 5km, with https://www.procyclingstats.com/ to provide more accurate info on who's in the break etc. Works for me.

Mad_Malx

One of the things I find them all guilty of, even when correctly IDing, is assuming we all know what xyz looks like and their team colours. "There's xyz coming up through the peleton". I could often do with help to know who I'm looking for.
This is a big barrier for newcomers to the sport.

daniel_b

Stephens and Blythe delivering some great commentary today.

Lanterne_Rogue

daniel_b said:

Stephens and Blythe delivering some great commentary today.

Although "...and he knocked all his teeth out" was not as funny a punchline as they seemed to find it.

DeVlaeminck

Mad_Malx said:

One of the things I find them all guilty of, even when correctly IDing, is assuming we all know what xyz looks like and their team colours. "There's xyz coming up through the peleton". I could often do with help to know who I'm looking for.
This is a big barrier for newcomers to the sport.

Do we want to cater for newcomers? I'd rather they assumed we are all enthusiasts - one of my bugbears with itv is the way they used to approach it as if the audience has never watched a bike race before. No idea if they still do as I never watch ITV coverage any more.

andyrr

DeVlaeminck said:

Mad_Malx said:

One of the things I find them all guilty of, even when correctly IDing, is assuming we all know what xyz looks like and their team colours. "There's xyz coming up through the peleton". I could often do with help to know who I'm looking for.
This is a big barrier for newcomers to the sport.

Do we want to cater for newcomers? I'd rather they assumed we are all enthusiasts - one of my bugbears with itv is the way they used to approach it as if the audience has never watched a bike race before. No idea if they still do as I never watch ITV coverage any more.

Hopefully as I've now got GCN+ I also won't watch ITV's race coverage. One of my bugbears with ITV's coverage was the repeated need (of the current usual pairing) to refer to an ongoing race as "this bike race". It's a race. I can see that there are people on bikes therefore I don't need to be told that it is a "bike" race.

RichN95.

DeVlaeminck said:

Do we want to cater for newcomers?

We were all newcomers once

Mad_Malx

DeVlaeminck said:

Mad_Malx said:

One of the things I find them all guilty of, even when correctly IDing, is assuming we all know what xyz looks like and their team colours. "There's xyz coming up through the peleton". I could often do with help to know who I'm looking for.
This is a big barrier for newcomers to the sport.

Do we want to cater for newcomers? I'd rather they assumed we are all enthusiasts - one of my bugbears with itv is the way they used to approach it as if the audience has never watched a bike race before. No idea if they still do as I never watch ITV coverage any more.

Yes it can be overdone, but at the beginning of the season when riders have changed teams, teams may have changed kit, and throw in a few national jerseys I struggle. I’m certainly not expert but I’m watching a fair few hours per week these days.

Edit: graphics could help a lot here too - showing the shirt cartoon against rider listings would be far more useful than their national flag.

Sorry heading OT, not sure there is too much more to say abt CK.

kingstongraham

When you have higuita, roglic and any other jumbo vista rider all wearing yellow, it can get a bit tricky at a glance.

Lanterne_Rogue

Fair play to Kirby today - in the final thirty seconds when the director mashed buttons like a kid playing Street Fighter II for the first time and there was absolutely no way to have a clue what was happening, he managed to do a pretty good job of keeping it together and calling the finish more or less right on the basis of about half a second of footage.

Maybe it's when he has chance to think that there's a problem?