2023 UCI Downhill/Enduro/XC mega thread

[Canada1]

Chris Blevins has faded a bit out the gate this year. Anyone heard of medical issues?

[westoxified]

- paid subscription to watch
- paid subscription still doesn't cover world champs
- new announcers with no previous bike experience
- screwy condensed schedule
- screwy qualifying rounds in DH
- pinkbike killed all fantasy leagues


It's like the UCI and the media head honchos had some secret meeting where they decided 2023 was the year they were gonna kill the sport.

adding to this, GoPro only for POVs and no posting until two days after the run.

so the consensus is the announcers suck and the footage is better? was hoping to sample the Junior product before diving in but looks like you need to pony up for any race coverage.

[hardboiled]

adding to this, GoPro only for POVs and no posting until two days after the run.

so the consensus is the announcers suck and the footage is better? was hoping to sample the Junior product before diving in but looks like you need to pony up for any race coverage.

the juniors finals are free to watch and the replay is available now. i thought Cedric got better as the mens race went on, overall very watchable. I paid up for the sub and looking forward to watching the elites tomorrow.

[grskier]

I wouldn’t say the announcers suck… they aren’t Rob and Claudio/Elliot or whoever. Nobody is coming out of the box and touching thay

They are talking more about the teams… at least with the Juniors.
I actually think the camera work was a wash. A few more angles… guys in the production truck are learning still though.




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[smmokan]

For the DH finals, seemed like the camera/course coverage was fairly decent. They only missed about 20-30 seconds at the top of the run. The commentating is horrible though, specifically Gracia.

[Canada1]

Rachel Atherton is the GOAT.

Her to the world. " I'm going to take a few years off and start a bike company and bike park from the ground up with my family. I'm also going to have a kid, and then show up at the first event back with my beautiful toddler and kick all of your asses!!" Of course she wouldn't be that crass about it, but she did as much in her time off as most do in a lifetime.

[Esses]

Got a trial subscription for Discovery+ and see no sports. No UCI downhill. I found one article that says you need a “vpn browser” to watch on discovery+ in North America.

Is this true? Anyone watching on Discovery in North America/US?


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[bamboocoreONLY]

if anyone doesn't wanna pay to watch, just go to this site:

https://tiz-cycling-live.io/live2.php

Also has road races, etc on it

[smmokan]

Got a trial subscription for Discovery+ and see no sports. No UCI downhill. I found one article that says you need a “vpn browser” to watch on discovery+ in North America.

Is this true? Anyone watching on Discovery in North America/US?


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It's been true the whole time. In the US, you have to subscribe to GCN.

FYI, this morning I went onto YouTube and searched for "Lenzerheide" and filtered to "Live" videos - I watched the last handful of racers for free.

[Esses]

FYI, this morning I went onto YouTube and searched for "Lenzerheide" and filtered to "Live" videos - I watched the last handful of racers for free.

From what I understand you can watch through semis on YouTube. You gotta pay if you want to see finals.


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[smmokan]

From what I understand you can watch through semis on YouTube. You gotta pay if you want to see finals.

Well, I watched it for free this morning. It wasn't the official UCI-sanctioned feed.

[Clownshoe]

The camera angles were a wash compared to last year. I'm sure the directing will get better as the season goes on.
I don't like the drone angle.

I missed the "virtual straight" and other Red Bull things that the old broadcast had worked in.

I like the British guy who was commentating, but Cedric was really, really bad.

Of course, it's going to be hard to top Elliot and Rob, but Cedric was hard to understand. It was like he was talking with a mouth full of marbles. I get that he's a legend and all that, but it was hard to listen to. I think he was trying to be "like Warner" with the shouting and tons of energy, but it fell flat for me. I think it's just not going to work for him in English. Maybe he'd do better on the French broadcast.

There is zero percent chance that I pay to watch any of this, especially at this level of production quality. I'll just poach a stream.

[Whiteroom_Guardian]

Yeah I have enjoyed Rick's commentary the last few years since he was doing all the EWS videos. Cedric not so much. Hate to say it but they need to find a different legend with clearer english.

[DaHeel]

Been In Lenzerheide for the weekend. Place is buzzing! Every event has ended with an awesome story. Off to Leogang this week for the next stop. Wife let me and the boy plan a vacation. Spent a few days with friends who live at this tiny ski area (tschapina)and all you hear at night is the sound of cowbells and the river. Damn the Swiss have it good!


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[smmokan]

Damn, you look a lot like Finn Iles. Who's the goofy-looking guy with you?

[Canada1]

Chris Blevin gets to start a lot farther forward next time!! Good race for him.

[jm2e]

1. That race was all time! Watching Rachel win followed by Jordan winning was worth $9! I’ll cancel after the third race and start up again for the last 3. $18 bucks for all but one race (I’ll be on vacation then anyway).
2. Anyone who thinks the footage was better, please let us know about Kolb’s crash.
3. I thought the camera angles made it so you couldn’t see different lines very well. Lots of coverage, but less specific detail.
4. Cedric’s accent isn’t the problem. The problem is that they both thought they could shout their way through it. Very little substance and zero fun banter. Just lots of noise.
5. Splits, upcoming riders, leaderboard updates, were absolute garbage. They even found a way of making the starting gate boring.


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[t.odd]

I'm with Clownshoe, it's not great, but I'm sure they'll get through the growing pains. CG reminds me of drunk freecaster Warner, just waaay too excited.

[toast2266]

I'm with Clownshoe, it's not great, but I'm sure they'll get through the growing pains. CG reminds me of drunk freecaster Warner, just waaay too excited.

But not nearly as funny.

CG needs to go. Or at least move him to some sort of pre-show. Let him do the course preview and talk about some of the lines. And then let someone who speaks better English and has something interesting to say do the actual commentating.

The camera work was decent, but they need to get the cameras up higher. You can see the riders but not the ground. I don't care what their helmets look like, I want to see where they're putting their tires. Hopefully the show direction gets better too.

The whole semi finals thing seems kinda pointless. I don't get it. It just seems like another opportunity for injury.

On the whole, great race though. Bummed Amaury didn't race - lenzerheide is his track. Looking forward to the rest of the season. Seems like there are probably ~8 guys who are legitimately competing for the win this season, and another ~5 guys who could pull off an unexpected upset. That's awesome, and it makes for some exciting racing.

[grskier]

I thought the camera work left a lot to be desired. There were times of 10-15 seconds of scenic shots of the whole course and not the racer who was literally mid run.
The other thing about the camera work a few have touched on is the consistent shot. It's nice to see the same shot over and over again to see the different lines. I do understand that gets old for sum, but its why a lot of us watch.

[grskier]

I thought the camera work left a lot to be desired. There were times of 10-15 seconds of scenic shots of the whole course and not the racer who was literally mid run.
The other thing about the camera work a few have touched on is the consistent shot. It's nice to see the same shot over and over again to see the different lines. I do understand that gets old for sum, but its why a lot of us watch.

[DaHeel]

[QUOTE=DaHeel;6875533]Been In Lenzerheide for the weekend. Place is buzzing! Every event has ended with an awesome story. Off to Leogang this week for the next stop. Wife let me and the boy plan a vacation. Spent a few days with friends who live at this tiny ski area (tschapina)and all you hear at night is the sound of cowbells and the river. Damn the Swiss have it good!


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[DaHeel]

Damn, you look a lot like Finn Iles. Who's the goofy-looking guy with you?

MiniHeel isn’t mini any longer


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[Clownshoe]

I’m definitely giving them the benefit of the doubt on the camera work. It was sub par, but I would imagine/hope it will improve significantly as they work through the season.

On the subject of Cedric, I speak French and I’ve seen him on some French broadcasts. He’s actually pretty good at it. I think the English broadcast is perhaps a step too far.

[DaHeel]

New kit day


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