November 17, 2013

Bored with the US GP? Try this mental motorcycle video.


Didier Grams and his BMW at Macau
There's a very good chance today's US Grand Prix will be a snoozer after the first lap, with Sebastian Vettel once more taking off beyond DRS range, winning the race and then playing to the crowd with donuts and Kimi Raikkonen imitations.

If that's the case, or perhaps at some points during the inevitable and interminable commercial breaks NBC will insert at crucial points during the race,  have a look at this.



The rider is Didier Grams on a BMW who placed 8th in the 47th edition of the Macau Motorcycle Grand Prix

(Hat tip to Kevin York!)

14 comments:

  1. These motorcycle racers always amaze me. They race with complete conviction. Each one of these guys needs to race with one of those brass ball trailer hitches hanging from the back of their bikes.

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  2. Yeah, I don't think they need to hang anything they don't already have!

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  3. The Macau circuit is one of the best circuits I have been too, certainly one of the most challenging, Unlike Monaco it has fast sections as well as the street circuit aspect. I was fortunate enough to have been there when Senna dominated in 1983.


    The NBC coverage of F1 drives me up the wall.


    - Different channels for coverage in including switching from one channel where the pre-race show is to another for the race. Sometimes I miss a session because my DVR cannot cope,


    -Lack of live coverage for qualifying some of the time. They sometimes have the live coverage on their web offering, but only on the web site and not mobile app. And it is without commentary and with varying video quality.


    -Advertising themselves during a live race. Can't this be done in the post race show?


    -Switching to pre-recorded interviews during a live race, Again, can't this be done after the race or in the pre-race?


    -"Wish you were here?" article during a live race, No, I wish I was watching the live race.


    Speed's coverge wasn't great, but NBC's coverage is abysmal. Small wonder some people prefer to obtain the EuroSport coverage,

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  4. WHOA! NBC has actually sent most of the announcing 'team' to Austin!


    But, tellingly, they're set up outside the track (I think) and probably still haven't set foot in the pitlane. *sigh


    What does it say that a fan prefers the broadcast from another country altogether? NBC can't even get our home GP coverage right so I'll be watching the SKY feed. I had considered watching the race from my favorite bar but...there isn't enough beer to keep me happy.

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  5. Can't forget the constant reminders that (some random) soccer games are going on...on another channel...during the race. "Hey forget our show right here and now, switch over to another channel to watch another sport altogether" lol.


    As I type they're playing quali, and bragging about a full hour of pre-race coverage rofl. Pathetic.

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  6. From F1 to...wait for it...CURLING! So...much...excitement!

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  7. My DVR coverage yesterday came out of commercials from the middle of Q2 to Vettel getting out of the car after he got pole. Not sure if this my my DVR or if they skipped part of qualifying in the recorded show in order to get back to live curling.

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  8. So, what you're saying is, effectively, they have to cut enormous holes in between the gas tank and the saddle?

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  9. 15 laps. Already 3 commercial breaks. Such bullshit from NBC. As if a tiny 1/5th screen in the corner is ok vs obnoxious advertising. You can't even make out which car they're showing.

    Yellow flag? COMMERCIAL! While the start replays unfold in tiny minature, COMMERCIALS! And then they recapped the replays once the commercials were over because, you know, you couldn't actually see the replays in the tiny window.

    Hey NBC: FUCK YOU GUYS SIDEWAYS.

    I'd also like to give the finger to the previously free streaming site I used for many years, who decided to stuff their site with malware and ubiquitous 'browser toolbars' that are attempting to take over my pc. It's no wonder F1 has such a small following here. Turning it all off to wait for a proper HD torrent without commercials. I got bored of Matchett explaining the DRS about the 3rd time he did so. Ugh.

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  10. You saw Senna at Macau in '83? Kudos! You'll never forget that. I was privileged enough to be at Montreal in '93. True story. My dad and I got there for the first practice of the race weekend. We sat down low in the bleachers right at the exit of the hairpin. As the drivers pulled out of the garage for the first practice they formed a sort of "drivers parade" kinda gingerly going about the circuit only pushing their cars maybe to sixty-seventy percent. Prost drove by in the Williams. Alesi and Berger drove by in the Ferrari's. Schumacher drove by in the Benetton. Everyone kind of yawned and did their little perfunctory golf claps. Fifteen minutes into the session Senna finally rolls out of the pits to do an out lap. The three or four thousand people sitting in our section gave the guy a standing ovation! The crowd snapped to life. People were cheering. The guy really brought out emotion in people. It was pretty special to see. I'll never forget it.

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  11. I got the exact same thing - completely skipped the end of Q2 and all of Q3. Apparently the "live" qualifying was aired on CNBC. I can't even keep track of what station I'm supposed to be recording on anymore. My TV guide can't even adjust to the abrupt scheduling changes made by NBCSN. The overall coverage is abysmal including today's race with 13 minutes of commercials during the podium ceremony. How are heads not rolling in the programming department when something like that happens on a nationally televised event? If the same scenario went down during a football game, the entire staff would be sacked.


    Really disappointed to say that SPEED did a better job. Things seemed optimistic for F1 coverage in the US when it was announced that NBC would be taking over, but it's gone downhill since Day 1.

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  12. Yeah I remember getting into it with Will Buxton and the NBC account (whom never respond) on twitter and the USGP was FP1,2&3 were on NBCSN, Quali was on CNBC and the race was on NBC. Then they get all angry on twitter when THOUSANDS of people are complaining.


    Icing on the cake is they didn't show Q3 in the tape delay I had to watch.....

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  13. CNBC: Financial News when it matters most. Sometimes, we show racecars - VROOM VROOM!

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  14. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LU-ynRoqDEs

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