Upgrade to enjoy this feature!
Vital MX fantasy is free to play, but Premium users receive great benefits. Premium benefits include:
- View and download rider stats
- Pick trends
- Create a private league
- And more!
Only $10 for all 2026 SX, MX, and SMX series.
Maybe I have harped on the commentary a little much, but my real beef has always been with the production as a whole. If the camera work, etc. improved, as you suggested, I might be a whole lot happier and able to handle Ricky's language disorder. I think it's the combo of everything going wrong that just pushes me over the edge.
This is such a pointless argument, just like politics. Honestly, there is no crew that everybody will ever 100% agree on. People will still bitch about who's in there no matter what. The only person who I think I can recall not getting hated on yet is the great Art Eckman. But ya keep pissing into the wind boys.
I'm a huge RC fan and never really liked James when he was racing because I was such RC fan. But James is way better in the booth than RC.
I also liked RC and James giving Daniel a hard time about all his LCQ's. haha.
There is a vast difference between somebody that not everyone agrees on and somebody that is just not good at the job. There are plenty of announcers in other sports that I don't always like or agree with, but they are all professional and capable of doing the job. You cannot say that for Supercross.
The Shop
Luxon 4-Post Bar Mounts
$189.95 - $239.95
Free shipping: VITALMX
Fair enough. I hardly ever pay attention to what they're saying so I don't care one way or another. I can hardly ever understand a word the pit chick is saying, but she's off screen before I get a chance to be annoyed. But it would be a lot cooler if she was replaced with Nicole Cesa and Carrie Bolling doing that job together...just saying 😉. I don't need someone to tell me what's happening during the races because I already know. Then you factor in that I can watch 7 hours of live programming every Saturday for $5 a month is the cherry on top. Now if they bring in Chris Collinsworth I will lose my shit and be right there with you guys. They have to dumb down the commentary for new/casual viewers of the sport and people who never raced a dirtbike...That's why RC is there, so they can drop the GOAT reference multiple times a race. Casual fans hear that and know they are hearing it from the GOAT of our sport. Why do you think Brady just got paid 375 mil to be in the booth without ever have done it before? He's the "GOAT" of football...which I will argue, but ya that's why the greats get these cush jobs. It's marketing and sales. Pretty simple.
Oh man, you just opened up a whole other can of worms with the "casual fan" reference. I'm really gonna lose my shit now!
Why? It's true. Their core base is in this thread crying about the commentating, but we will all be watching Indy this weekend regardless of who's in the booth. Just to do this same thread again on Sunday. Have you ever watched a race with a group of casuals? They like the stuff most core fans hate. The pit party footage, Craig and Colt talking about rollercoasters, Dungey talking about St Jude and his foundation, the family Vlogs, the behind the scene stuff etc. It kills me but there was quite a few wives/gfs/daughters who were butthurt that they didn't bring back Make up to Mud. Yes it's true. They also love the KTM electric bike races/highlights. Audiences are broad, the core is locked in. But you have the women who love the Kardashians, Real Housewives, Below Deck, The Bachelor etc. lame yes, but you already got the husband and sons no matter what. You have to find something the wife, daughter, etc are going to relate too and enjoy watching. It's the world we live in now. 2,3, or 4 viewers from a family is better than one. Other wise the others are just bitter and bored staring at their phones wishing they could be anywhere else. How am I the only one who see's this? You have to cater to the new or on the fence viewers if you want to build bigger. Pretty simple.
This is not about the fluff and filler. It is about what we get served up when there is racing on the screen.
No it's about growing the sport. Does it really bother you that bad what they are saying while your watching a live race? That's what you get from watching the races?Maybe I'm just 100% focused on the race at hand and not trying to find something to whine about on Vital later in the night. You missed the whole point of everything I was saying. Enjoy Indy.
I sure didn't miss your point..I understand it thoroughly. Give me great camera work and keep the ticker for timing and scoring rolling and updated to show the running order and the time intervals. That's it.
I'm able to see the race and see it well from the camera work. I really do not need someone to tell me how to feel about what I'm watching.
If someone allows a commentator irritate them, I think that is on them. I think it is just of very little importance to the overwhelming majority of people.
So having someone who can eloquently describe to the viewer what is going on versus a guy that has a half dozen go to catch phrases and can't seem to finish a sentence without double clutching won't help "grow the sport"? The noobs don't know what they don't know until they do. Once they do catch on they will realize how broken and cliche RC's words are and realize that a guy like James even though he has his own version of the english language sometimes is smooth and relatable.
I agree with this 100%. Does it impact my enjoyment of the race? No. But just like timing being off half the time and camerawork seemingly being done by 5 year old sometimes, it's amateur hour and that position deserves the best doing it, not someone who cannot form a sentence the majority of the time.
Do you really think that Carmichael can't form a sentence the majority of the time ?
That reminds me of another commenter that said,...."Some guy that can ride a dirt bike good"
The "casual fan" argument has always been the exact wrong direction for the sport to me. It's like a contradiction. If you are a casual fan, are you really a fan at all? One that is going to spend money on the sport, tell all your friends, get your kids into it? How do you truly grow the sport, increase revenue, increase talent, etc. with the casual fan? The casual fan drops you at any moment for the next "exciting" thing that catches their eye. The more you cater to the casual fan, the more you alienate the real fan. Then, when the real fans have moved on, and something else grabs the casual fans attention, what are you left with?
It has to be accepted first that Supercross, and dirt bike racing in general, will never grow to the level of stick and balls sports, F1 racing, etc. Which makes it vitally important that you satisfy the core fan. The core fan is the best marketing person you could ever have. They will spend money on the sport, they will tell their friends, they will help you get better. The way to grow the sport IS the hardcore fan.
Have you listened to him? When he does he offers little to nothing as far as an analyst goes. It's same few points every week.
You are describing using canned analysis...But you stated "can't form sentences"..
You also correctly dismissed it as not important but seem insistent on clinging to it anyway.
Surely you understand that saying Carmichael "can't form sentences the majority of the time" is a significant exaggeration....It is a lot like referring to Carmichael as "a guy who can ride a dirt bike good"
Unless you work in Mainstream Media, you may have missed your calling.
Dude, go watch the 250 main from Daytona or better yet the whole Tampa broadcast and get back to me. I get it, you only care how good he was as a rider (and I am still a massive fan and attended 10+ races during his career) and somehow think that qualifies him to analyze the sport at the highest level.
"I get it, you only care how good he was as a rider"
No,..My comments do not support that.
To reiterate,..
I'm able to see the race and see it well from the camera work. I really do not need someone to tell me how to feel about what I'm watching.
If someone allows a commentator to irritate them, I think that is on them. I think it is just of very little importance to the overwhelming majority of people.
I think a strange amount of importance is placed on commentary. Its starting to sound like some strange fetish.
"Go watch the 250 main from Daytona...or the Tampa broadcast"
I'm glad you brought this up. Because I dont miss races, therefore I've seen them both in their entirety and I remember the races well but I don't recall anything about how the commentary was..
Pit Row
Sir, it's clear you can look past the commentary that annoys some of us due to your focus on the racing, and just because it annoys us doesn't mean we don't appreciate RC as an incredible racer and competitor. Although as many have said he's not up to par in the booth, he stumbles on his words, and lately has to tell us how great the camera work is. You think someone isn't telling him to say that? It's an utter joke.
I understand you watched Tampa and the Daytona 250 main and remember it well, but if you were to watch again and listen to Ricky's commentary you'd at least understand what folks here are talking about. It's not some weird fetish, it's that whether it's due to someone in his ear, or too much going on at once, but he's not fit for the task at hand as a race commentator. He's been great on podcasts and video when he's relaxed, but in the heat of the moment not so much.
I entirely agree with you if the camera work and live timing were good that's all we need, but I can't help but to think when Ricky starts, stops, pauses and then goes to say something else entirely it's an embarrassment to the sport we love so much. I may not be as old as you, but I'm pushing 60 and have MANY moto friends older than me who think exactly the same as what the OP said. Well he's one of them actually LOL
James still has his Ebonics moments for sure. Again, he does a decent job. Nowhere near as good as some of the fanboys pretend.
There is no use in trying to convince me that Carmichael is not very good at being a commentator.
I realize that. It just doesn't concern me.
I thought I could settle ya'll down by putting what you are doing into perspective.
Your points are taken. I guess that everyone needs something that they are passionate about.
Enjoy the rest of the season if you can. I have been loving the racing. Webb and Tomac are fairly tight for the Championship.
I caught the camera work comments as well, it's beyond cringe. As if telling us the camera work is great is going to all of the sudden make us forget how shitty the broadcast and production is. It's a televised sport, we expect to see the action on the cameras! They don't need praise for showing us what we expect to see.
And it is so obvious that he is making a deliberate attempt to mention the camera work, is it his own doing or is he being instructed to do so? Seems the latter is much more likely.
Thank you for proving my point without even realizing it.
"The noobs don't know what they don't know until they do."
Which then makes them a core fan, because they care enough about the sport to follow it even more. And in no time they'll be on Vital bitching about the commentating.
I loved Art. I always remember watching the races with my Dad. Everytime someone got close to being "Bar to Bar" my Dad would always laugh because he got a visual of Art getting excited and doing the little kid pee dance with the quick feet taps in anticipation of being able to scream "AND NOW THEY ARE BAR TO BAR!" I can never hear that term with out picturing his smirk. Good times.
So how does one become a hardcore fan without being introduced as a casual fan first? What percentage of the people in the stands at a Supercross do you think actually own a bike? Ride? Race?
I don't even like the term casual fan. The dude that goes to supercross but is not a follower of the sport arguably isn't even a fan. It's the same guy looking to take his family to a show, just like Monster Truck, a circus, or a rodeo. I've been to all three, but I'm a fan of none. I think this just goes back to the point that supercross is a show and not treated like a professional sport. I'm sure they will continue to churn an endless supply of new "casual fans". But I believe the majority of those viewers will never become real fans. If the powers that be are content with all this, we are screwed.
And I would bet most people here didn't become a fan, AFTER they went to a supercross. You were already a motohead and couldn't wait to go to your first race. I've tried to explain how exciting it is and show it to my wife, my brother, my friends, etc. Every single one that isn't a motohead, can't watch for 2 minutes. They hate it. I'm referring to watching it on TV here (although I've had no luck getting them to attend a show either). Maybe attending the show could remain the way it is, with all the fireworks and fanfare, and we can get those people who just want a show. But if most of these people are never going to watch it on TV, why is the broadcast not geared towards the actual fans and ran professionally? Save the WWE shit for the Johnsons and their 5 kids. It makes no sense.
Who cares about the ebonics??? He isn't a lawyer and I could care less about some slang, but his analysis in the moment and ability to speak consistently has been great. The color guy needs to be a bit more formal, but this is not a formal sport.
I can't imagine there are any non-moto people out there flipping through channels, landing on supercross, giving it more than a 10 second look, and then becoming a super fan. You think anybody has ever watched that millennial lumberjack trying to show them what goggles are, thought it was so cool and went out and bought a bike? Or somebody listened to "get your ride on" and bought a season pass to stream the races? The shit is beyond asinine. For fuck's sake, the ONLY people watching it on TV are the hardcore fans. Give us a professional broadcast. If you have to keep the monster truck show to sell stadium tickets, I can live with that.
The whole point of this is that we want the production and broadcast to treat it as a "formal" sport. To me, moto is one of, if not the most underrated sport ever. The level of talent, training, and dedication it takes to succeed may not be riveled by any other sport. If any sport deserves professionalism in the way it is presented for television, it is supercross.
I get it I do, but imagine the crowds at a Supercross race without the casual fans who don't race, ride, or own a bike? You want to talk about screwed?
It's a buisness and they could give a shit who is paying to watch the races core, casual it doesn't matter one bit to them. As long as they're paying. You act like Feld gives 2 shits who is putting money in their pocket. It's a buisness plan, plain and simple and arguing this among us is just as pointless as arguing politics. The people who call the shots look down at these arguments and laugh and say "isn't it cute how passionate they are and think they could actually change something with there bickering."
My old boss who never rode a bike and went to Anaheim in 04 with his new family, his other son, and I. He was so intrigued and amazed by it all, that guess who went to the local KTM dealer on Tuesday and bought 7 bikes and a trailer cash? A casual fan after watching one race.
Post a reply to: James in the booth