The post race interview with Rachel on the livestream was embarrassing. Bad angle. Horrible audio. Hillary’s rapport and energy was the only saving grace. Imagine if the interview with Sebastian Sawe after he broke the two-hour barrier in the marathon was as bad technically. Different scale, sure, but we’re not getting closer to a truly watchable product. Mountain Outpost needs a competitor. So what are you going to do about it, Josh? 😀
Yes, and Rachel's head was partially or entirely cut off much of her 3 to 4 mile triumphant entry. Hilary does a lot of heavy lifting for the coverage. With a better system behind her she could take it from good to great.
Spot on - great article - in hopes that the sport does take notice of how consumers are consuming the product. Simply follow the lead pack, make it a race instead of a slog, people want to be entertained not bored to... The consumer is fast paced, dopamine dependent, you have seconds to hook them, not days. Good stuff man! "Are You Not Entertained" Maximus would throw down his sword and walk off, perturbed at the audience's incredulous nature - what have you done for me lately, Trail Running
Yea I think this is a horrible article and overall bad take. Its a five day event - banter, jokes, campiness is warranted... and also dare I say fun?? This is ultrarunning, why are you trying to turn it into a stiff, stuffy production? Also, I sincerely felt or experienced NONE of the negative traits you suggested here. It was amazing like it has been for years, fun, informative, drone footage just getting better. Some of your articles when written from a very narrow viewpoint without external opinion just shows a lack of depth in the space you are working in.
Of course people naturally come and go during a 200+ mile race. My point wasn’t that churn exists. It’s that certain production choices consistently slowed or accelerated that churn in observable ways.
I found myself following the tracker and IG posts way more than the livestream due to the choppy and inconsistent audio/video. I understand its the nature of covering a race that takes place in remote areas, and I thank the production team for giving it their best, but I found it pretty unbearable. The stories and posts on IG felt way more intimate and engaging.
It’ll be interesting to see if there are ever non participant fans. That’s the big issue. I’m not sure anyone needs the amount of coverage being offered. i’m not sure I could watch 6 hours of marathon coverage, even if I was in the race.
Good job. But people also wanted to see Rachel and Kilian, not just Courtney. Did you see the chat go insane last night when we knew Kilian was about to enter Munds Park, there was a commentator and camera on the ground, the screen was showing something else and instudio talking about some food thing. The chat went wild asking for Munds park. The commentator on the ground missed Rachel sneaking out!
The post race interview with Rachel on the livestream was embarrassing. Bad angle. Horrible audio. Hillary’s rapport and energy was the only saving grace. Imagine if the interview with Sebastian Sawe after he broke the two-hour barrier in the marathon was as bad technically. Different scale, sure, but we’re not getting closer to a truly watchable product. Mountain Outpost needs a competitor. So what are you going to do about it, Josh? 😀
Yes, and Rachel's head was partially or entirely cut off much of her 3 to 4 mile triumphant entry. Hilary does a lot of heavy lifting for the coverage. With a better system behind her she could take it from good to great.
I have some ideas...
Spot on - great article - in hopes that the sport does take notice of how consumers are consuming the product. Simply follow the lead pack, make it a race instead of a slog, people want to be entertained not bored to... The consumer is fast paced, dopamine dependent, you have seconds to hook them, not days. Good stuff man! "Are You Not Entertained" Maximus would throw down his sword and walk off, perturbed at the audience's incredulous nature - what have you done for me lately, Trail Running
Yea I think this is a horrible article and overall bad take. Its a five day event - banter, jokes, campiness is warranted... and also dare I say fun?? This is ultrarunning, why are you trying to turn it into a stiff, stuffy production? Also, I sincerely felt or experienced NONE of the negative traits you suggested here. It was amazing like it has been for years, fun, informative, drone footage just getting better. Some of your articles when written from a very narrow viewpoint without external opinion just shows a lack of depth in the space you are working in.
I actually think this is the real disagreement.
My argument was never “make ultrarunning feel like ESPN.” The sport is already becoming bigger and more professional whether people want it to or not.
I just think there’s a difference between preserving the culture and preserving unnecessary friction.
The weirdness, banter, and slow moments are part of what make the sport great.
But viewers probably should not need four tabs open just to understand the race.
This is truly an awful article. Have you considered people have lives to keep up with and they'll enter and exit the stream as they please?
Of course people naturally come and go during a 200+ mile race. My point wasn’t that churn exists. It’s that certain production choices consistently slowed or accelerated that churn in observable ways.
Not to mention the writing is so obviously Claude? Like, all of it? It’s grating and pretty demeaning to the audience.
The arguments and ideas are mine. If people disagree with them, I’d genuinely rather have that conversation than turn this into a debate about AI.
I appreciate that the ideas and arguments are yours. I hope one day you are able to express them in a way that adds value to the community.
I found myself following the tracker and IG posts way more than the livestream due to the choppy and inconsistent audio/video. I understand its the nature of covering a race that takes place in remote areas, and I thank the production team for giving it their best, but I found it pretty unbearable. The stories and posts on IG felt way more intimate and engaging.
Super interesting point. Instagram definitely gave us the hero moments really well.
It’ll be interesting to see if there are ever non participant fans. That’s the big issue. I’m not sure anyone needs the amount of coverage being offered. i’m not sure I could watch 6 hours of marathon coverage, even if I was in the race.
Good job. But people also wanted to see Rachel and Kilian, not just Courtney. Did you see the chat go insane last night when we knew Kilian was about to enter Munds Park, there was a commentator and camera on the ground, the screen was showing something else and instudio talking about some food thing. The chat went wild asking for Munds park. The commentator on the ground missed Rachel sneaking out!
Fair point on Courtney. Your example is spot on. That chaos hurts the experience in a big way.