Field Theory by Hadyn Green

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Field Theory: And like that, it's gone

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  • Tristan,

    Was it just me or did they just switch it to the live feed and leave it on for 2 weeks?

    It was also very nice of them not to play replays of the most exixiting opening to the super 14 in years...

    Oh and anyone who cannot afford sky cannot it seems afford to watch any cricket replays either...


    If there was an industry crying out for regulation its the pay TV industry...

    Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 221 posts Report Reply

  • Edward Siddle,

    Problem for me is that it is so out of season. When it is warm outside I just don't have much desire to sit and watch winter sports - in fact I don't have much desire to watch much sport at all - rather be outside with the cricket on the radio, or doing some cycling, or something like that. I have the same problem with the rugby starting in Feb here, or even football which I actually enjoy. Contrast that with when I was with in-laws in Germany/Austria recently: suddenly being inside watching the four hills ski-jumping tournament seems like the most obvious thing to be doing...

    The opposite isn't true though. When it is winter here i'm happy to watch any old rubbish (except UK rugby league, motorsport or golf, which unfortunately make up a large proportion of Sky's offering).

    Wellington • Since Sep 2008 • 54 posts Report Reply

  • LegBreak,

    No-one is seriously comparing the amount of free-to-air coverage between summer and winter Olympics, are they?

    They’ve always been massively different in NZ.

    Wellington • Since Nov 2006 • 1162 posts Report Reply

  • JackElder,

    Personally, I'd be a lot more interested in the winter Olympics if they stopped arsing around and included cyclocross as an event.

    But I've got a deep love in my heart for any event that ends up with people dancing around giant inflatable beavers.

    Wellington • Since Mar 2008 • 709 posts Report Reply

  • BlairMacca,

    I usually like The crowd goes wild, but it just didn't work for this. I guess the main grizzle there would be having someone who knows sweet FA about any kind of sports (Hayley Holt) presenting. The presenting team seemed pretty minimal, although it was the Winter Olympics so not really a huge thing for us. Will be interesting to see how the Summer version goes for Sky.

    Wellington • Since Apr 2007 • 208 posts Report Reply

  • Kyle Matthews,

    I stopped watching the crowd goes wild on ice.

    An hour long daily highlights of all the sports, including the NZ competitors would have been good. The dribble between their various commentators interspersed with occasional clips of sports, not so much.

    Maybe it would have worked better if it had been the pulp sport guys, but wrong channel.

    Since Nov 2006 • 6243 posts Report Reply

  • caycos,

    Um - there was 12 hours live streaming on Sky/Prime's website every day (never did work out who was hosting it..) I watched some ice skating and aerials that way...

    Wellington • Since Jan 2009 • 29 posts Report Reply

  • Naly D,

    Yeah, what Caycos said.

    Also, for me, it seemed like whenever I was at home there was always something on SS1 or SS2. Mainly skeleton/luge/bobsleigh/hockey.

    Wellington • Since Sep 2008 • 307 posts Report Reply

  • Kyle Matthews,

    The sky hockey was painful, having to sit through the commentator who seemed to be British, and just making up hockey terms as he went along. I have to wonder why they couldn't have got the NBC or another north american feed.

    Since Nov 2006 • 6243 posts Report Reply

  • Megan Wegan,

    I mostly watched ice skating at home, but caught a lot at work.

    I think it's just the nature of the various sports, but while I adore the Summer, the Winter Olympics leaves me cold.

    Welly • Since Jul 2008 • 1275 posts Report Reply

  • Andy Milne,

    @BlairMacca, I'm picking that being a former international snowboarder (5th at the US open Snowboarding champs) probably indicates Hayley Holt has a little knowledge of winter sport. Whether that makes her a good sports reporter is a different issue...

    Christchurch • Since Aug 2007 • 59 posts Report Reply

  • Sue,

    it did start during webstock week, which was incredibly bad timing on the ioc's part.

    thank to it being on sky I saw more of the winter olympics than i did of the summer ones.

    Wellington • Since Nov 2006 • 527 posts Report Reply

  • Hadyn Green,

    thank to it being on sky I saw more of the winter olympics than i did of the summer ones.

    The complete opposite for me. I don't know why I never went to the Sky/Prime website. I suppose because it was usually during work and I guessed (incorrectly) that Sky wouldn't be doing that (they don't for other sports).

    Now I think about it, I saw lots of ads for the coverage, but none mentioned going to the website (compared to TVNZ who pimp their site every minute).

    Wellington • Since Nov 2006 • 2090 posts Report Reply

  • giovanni tiso,

    The sky hockey was painful, having to sit through the commentator who seemed to be British, and just making up hockey terms as he went along.

    Not only that, but in the customary fashion of British commentators in all sports they a) kept asking strings of inane pre-emptive questions instead of calling the game, along the lines of "is this the power play when they finally score?" Just wait and see, you drongo. And b) they were only able to readily recognise the players in the anglo teams, which reached truly grotesque proportions in the two semifinals. If you didn't actually watch the screen you could be excused to think that Finland and Slovakia were never in possession of the puck.

    Wellington • Since Jun 2007 • 7473 posts Report Reply

  • Eddie Clark,

    Although if we stop bitching for 5 seconds, that was a f**king awesome hockey tournament. Just great. Will be hard going back to watching the organised grind that is most NHL matches.

    Oh and who knews long-distance x-country skiing was so exciting? Both the womens' 30k and the mens' 50 came down to sprints at the end. Sprinting after skiing for 50 ks??? Ugh.

    (Note: I watched all my coverage on Prime, which had 12 hours a day. The only thing missing was a proper evening highlights show, but aside from that there was more FTA coverage than TVNZ has ever had. Certainly more live)

    Wellington • Since Nov 2006 • 273 posts Report Reply

  • Kyle Matthews,

    If you didn't actually watch the screen you could be excused to think that Finland and Slovakia were never in possession of the puck.

    Ironically, the Canadian team has just as many tricky names. Toews sounds nothing like it's written. And half of them are froggy names a'how.

    Since Nov 2006 • 6243 posts Report Reply

  • George Darroch,

    The speed skating was amazing, and intense. And wonderful to watch.

    Mostly. There were too many athletes in the finals who seemed to slow down early, sliding across the line rather than giving it everything. Many of them were saving something in reserve for other events, and this indicates to me that there is a lack of sufficient competition to see people forced to become true specialists in particular distances. (as compared to swimming or running, for example).

    I do wonder if this event, more than any other, could be a venue for athletes from hot-weather countries to break into the Winter Olympics. It goes without saying that you need a great deal of talent to win, but there's also physique. I really do wonder what a well trained Usain Bolt or Michael Johnson equivalent could do on ice.

    WLG • Since Nov 2006 • 2264 posts Report Reply

  • Eddie Clark,

    I do wonder if this event, more than any other, could be a venue for athletes from hot-weather countries to break into the Winter Olympics. It goes without saying that you need a great deal of talent to win, but there's also physique. I really do wonder what a well trained Usain Bolt or Michael Johnson equivalent could do on ice.

    George, cycling is actually a closer analogue to speed skating than running... just look at the freakish quads on the skaters. And all 3 of the people who've won olympic medal in both summer and winter games did it in cycling and speed skating.

    Wellington • Since Nov 2006 • 273 posts Report Reply

  • Geoff Lealand,

    My 16 year old daughter, who has a rather wicked sense of humour, picked on two zingers in commentaries during the Winter Olympics..

    The Austrians like to lead and dictate..

    and

    The Koreans like it from the rear

    Screen & Media Studies, U… • Since Oct 2007 • 2562 posts Report Reply

  • BlairMacca,

    @BlairMacca, I'm picking that being a former international snowboarder (5th at the US open Snowboarding champs) probably indicates Hayley Holt has a little knowledge of winter sport. Whether that makes her a good sports reporter is a different issue...

    Ouch, sorry stupidity on my part. I'm not big up on snowboarding, I thought she was only a ballroom dancer.

    Having said that she is an appalling presenter, I saw an interview with her at the sevens just before the final where she was asked who would win the final and she said "go the New Zealand team" despite us being knocked out in the semi's....

    Wellington • Since Apr 2007 • 208 posts Report Reply

  • George Darroch,

    George, cycling is actually a closer analogue to speed skating than running...

    That is true, but African and Carribean countries aren't strong in cycling yet, unfortunately (South Africa excepted, and Rwanda is giving it a lot).

    Another random thought: cyclists and speed skaters tend to look like dinosaurs, with huge legs and rather disporportionately small arms.

    WLG • Since Nov 2006 • 2264 posts Report Reply

  • Eddie Clark,

    Another random thought: cyclists and speed skaters tend to look like dinosaurs, with huge legs and rather disporportionately small arms.

    Or like someone's cut up pictures of various different people and mixed up the torsos and the lower bodies... waify emo kids above the waist, rugby players below.

    Wellington • Since Nov 2006 • 273 posts Report Reply

  • JackElder,

    Or like someone's cut up pictures of various different people and mixed up the torsos and the lower bodies... waify emo kids above the waist, rugby players below.

    Depends on the discipline. Serious roadies, fair enough, but mountainbiking uses a surprising amount of upper body strength. Competitive MTB'ers tend to be slightly more muscled than you'd expect. And then when you get to the trackies, some of them can carry around rather a lot of upper body muscle. For example, the 1k track sprint relies a lot on an explosive start - the race simply isn't long enough to let you get away with a slow kickoff. So the racers (such as Chris Hoy, a man who you definitely would not want to punch you) can get away with carrying more upper body muscle if it helps them wrench the bikes around to get up to speed fast.

    Wellington • Since Mar 2008 • 709 posts Report Reply

  • Russell Brown,

    Depends on the discipline. Serious roadies, fair enough, but mountainbiking uses a surprising amount of upper body strength.

    I reckon. Even just riding a windy, bumpy suburban park path feels like good upper-body exercise to me.

    I like how I've worked out a few of those that link to places I want to get to in my 'hood.

    In other news, I didn't get up the Bullock Track again today. It's my spirit that gives out before my legs. It's just so hard to go past that handy little crossing to the footpath two thirds of the way up.

    Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 22850 posts Report Reply

  • Eddie Clark,

    I'm talking speedskating rather than cycling. Crazy builds.

    Wellington • Since Nov 2006 • 273 posts Report Reply

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