TVG

[GR1@HTR]

Where are all the TVG host this week? Are they on vacation or did they clean house? Nothing but music and live feed for the last few days....

[sq764]

Nothing but live feeds and music and you are complaining??

I'll take that any day over listening to Todd Shrup talk about how great he is..

[BillW]

Originally posted by GR1
Where are all the TVG host this week? Are they on vacation or did they clean house? Nothing but music and live feed for the last few days....

Someone's there ... they changed the music :D

[steve fierro]

Hi GR1

I have been monitoring this for the past few days and I must say it's nice. The races flow really well. There are very few delayed races. The scrolling toteboard and results are there to give us what we need. The post parades are timely as well. Even the commercial breaks are well timed. It just verifies what I have felt all along. The live racing product suffers because of the live commentary. I will not knock the on air talent. They have been retained to provide "live" entertainment and communicate the interactive message. This works for the "new" fan. The veteran player does not need to be "entertained" nor do they need the overflow of information. I think the "new fan" may represent under 1% of their audience so the other 99% must be imposed upon. I still would rather have TVG then not. An alternate no host channel would be nice. This won't happen so let's wait for next Christmas. Happy New Year everyone. Steve Fierro

[ranchwest]

Don't you guys miss Mr. Lucky and Exactor Man?

Not.

[BillW]

I'd gladly trade having the talking heads if they would just drop the LA QH's to the bottom of the priority list. It is irritating that they treat each LA posttime as a breaking story.

[Suff]

I don't have TVG on the Television... I have it on my PC. I've never seen a Commnetator... I get the track feed. I have AT&T broadband and get the feed very well. No issues... I don't need anyone to tell me the 8-5 favorite has been racing sharply.. I know that already... he's 8-5.

[blind squirrel]

i've had TVG since their first day of broadcasting.the first
six months were "horrible".they wanted to be the horse-
racing network and the comedy channel.

over time,they have improved but since they got CALIFORNIA
their focus has shifted to market CALIFORNIA racing.
DEL MAR,HP,OAK TREE,"THE Q'S........and pretending that
SA{WINTER}and GULFSTREAM don't exist.

now they are going to put AQ racing{brr} against santa anita,
now thats a hard sell!

as for the hosts i can breakdown their commentary:

MATT CAROUTHERS--speed and fade,working well in the morning
CATON{THE CHALK QUEEN}-"you can pick your horse but you can't pick your price"[HUH???]
TODD SCHRUPP-he wrestled JERRY LAWLER,do i have to say
anything more?...........give it a chance,you can always hit the mute button.

[Kappa]

Enjoy the silence... the talking heads return January 2nd.

[Kappa]

Originally posted by blind squirrel

over time,they have improved but since they got CALIFORNIA
their focus has shifted to market CALIFORNIA racing.
DEL MAR,HP,OAK TREE,"THE Q'S........and pretending that
SA{WINTER}and GULFSTREAM don't exist.

I guess Magna won't let them have the video feeds??

[sq764]

Does anyone else think Caton Bradar comes off as super egotistical and simply annoying as hell?

[BillW]

Originally posted by Kappa
I guess Magna won't let them have the video feeds??


I think that's the case. Scorched earth marketing ... If they can't have it, act like it is the worst thing on earth. ( references to the "other track across town" etc.).

It is not the case when they sacrifice a live run of a 20K alw running at HOU or MNR for a $2500 claimer QH race at LA. I don't mind the quarter horses as fillins after hours, but prioritizing them gets kinda bad.

I guess they are doing what they think best for survival and I am not a paying customer. So that is about what my opinion is worth. :)

Bill

[JustRalph]

Originally posted by sq764
Does anyone else think Caton Bradar comes off as super egotistical and simply annoying as hell?


I do!!! I hate that person. She is the worst thing on the channel. When my Dad was dying of cancer we spent a bunch of time watching TVG and playing horses. The only time he ever wanted to turn it off was when she was on.

Some of the guys try to be funny and some know they are not funny. They just play along in between races. I have been told that most of these guys came to the Network wanting to further their careers in Hollywood. Their studios are right in the heart of it. I think that since Chris Harrison got the Bachelor gig on ABC the bar was just raised. I have heard some comments and corresponded with a few of the hosts via email. I think that you are going to see a few of them leave in the near future. I get the feeling that nobody is getting famous like they planned. Except Harrison of course. The other problem they have is that they are bleeding money. The parent company is TV guide. Their stock is down to about $3.19 I figure they have to start making some serious money or they have about 18 months or so left.

The link up with Los Alamitos is money driven totally. The handle at Los Al went way up and most of it went thru tvg accounts after they started "The Quarters" show. It bores me to tears. I hate it when they show 3 other tracks on tape, to cover one 15 second quarter horse race.

I tried to support them by using them to place my bets. The Web Interface is terrible. It works, but it doesn't compare to Youbet or even Brisbet. Its almost as bad as Xpressbet. I say they need another channel, two going at once and more cooperation from the tracks on scheduling etc. If they don't change, they are going to go away. Its a damn shame too. They should aspire to be the ESPN of Horse racing, instead they are the Curly Joe, Larry and whats his name of horse racing. If TVG goes away our only choice will be Magna's $100 dollar a month channel. I will stick with the Internet if that happens.

[Alc]

Personally happy with TVG. Much better than the internet. Would hate to see them fold. However there is another option besides Magna $100. TRN Canada at www.satellitedishcanada.com. About $50.oo/mnth according to the info at the site.

[sq764]

that's $50 a mth Canadian.. Its less than $30 a month American

[Tom]

Originally posted by sq764
that's $50 a mth Canadian.. Its less than $30 a month American

Now that you mention it, if a horse runs a Beyer of 98 in the states, will he run a 77 in Canada?
<G>

[sq764]

Only if I have money on him!!

[smf]

Originally posted by Alc
Personally happy with TVG. Much better than the internet. Would hate to see them fold. However there is another option besides Magna $100. TRN Canada at www.satellitedishcanada.com. About $50.oo/mnth according to the info at the site.

A "thank you" for ya, Alc. I got CdnTRN last spring after you posted that link up and was very pleased.

The monthly comes out to $32 (total) for TRN, the basic pkg and the "more sports" pkg. *Hint*, if you want a TVG type of channel w/o the annoying hosts, get the "More Sports" pkg. It provides a generic racing channel on ch 390, and an odds grid on ch 391. The cost for that pkg is only $15 per month, total (includes the other 100 channels).

When you order "TRN", you get the track feeds on ch 392,393. Always get NYRA on ch 393 and Woodbine/ Mohawk on 392.