On Board with Colin Mcrae

Rally Portugal. 1998. No narration. No rawk music. Just 2:33 min of bliss.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lzyV7Q0Sy40

Wow, that was awesome. Especially at around 1:40, when he's sliding the Subaru around a steep drop-off, gracefully keeping it from slipping over the edge. Incredible bit of driving, and easily as good as any Group B video I've seen.

With Group B, the appeal is how mad the cars are. Modern WRC cars are just as fast, but they do it with handing and suspension instead of fireworks. The genius drivers are still great to watch.

The one problem with the current WRC coverage is that you don't get the long stretches of un-narrated in-car video like this. It used to be a staple of the TV show, "we'll just ride along with Sainz for a while", cut to three minutes of in-car with just frantic Spanish pace notes as narration.

I'd forgotten how well enunciated and clear Nikki's navigation was. Thanks!

it is fun to listen to navigators, I really like listening to Seb Loeb's navi, when he yells is french it is like he is singing a beautiful song.

I always wonder if there are other languages that are easier to give route instructions in...it would be pretty hardcore if a team learned another language to give route instructions more rapidly.

Keith wrote: The one problem with the current WRC coverage is that you don't get the long stretches of un-narrated in-car video like this. It used to be a staple of the TV show, "we'll just ride along with Sainz for a while", cut to three minutes of in-car with just frantic Spanish pace notes as narration.

WRC coverage on Speed, pre-Ralph Sheheen was nearly perfect. He came along right as Rally was gaining an audience in the US. The broadcast took a giant leap backward, and then disappeared from the channel. Now, I even miss it in its final form.

Keith wrote: The one problem with the current WRC coverage is

What WRC coverage?

the torrent type...it is a eurosport broadcast

I just watched Rally Norway last night

Ahhhhh. could someone PLEASE send me that video or post a link on here that's not youtube? I can't get into youtube

Woody wrote:

Keith wrote: The one problem with the current WRC coverage is that you don't get the long stretches of un-narrated in-car video like this. It used to be a staple of the TV show, "we'll just ride along with Sainz for a while", cut to three minutes of in-car with just frantic Spanish pace notes as narration.

WRC coverage on Speed, pre-Ralph Sheheen was nearly perfect. He came along right as Rally was gaining an audience in the US. The broadcast took a giant leap backward, and then disappeared from the channel. Now, I even miss it in its final form.

I'm not cool enough to know the names of the narrators . I remember there was one year of an atrocious NASCAR-style announcer who yelled at the microphone and said stupid things. I don't miss him. There was a girl before that, I think. I have no complaints about the current guy - the current coverage is pretty well done in my opinion. One thing you get with rally that you don't get with any other motorsport is the ability to interview the drivers halfway through a race.

I think I have some of the old seasons saved. Some are on VHS tapes (remember when Speed would show WRC all day long on Jan 1st instead of Barrett-Jackson?) and at least one from 1997 or so is digital. I'll see what I can dig up to remind myself

By the way, during a pause while watching Rally Norway Sunday night (great race, Loeb and Hirvonen must be so dispiriting to the rest of the pack), I flipped over to Speed. There were a bunch of tow truck drivers yelling profanities about out-of-date logbooks on some reality show. That was enough to keep me off Speed for another six months. I went back to watching the best drivers in the world battle it out on real roads in real weather.

it was amazing how Loeb and Hirvonen didn't make a G-darn mistake for the whole rally. it was a shame about PG Anderssen having clutch failure and having to quit after charging up about 8 positions and having 2 scratch stages.

I have a ton of WRC VHS from back in the Speedvision heyday. That's when there was 3 day coverage. Man, I miss that. They would use that day's footage, cobble something together and show it that night here in the Great Satan. Of course that depended on what time zone it was in...

They still do that, Jensenman. I was watching day 3 of the Norway rally on Sunday night, just hours after the race was done :) They just don't do it on Speed...

And if anybody needs a link, I can probably provide it... but I'll kill ya if you don't follow what I ask you to do