Durkin steps down as Triple Crown voice; Collmus takes over

[TouchOfGrey]

Originally Posted by Merlinsky

NBC just got Larry Collmus for the job. Congrats Larry!

Winning!

[alysheba4]

Originally Posted by Indian Charlie

Bill Gahr.

...... i hated having to listen to him when i had a wager......" its easy goer, sunday silence......sunday silence, easy goer.......its......alysheba by a half length"

[Indian Charlie]

Originally Posted by alysheba4

...... i hated having to listen to him when i had a wager......" its easy goer, sunday silence......sunday silence, easy goer.......its......alysheba by a half length"

Yeah!

I like to bring him up 1-2 times a year to see if anyone else found his calls as hilariously bad as I did.

[SuffolkGirl]

He was interviewed on All things Considered today and threw out his bet, $50 on Shakelford to win

[Travis Stone]

Tom Durkin largely defined what race calling has become. Dave Johnson started to turn the corner, and Durkin just took the idea and ran with it.

The lines he's delivered over the years are not by accident, they are the result of hours of hard work and preparation, just like any sportscaster prepares for a big game.

If you look back at the last 25 years of horse racing, we've had some awesome races, and nothing will ever take away from what happens on the track. But when you took Durkin at his best, and piled his way with words, drama and excitement on top of it, it was awesome. And hopefully will still be for years to come in NY.

Nothing lasts forever though... Larry gave me my start -- he let me call two races at Suffolk Downs in January 2005 -- and since we've been good friends. We became even better friends after I spent the winter at Gulfstream Park last year. He's a pro, he'll do an awesome job and I'm really excited for him!

[outofthebox]

Originally Posted by Indian Charlie

Yeah!

I like to bring him up 1-2 times a year to see if anyone else found his calls as hilariously bad as I did.

Yea, i grew up in So Cal and listened to his show on KIEV. I remember he use to say,"under hand, boot and whip" all the time..

[DaTruth]

Originally Posted by PatCummings

I think it's a unique case as Longchamp is quite difficult from a calling angle, probably a good half of each race is called from a television save the sprinting distances on the backside course. Not sure how much Euro racing you catch now, but the tactic of more than one person calling a race is, to my knowledge, used only amongst French racecallers. In the UK for the Grand National where it is practically impossible for one caller to cover all the action.

In the US, with oval courses, there's really no need for it, and you can almost be assured not all 20 horses would get a call if you were tossing it to someone else. No chance of this happening here.

Obviously there is no need for it from the standpoint of having the most accurate Triple Crown racecalls. What I am suggesting is merely to make the Triple Crown races more interesting to the average TV viewer who likely has minimal knowledge of racing and probably would enjoy some live explanation about what is happening during the race. The networks already cater to the non-racing fans during their Triple Crown telecasts by departing from the normal track pan shots for the entire race and using different camera angles, such as a blimp shot on the backstretch, much to the annoyance of many serious fans.

I doubt that watching a Belmont on TV would become less enjoyable for the masses if, during the long run down the backstretch, a color commentator opined about how the pace was affecting the race favorite and what should be expected during the remainder of the race.

[booner]

Originally Posted by Travis Stone

Tom Durkin largely defined what race calling has become. Dave Johnson started to turn the corner, and Durkin just took the idea and ran with it.

The lines he's delivered over the years are not by accident, they are the result of hours of hard work and preparation, just like any sportscaster prepares for a big game.

If you look back at the last 25 years of horse racing, we've had some awesome races, and nothing will ever take away from what happens on the track. But when you took Durkin at his best, and piled his way with words, drama and excitement on top of it, it was awesome. And hopefully will still be for years to come in NY.

Nothing lasts forever though... Larry gave me my start -- he let me call two races at Suffolk Downs in January 2005 -- and since we've been good friends. We became even better friends after I spent the winter at Gulfstream Park last year. He's a pro, he'll do an awesome job and I'm really excited for him!

My Durkin fav:

"This is the greatest comeback since Lazurus!!"

It sounds better and better every time I go to the Horse Park and see DaHoss.

And Collmus will do a fine job with the Triple Crown. Congrats to him!

[TouchOfGrey]

NY Times:Panic of Final Stretch Stills Voice of Triple Crown

[OldDog]

Originally Posted by TouchOfGrey

NY Times:Panic of Final Stretch Stills Voice of Triple Crown

Great article. Reminded me of this interview back in 2009.
http://www.bloodhorse.com/horse-raci...A-A519F2F4A034