I'm with
@Jack skis. I'll always watch whatever Olympic ski coverage we can get, no mater how dismal or imperfect. Just a long time junkie, I guess.
My opinion is that Steve Porino has developed into a pretty darn good journalist over the years. I know that he's worked hard at it, and he's paid his dues, and learned a lot on the job. He seems to do a decent job covering the Tour de France as well. When his ski career ended, he went to CU-Boulder and I think majored in communications, etc. So he's been serious about it.
I like Doug Lewis. He's a good guy. He loves the sport. He loves kids. He and his wife have done a great job with their EliteTeam camps. He's super enthusiastic, and that plays very well with his campers. I'm not wild about him announcing races, and I'm not a huge fan of him on the air. The enthusiasm might be part of it. He's also not
real current. He's not always so accurate, IMO.
I'm a huge Bode fan. I think/hope that Bode might pick up on a bit of training. Then again, he might be stubborn, and NBC may feel that the totally "unvarnished Bode" is best. Bode is current. Bode is smart. Bode is a complete tech nut, when it comes to equipment and the nuances of the sport. He also knows almost every person skiing on the tour, knows the coaches, knows the techs......and knows "the dirt." I really find that insight very, very interesting. I know a lot of what he does is voiceovers after the races have been run, so he's doing it knowing the results, be even when he's live and on sight, he's "on his game." Also like his sense of humor.
My hunch is that given what NBC has paid for the broadcast rights for these games, Bode will probably get the word that he needs to be excited, and he needs to treat the games and the actual races like they are a big deal. As in winning Olympic gold is a big deal! Back when he competed, Bode was one who always pushed the thinking that these were just another ski race, and not worth the hype. The prize was the World Cup. However, when he won his medals, he sure looked emotional. It sure looked like "a big deal."
So hopefully he'll convey that, as I think it's good for the sport, to say the least. Ant any rate, I like this NBC team. I wish we could se more of them throughout the season. Hard to be a ski race fan in the USA these days.