Racecalling is undoubtedly an art and a skill and many of us may want to reconsider our unfair slinging off of some of our local guys after listening to the Ngong racecaller on Sunday. We actually found ourselves wondering whether the ambulance driver and regular race-caller hadn’t swapped roles for the meeting.
It is so easy to sit in the grandstand and criticise a jockey’s ride or a commentator’s emotions or judgement, while talking from the pocket or some imagined moral highground.
The bottom line is that most of us, despite our passion and imagined encyclopedic knowledge of this game, have possibly mimicked the motions and the voice in the privacy of the shower – but have never actually sat on a horse or behind a live microphone.
But when it came to the unnamed Ngong racecaller on Sunday, we really have to say – no more, thanks.
His commentaries were punctuated by ridiculous passages of silence and stuttering – he didn’t know the horses’ names and one horse became three others during the running.
What makes it worse is the Ngong camera angles and never-ending technical issues from Kenya.
It’s not good enough – its is not up to standard – not even close.
Somebody needs to tell them.
