Churchill Downs will host the 28th annual Breeders' Cup on Friday and Saturday, two of the biggest days of horse racing of the year with a total purse of $25.5 million for 15 races.
Mike McQuade, who serves as a vice president of remote production for ESPN/ABC, will be overseeing the coverage and discussed the production challenges of this weekend's event.
How will you cover the races from Churchill Downs?
McQuade » "We have 35 cameras, one airplane, over 200 people and great on-air crew in place for the coverage. There will be seven races on ESPN2 Friday starting at 4:30?p.m. Then on Saturday, our coverage moves over to ABC for our eight-race package that starts at 1 ?p.m. Churchill Downs is a beautiful but massive facility, and so that presents a logistical challenge, but it should be fun and an outstanding event."
Why are there so many casual fans who tune in to horse racing?
McQuade » "For the Breeders' Cup and of course the Triple Crown events, we see a large number of viewers who are not really sports fans. They love horses and watching them race. It very much is a family affair. We of course will produce a number of wonderful features that will help the viewers get to know the horses, the jockeys and the people that own and train them. But as you know, this really is one of the few events where the star athletes will never be interviewed or be asked how they feel before competing. We all simply watch them and enjoy their brilliance."
How does the Breeders' Cup do up against college football?
McQuade » "While we know that we will have fans that will be with us all day Saturday, we are aware that people will be watching college football and checking in on the races. We will keep people updated on post times, and so the beauty of racing is that it is an event that is over in about two minutes. So for those watching college football, they can tune us in, watch the entire race and be back to their game in about the same time as a commercial break."
Examiner columnist Jim Williams is a seven-time Emmy Award-winning TV producer, director and writer. Check out his blog, Watch this!, on washingtonexaminer.com.
