Steve Crist on March 27th wrote an article critical of the results of the Dubai World Cup. It is no secret Mr. Crist dislikes synthetic surfaces (as well as most of the DRF crew, I find), and he did not disappoint in his article. However, being a Steve Crist fan, after reading the opine I was very disappointed. To me Mr. Crist is usually thoughtful, cogent and he makes a valid argument in a sharp way, and whether you disagree or agree with his point tends to be irrelevant. This time I left his page feeling like I just watched one of my favorite horses get beat. It was simply, in my opinion, not up to his standards. To me it felt rushed, sophomoric and something I would read on a thoroughbred chat board (or dare I say a blog like this, written by yours truly).
Fast forward to today, another writer whom I love to read, who like Mr. Crist usually writes with passion and razor sharp logic, is Nick Kling. Again, whether I agree or disagree I get my money's worth when reading his work. He wrote an article critical of Mr. Crist's cited above and laid out an alternative point of view. After reading it I was not disappointed.
We have some really great writers in our sport, but just like horses, sometimes they have a bad day. In the battle over the Dubai World Cup and synth racing in general, if we as fans only have these two articles to read, it's game, set and match Mr. Kling.
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5 comments:
nice post; don't forget another who weighed in quite nicely on the topic: a blogger, The Dresden File.
Thank you Sid. An excellent read.
http://thedresdenfile.blogspot.com/2010/03/passion-of-steven.html
You keep referring to Mr. Crist's piece as an "article," when in fact it was merely a blog post, an idea, a concept that he was working out in print.
In his weekly columns you can find a "thoughtul, cogent, valid arguments" always. But he's allowed a mere throw-away, an attempt to get the conversation started, in his blogs. That's what they're for.
Give the guy a break.
I do agree. When I read Crist on the topic of surfaces, it is almost like they are written by a kid who has had his toys taken away. If he wants to have an opinion, make it worth reading.
anon 10:26 seems to think that "print" counts, "new media" does not. how quaint is that?
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