FOX Sports Adds High-Flying SPIDERCAM to Monster Energy Supercross Production Arsenal
FOX Sports and Feld Motor Sports® team to put viewers in the middle of the action for the 2015 Monster Energy AMA Supercross, an FIM World Championship, season, adding the award-winning SPIDERCAM to an already robust lineup of cameras covering the fast-moving, high-flying motorcycle series. With 14 manned cameras, including two high-speed X-MO cameras, two robotic cameras, a jib, two point-of-view cameras and select “blimp-view” cameras already in place, the flexible control of SPIDERCAM, flying at speeds of up to eight meters-per-second, enables spectacular images, giving the udience a never-before-seen perspective and a feeling of being part of the race.
"We are very excited to add SPIDERCAM to our Monster Energy Supercross broadcasts in 2015,” said coordinating producer Pete Richards. “Year by year, we try to find ways to improve our shows by introducing the most current technical innovations and SPIDERCAM might be the best yet. It allows us to bring viewers closer to the action from angles that they have never seen before … If you can’t be there in person, this is the next best thing."
Through the use of four motorized winches positioned in each corner of a defined flight range, SPIDERCAM allows any desired position to be achieved. Four catenary cables made of highly resilient Kevlar run through four deflection pulleys, which are installed above the four winches. In a stadium, the pulleys are usually fixed to the roof. The system is run by a pilot who controls the dolly and the flight path of the system, a camera operator, who specializes in aerial camera work, and a dedicated technician to ensure the overall technical functionality of the system. The highest safety standards are employed in combination with years of experience, allowing for a smooth flight.
In 2014, SPIDERCAM received the Sports Technology Award for best technology in professional sports, cementing its reputation as a great addition to any sports broadcast. To view the SPIDERCAM demo reel, please visit: http://bit.ly/1vS8up9
SPIDERCAM gives the viewer the unique feeling of being part of the live audience, having been utilized at performances of well-known bands and musicians such as Muse, U2, The Police and Robbie Williams, as an integral part of the viewing experience.
Through continuous technological innovation, the application of SPIDERCAM has no limits. Along with integration into superior sports broadcasts in stadiums all over the world, SPIDERCAM also is used in unusual locations, including the stunning Sagrada Familia in Barcelona, the Zurich train station as part of an opera performance and camel racing in the Middle East.
The 2015 Monster Energy Supercross season opens Jan. 3 from Anaheim, Calif., at 10 PM ET on FOX Sports 1 and FOX Sports GO. To add the full season schedule to your calendar, simply Tweet #SXonFOX to @FOXSports1 and check your notifications or visit FOXSports1.com. For the full and exclusive Monster Energy Supercross on FOX Sports television schedule, please visit: http://bit.ly/13qGP8O
