Our next issue features a healthy spoonful of mountain biking, so you’re not only going to get it in print, but you’ll also get some of that action right here. You are a subscriber, right?
These are the best mountain, gravel, and road bike films you can watch online without visiting a site that ends in .ru or rolling the dice on a stream-ripping Youtube channel that'll likely Rick Roll you at some point before the end of the movie. These are legit and we’ve watched all of them… maybe too many times.
Orange
The 50:01 crew has built an international audience over the year with skate-style flicks that are fast, loose, and all about fun. Josh Lewis and his crew filmed this one in their backyard in the UK. It’s 30 minutes of trail, dirt jumps, and mind-bending mountain bike jibbing set to reggae, some R&B, and the occasional rap track.
Reach for the Sky
Sure, it's about seven years old - which is a lifetime on the Internet, but it’s one of Cam Zink's greatest hits. If you’re a fan of Rampage you’ll find this a new-classic throwback to when more and more people were just getting over the head-scratching about that "extreme" event in the southern Utah desert.
The Way Down
This is a more mellow selection from a Swiss art student who offered his own take on the typical shred flick. Swiss trail builders talking about the art of building the perfect berm is oddly soothing. It’s a good one to throw on in the background when you're wrenching on your bike.
Seven: The BC Bike Race
Compress multiple days of hardcore Canadian pedaling into 40 minutes—that’s the BC Bike Race movie. Short of riding it, this is a great way of getting a feel for the event from the fans to the trails. This tracks the race as a whole rather than following a particular rider.
Between the Tape
Another new-classic narrated by an old-dog legend: Steve Peat. DH racing fans will love this one. It’s a bit more current than some of the others on this list (2019), so you’ll see some new generation big-bike smashers featured. Bounce around the world following World Cup DH racers doing their thing on the race circuit.
Follow the Fraser
Wild... Canadian... freeriding. Kyle Norbraten, James Doerfling, and Tom van Steenbergen are all featured here. The title gives a nod to the terrain featured throughout the film: spots along the Fraser River in British Columbia.
The Good Line
Similar to Drew Peterson’s ski film Ups and Downs, the Good Line is a short piece with a theme of mental health. Jeremy Kershaw offers his reflection on how gravel riding intersects with personal wellbeing. This one is shorter than the others, it’s about 10 minutes.
Pan Celtic 2021
There’s a lot of Canada on this movie list. The Pan Celtic Race changes it up by following riders on an endurance mixed-surface race through the Celtic Nations to South-West England. It’s not quite gravel and not quite road and that’s what makes unique in the perfect kind of way.
From the Ash
So, this is less of a movie and more of an edit, but it’s a wildly good edit. Shot on private property on already burned-scarred land, this short is all about freeriding and fire. You'll need to look elsewhere if you're searching for a classic story-style movie.
I Just Want to Ride
Lael Wilcox just finished the Arizona Trail in Record time. This movie covers her record-breaking bikepacking journey along the Great Divide. Quite a few interviews and voice-over style that matches shots directly from that ride. Chris Seistrup makes an appearance, too.
Ride Your Fking Bike
Josh Bryceland retired from World Cup racing a few years ago, but he along with Josh Lewis and a cast of Fox athletes make this movie the one to get you excited for all disciplines of riding. It’s simple and well produced with great cinematography and music. The plot takes you across the US and into Canada highlighting various Fox riders from start to finish.
Outskirts 2
Another film shot in a location you rarely see: Newfoundland and Labrador. This is a gravel/distance road riding film made by Rapha with Thereabouts. It’s casual, local, and doesn’t take itself too seriously. Roadies and gravel riders will love the personalities and the ride.
The Call
An amateur downhill flick from France. The French have been dominating the World Cup races for the past few years. This might give you an idea why that’s the case. You’ll find all kinds of music that might be new, too.
Impossible Route
760 miles of gravel riding across Death Valley. You see the ride from a sometimes first and sometimes third person perspective. Watching the Vegan Cyclist and friend take on what’s mostly motorcycle roads and deep sand is a trip.
Pure Sweet Hell
Pure Sweet Hell from vernor on Vimeo.
BMX flicks are shot with this kind of raw film aesthetic and music... but this is a movie about cyclocross—American cyclocross. You get a bit of history, you meet legendary builders like Rick Hunter, and you get genuine feel for why the masochists are drawn to this kind of riding. It’s on the slow side but worth your time.
Just Be
Explore Scandinavian Fjords with three female mountain bike pros. There’s plenty of riding and a heaping helping of incredible scenery from the deck of their sailboat. It's a sailing-to-ride kind of motif and we love it.
Won’t Back Down
WON'T BACK DOWN: The Steve Peat Story FULL FILM from Clay Porter on Vimeo.
Steve Peat is a legend in downhill racing. Clay Porter is a legendary mountain bike filmmaker. Together the two made a movie about Steve Peat’s rise to hero status in World Cup Mountain bike racing. Peaty is one of a kind.
Home on the Rock
Two Newfoundland flicks in a row? It's because the place is so damn amazing when you hit it in the right season. This movie follows Matt Beers as he returns home to ride with friends. Keep your eyes and ears peeled to uncover some awesome spots around St. John’s.
Landwash
Back in 2000-something a few members of our crew went to Newfoundland with Meathead Films crew to hike and ski around Gros Morne. This isn’t our story, it just hit a chord because it reveals the awesome expanse of Newfy and shows off riding we hope to get to at some point.
Blackberry Swirl
Two female bike pros ride fast in Vermont. This one is for the east coasters and anyone who loves to see some really green, really fast riding in evergreens. It’s short and sweet.
Darklight
DARKLIGHT - 4K Full Film by Sweetgrass Productions from Sweetgrass Productions on Vimeo.
Sweetgrass started with ski flicks and then blasted into mountain biking with this edit. It’s artful and fast and really all about the cinematography and lighting. A great one for inspiration and to get excited about riding at night. There’s nothing else like it.
Bikepacking the Great Divide
I started watching this bikepacking movie by mistake and found myself sucked in for over an hour (it's two hours long). The scenery of the Great Divide is the hero on this journey. The cinematography is simple, the plot is straightforward (go from point A to point B) and there’s no music—only natural audio, so it’s quite a bit different from many films on this list.
Go Flow
Maine is full of small-town communities adding mountain bike trails, and this short highlights a few of those. It’s a vignette about trail building rather than your typical hype flick. As a Mainer (Austin, from the MG crew, "Hi") I found joy in rediscovering some of my old favorite spots.
A Trail for Everyone
Trails in Downieville, California are legendary… but they’re only the beginning. A large reason Downieville is rideable is because of the work of the Sierra Buttes Trail Stewardship. The real star of this flick is The Lost Sierra Route — a trail that traverses terrain much like the John Muir and PCT trails. Trail builders unite.
Girls Gotta Eat Dirt
One for the women who outride the men. It’s short and sweet and introduces you to three female riders who also happen to be roommates. It’s short, sweet, fun, fast, and… fun.
Into 'Im Chile
How much Chilean mountain biking have you experienced? This flick hits three Chilean hotspots of mountain biking with a mix of bike-handling specialists and jibbers… The music is great and unexpected and the production quality is top-notch.
Billder
Billder from Scott Secco on Vimeo.
This was an official Banff Mountain Film Festival selection. You follow Bill Mclane as he talks through his dual professions as a firefighter and a mountain bike trail builder. If you want a hero story to tidy up your mind after watching alot of action, here it is.
This was an official Banff Mountain Film Festival selection. You follow Bill Mclane as he talks through his dual professions as a firefighter and a mountain bike trail builder. If you want a hero story to tidy up your mind after watching alot of action, here it is.
