The Ultimate Guide Of Cycling Films And Books For The Holidays

by | Dec 21, 2023 | Bike, Bike Events & Racing, Bike Video Features, Featured, Sports

Our top films, books, and series from the world of cycling to indulge in during your holidays! 

Get the popcorn going or grab your rooibos tea and hit the couch with these stories about bicycles and the remarkable people who ride them. Experience the tales from brave adventurers who accept no boundaries and get inside the minds of highly focussed racers looking for that extra 10th of a second. See the power of the bike in moving people, shaping lives, and unlocking new freedoms and joy around the globe in unique but familiar ways.

Light your fire for riding again and see your two-wheeled companion through a new lens with our top recommendations for holidays season watching and reading.

Cover Image Photo Cred: Eric Palmer

Great films for movie night

The Engine Inside

Follow 6 unique stories from around the world to see first hand how the bicycle has the power to change lives and shape our cultures. Produced by the talented and hard working team at Anthill Films (Unreal, Return to Earth, Strength In Numbers, and others) and narrated by the iconic Phil Liggett, these powerful stories of resilience, transformation, and joy will remind you just how wonderful our little two-wheeled machines really are. Watch it for free on Red Bull TV.

The Pilot

“Two World Cup Downhill Championship titles with a space of four long years between them, connected by the resilience of one man. “The Pilot” is a story about Amaury Pierron. Produced by Sleeper Collective with stunning visuals and a rich insight into one of the fastest humans on the planet.

From his explosion onto the scene at the highest level and his journey through rehabilitation from bad injuries, to his recovery in 2021 and his return to racing after nearly two years off… Discover the story of Amaury and the road he travelled to win the World Cup DH overall for a second time and make 2022 his best season yet.”

Nothing’s For Free

“Nothing’s For Free is the real story of the birth and legacy of freeride mountain biking. Chronicling the blue-collar story and rise of a cult sport to a global phenomenon that put the race-driven sport of mountain biking on the map in the world of action sports and the mainstream. Outside Studios, in association with Freeride Entertainment, breaks boundaries in documentary filmmaking, taking a step beyond the talking head interview and deep into the mindset of its cast. Nothing’s for Free features the biggest names in mountain biking, from the early pioneers of adventure to modern-day internet superstars like Danny Macaskill and Brandon Semenuk.” Watch it on Outside Online.

Top Cycling Books And Bike Films For Bicycle Lovers
Freeride mountain biking has had a rocky history but will so many incredible moments. This film will open your eyes to the stories that have shaped the sport. (c) Nothing’s For Free Film

Icarus

“When filmmaker Bryan Fogel sets out to uncover the truth about doping in sports, a chance meeting with a Russian scientist transforms his story from a personal experiment into a geopolitical thriller. Dirty urine, unexplained death and Olympic gold are all part of the exposure of the biggest scandal in sports history.”

Icarus takes a close look at the dark underbelly of professional sport. It is a fascinating and sobering documentary, hosted on Netflix.

Long Live Chainsaw

A film that celebrates the life and legacy of Canadian Downhill MTB legend Stevie Smith. Get to know one of the icons of the sport in intimate stories told by friends, rivals, teammates and family. Re-live historic race runs and be infected by Stevie’s passion for life and racing. Watch it for free on Red Bull TV. #LongLiveChainsaw

Plan B: The Fall & Rise Of Jumbo Visma

The story of how a dramatic first week at the 2021 Tour de France turned into Jumbo Visma’s best Grand Tour performance ever. See Wout van Aert, Jonas Vingegaard, Sepp Kuss, and others rolling with the punches, strategizing, and adapting to overcome challenges at the biggest cycling race in the world!

A Sunday In Hell – The 1976 Paris-Roubaix

If you’re feeling nostalgic and looking for a throwback, A Sunday in Hell is a 1976 Danish documentary film directed by Jørgen Leth that showcases the brutality and drama of the Paris-Roubaix spring classic.

Take a look at this iconic event from the perspective of participants, organisers and spectators in the 70s when helmets were not even a thought and bikes were made in garages!

Series to get immersed in

Unchained

You’ll likely have heard of the 2022 Tour De France ‘Unchained’ series by now that is hosted on Netflix and if you haven’t heard of or watched it yet, this is your call!

Get to grips with the runnings of the world’s most high performance cycling teams at the biggest stage race on the calendar. Learn from the inside about team tactics and what it takes to win a stage at ‘The Tour’ and fight for the Maillot Juane over those 23 magnificent days of bike racing.

Tour De France Stage 16 Individual Time Trial
Enter the world of the best bike racers on the planet. (c) Tour de France

Race Tapes

A 6 part series that brings you into the minds and lives of the best racers of the MTB World Cup. Get to know Nino Schurter, Vali Höll, Tom Pidcock, Kade Edwards, Aaron Gwin, Evie Richards and others through honest interviews and behind the scenes access. The short episodes are punchy and insightful. You’ll easily gobble them all up in one sitting. Season 2 is on its way in Feb 2024!

Books for bike lovers

Land of Lost Borders – Kate Harris

One for the adventurers. An award winning story of a woman from Ontario Canada who set out to cycle the famous Silk Road trade route linking China with the West.

“Lands of Lost Borders, winner of the 2018 Banff Adventure Travel Award and a 2018 Nautilus Award, is the chronicle of Harris’s odyssey and an exploration of the importance of breaking the boundaries we set ourselves; an examination of the stories borders tell, and the restrictions they place on nature and humanity; and a meditation on the existential need to explore – the essential longing to discover what in the universe we are doing here”

“In between studying at Oxford and MIT, Harris set off by bicycle down the fabled Silk Road with her childhood friend Mel. Pedalling mile upon mile in some of the remotest places on earth, she realised that an explorer, in any day and age, is the kind of person who refuses to live between the lines. Forget charting maps, naming peaks: what she yearned for was the feeling of soaring completely out of bounds. The farther she travelled, the closer she came to a world as wild as she felt within.”

Top Cycling Books And Bike Films For Bicycle Lovers

Bloody Minded – Alex Dowsett

One for the racing lovers. “A Must Read”, says Phil Liggett, the voice of the Tour De France.

“Alex Dowsett has ridden Grand Tours and Classics for elite teams including Sky and Movistar and broke the iconic World Hour Record – the ultimate time trial challenge. With humour, insight and honesty, Alex recounts his years as a pro-cyclist and the challenges he has faced in his struggle to reach the top. 

Alex has achieved all this despite being the only able-bodied elite sportsperson in the world with haemophilia A. He describes how the condition – in which falls can be fatal – both blighted his young sporting life, and boosted his determination to succeed. Every professional cyclist requires courage, but Alex takes fearlessness to another level in a sport where injury and suffering are a given. 

With an all-star cycling cast, including Bradley Wiggins, Chris Froome, Mark Cavendish and Lance Armstrong, this pulsating book lifts the lid on life in the peloton at the world’s top level. From his highs – including Giro d’Italia stage victories – to his frustrations at the injustices he faced in the sport, Alex’s memoir perfectly chronicles a career in which he was driven equally by love and rage.

Combining Alex’s personal triumphs with his unique take on being part of the golden age of British cycling, this is an unmissable tale of sporting endeavour.”

Top Cycling Books And Bike Films For Bicycle Lovers

The Art of Cycling – James Hibbard

One for the thinkers. 

“A meditative love letter to the sport of cycling which explores how the cultivation of a tangible skill can shed new light on age-old questions of selfhood, meaning, and purpose.

Interweaving a deeply personal narrative of elite-level cycling and mental health struggles with an evocative history of Western philosophy from Plato to the Existentialists, The Art of Cycling explores the limits of rationality and how the visceral, embodied nature of sport ultimately has the potential to redeem us from the painful, locked-in isolation of our own heads. 

In the tradition of philosophical road trip titles like Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance and On the Road, The Art of Cycling turns a critical eye towards our increasingly disconnected digital lives —showing how re-engaging with the material world can breathe new vitality into everyday existence and serve as a countervailing force against the sense of detachment which has come to characterise modern life for so many.”

Top Cycling Books And Bike Films For Bicycle Lovers

Downtime EP, The World Stage, and Hurly Burly

A few for the coffee table. From a group called Misspent Summers come these beautifully crafted yearbooks of the Downhill (Hurly Burly) and Enduro (The World Stage) World Cups seasons with fascinating interviews with top athletes and rich commentaries from experts in the sport. Each book is dense with high quality images, stories and info. Dive into detailed stats from each track and race, drool over stunning images of the world’s best doing their thing, and hear interesting perspectives on life and racing from the travelling circus that is the MTB World Cup.

Top Cycling Books And Bike Films For Bicycle Lovers
Hurly Burly and The World Stage are focussed purely on the MTB World Cups

Downtime EP is a collection of interviews and commentaries from remarkable people in the world of Gravity and adventure mountain biking, from racers to team managers, photographers, mechanics and everyone in between. If you’ve ever listened to the Downtime podcast hosted by Chris Hall you’ll know to expect top-shelf insights from this great little publication.

That list should keep you busy for a while. Share it with your mates and get together for a movie night. Just don’t forget to get out and ride your bike afterwards!

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