When the weather turns chilly, most cyclists accept the reality of more time on the indoor trainer as a way to stay in shape. The trainer is effective, but boring, so a DVD player helps. Watching anything makes the time go by quicker, but some folks like cycling-specific fare such as Tour de France highlights or one of the few cycling movies like “Breaking Away.” Somewhere in between is the cycling documentary “Blood, Sweat & Gears: Racing Clean to the Tour de France,” which premiered on the Sundance Channel earlier this year. The movie follows the upstart Garmin-Chipotle Slipstream team, a ragtag group which includes a famous ex-doper, fading names and rising stars (plus a guy nicknamed “Meatball”) all with one goal – get invited to cycling’s premier race completely clean in a sport tainted by drugs. It’s an entertaining behind-the-scenes look at the intense training and racing, which can wreck dreams, marriages and careers. The movie’s secret weapon is team director Jonathan Vaughters, a profane and painfully honest cheerleader/coach/pr man who isn’t afraid to ask questions of his riders such as “what the fuck are you thinking?”
Click to buy Blood Sweat + Gears: Racing Clean to the Tour de France
