ShAFF 2019: Bike Films 1 12A

A selection of the best biking films from the last year. Part of Sheffield Adventure Film Festival 2019 (ShAFF 2019). 100+ of the best adventure, travel and extreme sports films over one weekend in the UK's Outdoor Capital City.

1. Dreamride 3 - 6 minutes

   We've seen mountains and jungles and canyons run deep We've raced lava, chased sunsets, and found caves in our sleep Ahh… The good old dream... Where things are never quite as they seem...So come on old friend, here we go again We’ve got one more story before we turn in DreamRide 3 is the final chapter in a series that has taken audiences to some of the wildest environments on Earth. Combining a Dr.Suess inspired narrative, mind blowing natural landscapes, and one dreamer on a mountain bike, this film will take you on an adventure like no other.

2. RJ Ripper - 20 minutes

   Kids and bikes; wherever you are in the world, they go together. The chaotic streets of Kathmandu may not seem like a typical breeding ground for world-class mountain bikers, but then again nothing is typical about Rajesh (RJ) Magar. Since learning to ride on a beat-up clunker, to becoming the four-time National Champion at age 21, RJ’s story is one of boundless childhood dreaming and unstoppable determination, forged from junkyard scraps and tested on the rugged trails of the mighty Himalaya.

3. Raw 100 - Brendan Semenuk - 2 minutes

   Raw 100 = One hundred seconds of stripped back all-thriller, no filler action. It’s a showcase for the best riders in the world and a challenge for the best filmmakers in the world.

4. Ride Of The Dead - 12 minutes

   The Trans Sierra Norte is a multi-day enduro mountain bike race that rips through the Oaxacan highlands offering more than 3,000 feet of elevation gain/loss. The trails are thousands of years old and were predominately used to connect local villages and exchange goods, further making the bike event a cultural rarity. Especially since it finishes in Oaxaca City right about the time the fireworks are blasting off for the Day of the Dead fiesta (Dia de los Muertos).

5. Focus - 34 minutes

   In 2011 Steve Bate was diagnosed with Retinitis Pigmentosa, a severe form of tunnel vision that is slowly robbing him of his sight. At the age of 34, Steve was forced to give up his dream of becoming a mountain guide, lost his driving licence and was registered disabled through visual impairment. Focus documents Steve’s life since his diagnosis, exploring how the knowledge that his sight could disappear entirely at any moment has affected his outlook on life. The burden of blindness has manifested into an almost obsessive drive to achieve his ambitious dreams, from attempting to solo El Capitan to cycling in the 2016 Paralympic Games. The film follows Steve as he participates in the Rovaniemi 150, a gruelling self-supported fat bike race through the Arctic tundra of Finnish Lapland, where temperatures can drop below -35°C and 80% of participants don't make it to the finish line. With the long hours of darkness testing his limited eyesight even further the race gives Steve one of his greatest challenges to date.

6. The Frenchy -14 minutes

   Jacques “The Frenchy” Houot (pronounced “oo-oh”) is a Colorado icon. He is an 82-year-old athlete who gets after it non-stop on skis, mountain bike, and the cyclocross Jacques “The Frenchy” Houot (pronounced “oo-oh”) is a Colorado icon. He is an 82-year-old athlete who gets after it non-stop on skis, mountain bike, and the cyclocross race circuit. Jacques is an accomplished athlete, but the real story is how he inspires us with his contagious love of life, epic tales of survival, ability to counter ageing through laughter, and his impact on the community over decades.