"Blood Sweat & Gears": check it out!

[jobob]

This documentary on the Slipstream-Chipotle (later Garmin-Sliptream) team is being shown on the Sundance channel.

Lots of interviews with David Millar, Magnus Backstedt, Danny Pate, Christian Vandevelde (just to name a few), and of course the always wonderful Jonathan Vaughters. The documentary follows their experiences through the building up of the team, the early part of the 2008 season, training camp, Tour of CA, Paris-Roubaix, and other events leading up to and including last year's TdF and the Olympics.

It follows their ups & downs, joys and frustrations, and it seems very genuine to me.

Great stuff -- jobob says check it out.

This is from the blurb on the Garmin-Slipstream website:

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Check out http://www.sundancechannel.com/films/500336483 for more information.

Sundance Channel gets on its mark for the 96th Tour de France as it presents the US television premiere of the inspirational cycling documentary Blood, Sweat + Gears: Racing Clean to the Tour de France on June 29. An original production directed by Nick Davis, Blood, Sweat + Gears: Racing Clean to the Tour de France follows the journey of an American cycling team seeking to compete in its first Tour de France, the epic French bicycle race that covers over 3,500 kilometers in 22 grueling days. The 2009 Tour de France runs from July 4-July 26. Blood, Sweat +Gears: Racing Clean to the Tour de France premieres on Sundance Channel on Monday, June 29 at 10:30pm et/pt.

Blood, Sweat +Gears: Racing Clean to the Tour de France chronicles the journey of Team Slipstream-Chipotle, now Team Garmin-Slipstream, a young Colorado-based professional cycling team founded and managed by Jonathan “JV” Vaughters. The team, dedicated to creating the next generation of cycling champions, entered the spotlight when it pioneered the most progressive anti-doping system in all of professional sports. As the film begins, the riders are beginning to train for the 2008 season, which they hope will lead to the team’s first invitation to the Tour de France and a title sponsor.

Blood, Sweat +Gears: Racing Clean to the Tour de France takes us on a fascinating ride as the team travels from the mountains of Colorado; to the first major race of the 2008 season in Doha, Qatar; and on to key competitions throughout the U.S. and Europe, including the Tour of California and Paris-Roubaix. The film also tells the stories of several riders, including Magnus Backstedt, a serene Swede and Paris-Roubaix; Mike Friedman, an affable young American rebounding from a life-threatening health incident; the newly-installed team leader, David Millar, who returned to the sport determined to change it after serving a two-year ban; and Christian Vande Velde, who for the first time in his career finds himself as the team leader at the Tour de France and ends up in fourth place.

Following the premiere on June 29 at 10:00pm e/p, there are a number of other broadcasts scheduled:
Tuesday June 30 at 5:45pm
Wednesday July 1 at 9:35am and 12:45am
Thursday July 2 at 11:45pm
Saturday July 4 at 8:00pm
Sunday July 5 at 2:00pm
Monday July 6 at 7:05pm
Thursday July 16 at 11:45pm
Tuesday July 21 at 7:15pm
Saturday July 25 at 2:00pm

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[Veronica]

We caught it while channel surfing the other day and really enjoyed it.

Veronica

[7rider]

DH and I caught it the other day.
It was interesting.
We were kind of hoping it would show more dope free training, but it basically just showed that they get blood drawn regularly (and have colorful views on other "pro" athletes and other testing protocols - which <ahem> I share!).
Interesting team profile, tho.

The team, dedicated to creating the next generation of cycling champions, entered the spotlight when it pioneered the most progressive anti-doping system in all of professional sports.
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[tulip]

I saw it Sat. night. It was good.

[katluvr]

DVR'ed it. Have only see parts.
I have the Tour on DVR and still have last Sunday's True Blood to watch! Only so much time in the day!

[Zen]

No Sundance, no DVD player.

[tulip]

No Sundance, no DVD player.

Me neither, just friends with cable...

[jobob]

And it looked very nice in high def.

(I suppose you don't have high def either, Zen - just thought I'd beat you to it this time. )

[Jo-n-NY]

This was a great documentary...thank you for sharing

~ JoAnn