Blood Sweat + Gears

As we await the U.S. release of David Millar’s book Racing Through the Dark, the film “Blood Sweat + Gears” gives us a preview of his story as a cyclist and the first year of the team now known as Garmin-Cervelo. The documentary follows then-Garmin-Chipotle for the 2008 racing season, from the Tour of Qatar through the Tour de France. It provides team manager Jonathan Vaughters a platform for his views on cycling, the team, and the riders, as well as an introduction to the personal experiences of cyclists including Millar, Christian Vande Velde, and Magnus Backstedt.

Garmin-Cervelo at 2011 Tour of California

A Tour de France stage winner, Millar was caught doping, served a two-year ban, and admitted to cheating, an unusual move even for those cyclists caught red-handed. The Brit briefly discusses his downward spiral, instead focusing on his assumed role as leader of the new Garmin team and personal disappointment at the 2008 Tour. While billed as the story of building a team free of doping, the movie does not share much more on the topic. It certainly does not differentiate Garmin’s efforts from those of other teams to race clean.

The highlight of “Blood Sweat + Gears” is the insight into the lives of the featured cyclists. It takes us onto the team bus and at the team breakfast table, and without a narrator, the players speak for themselves. For Vande Velde, this includes his pride and growing ambition following his surprisingly good performance at the Tour de France, where he finished fifth. (His final standing was later raised to fourth when another rider was disqualified for doping.) The counterpoint is Millar’s mixed feelings as his chances for success evaporated but he was consoled by the focus on his teammate’s prospects.

The heartbreaker is Lara Pate, wife of cyclist Danny Pate. She shares her frustration with life on the road over 300 days a year and the self-centered focus of athletes. She seems at the end of her rope. While the film does reveal these personal struggles, it is just a glimpse, not at all prurient.

A shortcoming of “Blood Sweat + Gears” is that it is not always clear who is talking, and as a result, some interesting comments are less interesting because we do not know who said them. Also, Vaughters openly criticizes his riders, such as calling Mike Friedman “dumb” and repeatedly criticizing Vande Velde for shortening his rest day ride at the Tour de France. It is uncomfortable to hear the team manager zinging his riders this way, as it feels more like gossip than professional critique. Yet Vaughters is known for his haughty confidence, so this should not come as a surprise.

Overall, the film is a kind introduction to the cyclist life, on and off the bike. I wish we could have a film like this made of each team for each season.