Bicycle Dreams is a 2009 documentary film

Documentary film

Documentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...

 by director Stephen Auerbach

Stephen Auerbach

Stephen Auerbach is an American filmmaker specializing in feature-length documentaries.Auerbach’s first feature documentary, Race Across America, about the bicycle race of the same name, aired on NBC and received the highest ratings in the network’s history for a cycling event. The film went on...

 about the Race Across America

Race Across America

The Race Across America, or RAAM, is an ultra marathon bicycle race across the United States that started in 1982 as the Great American Bike Race....

, a 3000-mile cross-country bicycle race. The film has won numerous film festival awards.

Plot

The film covers the 2005 edition of the Race Across America. It focuses on several riders, including Jure Robic

Jure Robic

Jure Robič was a Slovenian cyclist and a soldier in the Slovenian Army. He died on in a traffic accident when he was hit by a car on a forest road in Plavški Rovt near Jesenice....

, Bob Breedlove, Christopher MacDonald, and Patrick Autissier. From the starting line in San Diego, the film follows the riders across the country as they endure difficult weather, challenging terrain, and sleep deprivation

Sleep deprivation

Sleep deprivation is the condition of not having enough sleep; it can be either chronic or acute. A chronic sleep-restricted state can cause fatigue, daytime sleepiness, clumsiness and weight loss or weight gain. It adversely affects the brain and cognitive function. Few studies have compared the...

. Several days into the race, Breedlove, a race veteran and endurance cycling legend, is killed in a head-on collision with a pickup truck. The other riders must deal with the aftermath of the accident and decide whether to continue the race.

Production

Bicycle Dreams was filmed during the 2005 edition of the Race Across America. The crew used 18 cameras, which they embedded within the riders’ crews to get more intimate footage. In an interview about the production, director Stephen Auerbach said he endured stretches of 36 hours without sleep to document the race and to experience the same sleep deprivation as the riders. The crew eventually shot 450 hours of raw footage.

Reception

Bicycle Dreams has received exceptionally positive reviews. USA Today

USA Today

USA Today is a national American daily newspaper published by the Gannett Company. It was founded by Al Neuharth. The newspaper vies with The Wall Street Journal for the position of having the widest circulation of any newspaper in the United States, something it previously held since 2003...

's Sal Ruibal noted that the film has "beautiful scenery and inspirational words from riders and coaches" while it "also probes deeper into the sport's heart of darkness."

The film has received a number of film festival awards, including Best Feature Documentary honors at the Yosemite Film Festival, Las Vegas Film Festival, Lake Arrowhead Film Festival, Grand Rapids Film Festival, Solstice Film Festival, Fallbrook Film Festival, Tiburon Film Festival, Red Rock Film Festival

Red Rock Film Festival

Red Rock Film Festival is an international film festival in Southern Utah in the United States. Held annually in November, in St. George, Ivins, and Springdale by Zion National Park, the festival introduces the area to new international and US independent film...

, Los Angeles Sports Film Festival, Moscow Sports Film Festival, Canada International Film Festival and the Breckenridge Film Festival.

Additionally, "Bicycle Dreams" has been the #1 selling CYCLING DVD on Amazon.com for nearly 24 months running.

"Bicycle Dreams" screens frequently in theaters across the United States and to date has held nearly 100 mostly sold out screenings.