Watch list: The best Canadian mountain bike movies – Pt. 2
We all have a bit of extra time on our hands right now, and fewer travel plans. So why not escape to the trails with some of Canada’s best mountain bikers?
Canadians have always been among the worlds best off-road. With all that talent on the bike and plenty more behind the lens, there’s a long list of incredible mountain bike movies with a little maple flavour to them.
Every week we’ll share a few more until we’re all back out on our bikes. Week 1 featured a retrospective on Geoff Kabush’s career, Brett Rheeder’s elevated mental game and trail building teens in Carcross, Yukon.
This week, there’s a mountain bike classic, the history of freeride and an expidition to Canada’s arctic.
The Collective (2004)
The Collective’s eponymous film is the first in a trio of films that changed how mountain biking is represented on screen. Followed up by Roam (2006) and Seasons (2008), The Collective presented a much more stylized approach, borrowing heavily from surf movies, than the adrenaline-fuelled shred fest that was standard at the time.
While The Collective visits locations around the world, the crew is based in B.C.’s Sea-to-Sky region. Canadian riders feature prominently, including Ryan Leech, Wade Simmons, Darren Berrecloth, Geoff Gulevich, Steve Smith, Seve Romaniuk, Jordie Lunn, Thomas Vanderham and a Brandon Semenuk.
The Moment (2017)
Darcy Hennessey Turenne’s documentary explores the birth of freeride in B.C. Using extensive archival footage and interviews, The Moment delves into the details of three riding communities in B.C. that grew into a global movement.
North of Nightfall (2018)
Darren Berrecloth has decades of experience exploring remote terrain on a mountain bike. But North of Nightfall is a whole different game. Far into Canada’s north, Berrecloth leads a four-rider team to explore Axle Heiberg Island. The Canadian freeride pioneer is joined by Tom van Steenbergen and American’s Cam Zink and Carson Storch. The quartet takes on some of the biggest lines ever ridden on mountain bikes.
After a brief tour of Canadian theaters, North of Nightfall is streaming free on Red Bull TV.
