Tour De France 'Unchained' - Formula 1 for Men.

Discover premium cycling and performance brands from around the world. Shop exclusive and curated collections featuring essentials for training and racing. Enjoy free shipping and free returns on all US orders, and for a limited time, save 15% off your order with code Panic15. Valid on full-priced items. Shop now!

Good morning everyone.

Formula 1 does not interest me. I am not a car guy though I do love a beautiful car and I can absolutely respect the engineering and craftsmanship of racing.

If you read this blog you know I like cycling. I have never been to the Tour De France, but I am fascinated by the riders and the fitness and the speed and the bananas lifestyle they must endure to be ready for a race.

Netflix’s Tour De France ‘Unchained’ shed some light on all this and more importantly how hard it is to complete the whole race.

Don’t take my word for it though, here is Bob Lefsetz, non rider and Netflix movie critique on the series and the cycling:

And unlike football players, or even the gym-rat baseball players of today, these riders are whippet-thin. They're not bulked-up, the extra weight is a detriment. It's all about those muscles baby.

Incredible.

In truth, the Formula 1 drivers are athletes. But they're not in the league of the bike racers. Maybe ultra-marathon runners come close, but they don't race every day for weeks.

And if you're a fan you can get up close and personal. The routes are long, pick your spot, you can see everything.

But even weirder, there's no cop holding you back. A rider is climbing the mountain and people are surrounding him on the road.

Meanwhile, the team manager is riding in a car behind, imploring you via your earpiece, ready to deliver a new bike if yours breaks.

And it's these little moments that are incomprehensible to Americans, because we're so rules-based. Pushing the rider to get momentum after a crash? That's legal. You can hand them goodies, gel-paks and water and ice. And sometimes they even hold on to the sill of the car.

In most sports it's all about the start. Frequently the contest is won or lost at the very beginning. But not in bike-racing, there's a mass of riders and if you're in the middle or back you're not doomed. As a matter of fact, everybody rides together in the peloton until...they don't.

He ends with this…

Utterly fascinating.

Riveting.

And you'll be yelling and screaming like it's live.

And even though it all happened a year ago, that's what makes the show so great, like a great book or movie it's timeless. The lessons remain the same.

This show is leagues beyond the sports programming on every other network. Makes you wish Netflix aired them all. It doesn't, but when it does, it gooses the enterprise. And bike-racing is worth watching. The problem with ski racing is it's one at a time. But when they're all out there on the road together, in the peloton, WHEW!

In September, I am heading to the Pyrenees and will ride Alpe d’Huez in France which is a legendary climb and also my favorite episode of the Netflix series. I have some seriouys training and weight loss ahead of me this summer in order to get ready. You will enjoy this Youtube clip from the climb that captures the excitement of the race and the climb:

Have a great Friday.