BVC-CHAT American Flyers - Movie Night

[Shawn Hokanson]

Eight BVCers gathered Saturday evening to see the much discussed American
Flyers; thanks to Layne Westover for procuring it for us.  The movie was
enjoyable, both from a story standpoint and from unintended bicycling
related technical lapses, but the most homorous moment was the
about-to-have-sex scene that cut to a television shot of a space shuttle
launch (someone's been watching too many Fellini movies).  We all enjoyed
watching one of the main characters riding his bike while wearing tube socks
(complete with stripes) and cowboy hat, then riding into his building, onto
the elevator and into and around his apartment (the ladies were treated to a
bootylicious view), sprint training with Eddy the tenacious pit bull
(complete with loss of shoe which inexplicably returned in a later scene),
and a titillating shirt exchange, but the family drama scenes and weak
dialogue caused a bit of a lull.  

>From a cycling standpoint, the way too loosely-packed peloton shots, team
leaders pulling the peloton and hearing the phrase 'hold your line' were
entertaining.  Also fun to see were the downhill mountain finishes, the
bearishly hairy and not nearly svelte enough Russian opponent (who was
wearing what appeared to be a kayak helmet) and the 'shake-and-bake' zig-zag
maneuver supposedly used to break someone from your draft.  On the plus side
was seeing Rae Dawn Chong change a rear wheel in less than 10 seconds and
watching some fast descents in the mountains of Southwestern Colorado.

In short, if you are serious about cycling movies, this one's probably not
for you; if you enjoy cycling, can see the humor in Hollywood less than
realism and enjoy making funny comments about the same, get a group together
and give it a shot.

If you're still with me, the first person (exclusive of the model and
relatives) who can correctly identify our own BVC Belov look-alike from the
picture at http://crashtestdummyracing.com/bvc/bellov2.jpg will win a prize.
I am the final arbiter of the winner as it's my contest, so no complaints.

Shawn Hokanson, 979-229-8253
May the pavement be smooth and the wind at your back