Any Fans Of The Movie "American Flyers"?

[Boeing]

I had one of the original Allez frames and rode that thing for 10 years

Took a date to the movie and was so stoked to see the bike in the movie. I had no idea. It was all I talked about which was a deal killer btw but wtf

Love the movie as cheesy as it is at times

 

[the delgados]

I had one of the original Allez frames and rode that thing for 10 years

Took a date to the movie and was so stoked to see the bike in the movie. I had no idea. It was all I talked about which was a deal killer btw but wtf

Love the movie as cheesy as it is at times

So wait a second. You were dumped after subjecting your date to American Flyers and talking non-stop about your bike? And you two didn't get married?
What am I missing here?

 

[Boeing]

So wait a second. You were dumped after subjecting your date to American Flyers and talking non-stop about your bike? And you two didn't get married?
What am I missing here?

there was no nookie that night

 

[max_powers]

22 yo Alexandra Paul the best thing about that movie, looks great today! does triathlon

 

[winkybiker]

22 yo Alexandra Paul the best thing about that movie, looks great today! does triathlon

Also, she got the "girls" out briefly in that movie, IIRC.

 

[Alpe d'Huez]

I've seen that movie several times and like you can overlook the cheesy parts and like it quite a bit. No, it's not Breaking Away, which won Oscars and is the best cycling movie ever, but it's still fun, has some great footage, I cared about the characters, and the racing is at times realistic.

Some thoughts on it:

Bob Shaver of ShaverSport still sells the leader's jersey and team jersey from the Hell of the West. You can find them here.

The soundtrack, by Greg Mathieson and Lee Ritteour is impossible to find, but I have it. Classic 80's synth based tracks. The Brother's Themes are quite nice. Someone uploaded several of the tracks to You Tube.

From what I recall, David Grant and Kevin Costner put in a lot of effort to get into shape and Costner got coached to spin like a real racer. You can sometimes see it when Grant are riding along, adding a touch of validity to the film.

During the final race at times you can see Coors' Classic signs, as the film was shot in conjunction with the race.

There have been very few cycling movies, partly because it's very difficult to shoot (hence why AF was shot during Coors), racing is hard to explain the strategy, and the sport is a bit esoteric. So I for one am glad they were able to pull this film off, despite the film's flaws.

Thanks '86TDF, for the Facebook Page.

 

[86TDFWinner]

I've seen that movie several times and like you can overlook the cheesy parts and like it quite a bit. No, it's not Breaking Away, which won Oscars and is the best cycling movie ever, but it's still fun, has some great footage, I cared about the characters, and the racing is at times realistic.

Some thoughts on it:

Bob Shaver of ShaverSport still sells the leader's jersey and team jersey from the Hell of the West. You can find them here.

The soundtrack, by Greg Mathieson and Lee Ritteour is impossible to find, but I have it. Classic 80's synth based tracks. The Brother's Themes are quite nice. Someone uploaded several of the tracks to You Tube.

From what I recall, David Grant and Kevin Costner put in a lot of effort to get into shape and Costner got coached to spin like a real racer. You can sometimes see it when Grant are riding along, adding a touch of validity to the film.

During the final race at times you can see Coors' Classic signs, as the film was shot in conjunction with the race.

There have been very few cycling movies, partly because it's very difficult to shoot (hence why AF was shot during Coors), racing is hard to explain the strategy, and the sport is a bit esoteric. So I for one am glad they were able to pull this film off, despite the film's flaws.

Thanks '86TDF, for the Facebook Page.

You're very welcome my friend. Yes, it's definitely NOT BA, but it is a movie about cycling. As you mentioned, there aren't many out there(which is why i created the page), so any way to get the word out on the movie/sport, is IMO, a good thing. I've read a few things that the movie had some cool deleted scenes, and bonus footage, which I'd love to see. Maybe even an interview w/Costner about his thoughts on the movie would be great if they ever decide to re-release it.

 

[chiocciolis_calves]

You're very welcome my friend. Yes, it's definitely NOT BA, but it is a movie about cycling. As you mentioned, there aren't many out there(which is why i created the page), so any way to get the word out on the movie/sport, is IMO, a good thing. I've read a few things that the movie had some cool deleted scenes, and bonus footage, which I'd love to see. Maybe even an interview w/Costner about his thoughts on the movie would be great if they ever decide to re-release it.

I think Kevin Costner would be about as willing to revisit American Flyers as Dustin Hoffman would be willing to revisit Ishtar.

Amidst the ridiculous plot and atrocious acting, there are a few elements and specifics that really stand out:

- Dave is training in blue jeans at the beginning of the movie. Within weeks, he is racing against not only the best in the country, but the best in the world. What a prodigy!

- Marcus exhorts Dave in his training by yelling, "Pump, Dave, pump!" out the window. Keep in mind, this movie was written by the same screenwriter who wrote Breaking Away. He apparently lost all knowledge of the sport over the course of six years.

- Out of all the predictable, cardboard characters, a couple stand out: You have Randy, the goofy fat kid. You also have the obligatory hippie girl as they roll into Madison. Again, it's mind-boggling that the same guy who wrote Breaking Away also penned this pap.

- Cycling fans will get a real hoot out of the Hell of the West sequences. The racers are spread out all over the road. Muzzin, who becomes Dave's biggest rival, grunts and screams every time Dave or someone else puts in an attack. One of those rivals is "Belov," a Russian who we swore was played by John Belushi. He grunts a lot, but it's a deeper, more Stalinesque kind of grunt that comes from deep down in his communist guts. There is also, and I'm not making this up, an African-American rider played by Robert Townsend! You would swear these sequences were drawn up by someone who had never actually watched the sport.

- But the real mark of death, the "666" on the head of this film is the presence of Rae Dawn Chong. If there's a movie that doesn't suck that has Rae Dawn Chong in it, I haven't heard of it. She's typically horrible in this one, as well.

A little extra trivia: Kevin Costner was insecure about his skinny calves, so he wore longer socks than was typical back then in the sequences in which he's on the bike.

 

[the delgados]

I think Kevin Costner would be about as willing to revisit American Flyers as Dustin Hoffman would be willing to revisit Ishtar.

Amidst the ridiculous plot and atrocious acting, there are a few elements and specifics that really stand out:

- Dave is training in blue jeans at the beginning of the movie. Within weeks, he is racing against not only the best in the country, but the best in the world. What a prodigy!

- Marcus exhorts Dave in his training by yelling, "Pump, Dave, pump!" out the window. Keep in mind, this movie was written by the same screenwriter who wrote Breaking Away. He apparently lost all knowledge of the sport over the course of six years.

- Out of all the predictable, cardboard characters, a couple stand out: You have Randy, the goofy fat kid. You also have the obligatory hippie girl as they roll into Madison. Again, it's mind-boggling that the same guy who wrote Breaking Away also penned this pap.

- Cycling fans will get a real hoot out of the Hell of the West sequences. The racers are spread out all over the road. Muzzin, who becomes Dave's biggest rival, grunts and screams every time Dave or someone else puts in an attack. One of those rivals is "Belov," a Russian who we swore was played by John Belushi. He grunts a lot, but it's a deeper, more Stalinesque kind of grunt that comes from deep down in his communist guts. There is also, and I'm not making this up, an African-American rider played by Robert Townsend! You would swear these sequences were drawn up by someone who had never actually watched the sport.

- But the real mark of death, the "666" on the head of this film is the presence of Rae Dawn Chong. If there's a movie that doesn't suck that has Rae Dawn Chong in it, I haven't heard of it. She's typically horrible in this one, as well.

A little extra trivia: Kevin Costner was insecure about his skinny calves, so he wore longer socks than was typical back then in the sequences in which he's on the bike.

I was almost went and "liked" the fb page based on your thoroughly entertaining post, but I just finished watching 5 minutes of a 14 minute synth-backed montage on youtube.
Sorry, 86 TDF, but I just can't do it. I know your intentions are good, but did you ever think that you may be doing a disservice to the cycling community by promoting such a terrible film?

 

[chiocciolis_calves]

I was almost went and "liked" the fb page based on your thoroughly entertaining post, but I just finished watching 5 minutes of a 14 minute synth-backed montage on youtube.
Sorry, 86 TDF, but I just can't do it. I know your intentions are good, but did you ever think that you may be doing a disservice to the cycling community by promoting such a terrible film?

I forgot to mention the sequence in which Muzzi tries to push Dave off a cliff during the Hell of the West. You know, the kind of thing that happens all the time during races.

Steve Tesich wrote the screenplay for this movie. They'd have been better of having John Tesh write it.

 

[StyrbjornSterki]

This movie makes me ashamed to own spandex.

 

[Darryl Webster]

Like it?..I,m in it...well if your very quick on the pause button on Bismark course stage finish ..
A lot of clips were filmed during the 1984 Coors Classic and all riders had to sign a waiver to allow footage to be used .
I was a member of the GB Olympic team that rode that year .
Most if not all of the riders in the field were either the TTT or road squads riders for the Olympic shortly afterwards and that made it some of the fastest , hardest racing I ever rode. An Olympic road race field doing a stage race is not something that I've ever heard of happening again .
Re the film..very cheesy bit of anti soviet propaganda at the height of the cold war but for bike riders of the time a " classic" for just that reason . Cheesy with extra topping of cheese and a stuffed crust! .

 

[Giuseppe Magnetico]

For as bad as the movie is there's still a soft spot in my heart for it from a generational bias. That same year ('85) is when first started riding past my immediate neighborhood and eventually started riding centuries and racing the next year. Moved to Colorado a few years ago I met John Barvik who is the former owner of Adventure Cycling in Aurora. When I first walked through the door I thought I stumbled into the biggest American Flyers fanboy, half the shop was basically a shrine. An original Hell Of the West leaders jersey framed in glass, the release poster, all kinds of race photos and group shots of the cast on the walls. Turns out John was technical advisor and Barry Muzzin's stunt double!

Got some nice and juicy ones out of those shop visits. Luca Bercovici (Muzzin) adopted those famous grunts and grimaces after the crew decided to bomb a descent while drunk. He hit the deck and did most of the movie with road rash all over his backside. Rae Dawn Chong was super promiscuous back then, but I think that was common knowledge. She managed to boff quite a few of the cast and crew regardless of what movie she was in. If I looked like she did I probably would too. Robert Townsend (Jerome) is actually a certifiable cycling nut and has been a member of this forum since the beginning, so chew on that for a while!

 

[jumphigher]

I've never seen American Flyers, but didnt care for Breaking Away at all - I always think BA was to cycling what Karate Kid was to martial arts. I do want to see AF though.

 

[froze]

I agree with the thoughts about the movie "American Flyers" being cheesy! What I want to know is how that one guy was able to ride at say 20 mph while keeping his cowboy hat on? I could never understand the draw of that movie, even if you go on the internet and search for the best cycling movies that one is always mentioned and well received and called a classic, I just don't get it. And yes there were "Russians" in the film, and since the Russians were fakes it added to the full body and hearty cheesiness of the film.

The "Flying Scotsman" was a slow movie but at least it was based on true events.

"Pee Wee's Big Adventure" is as stupid as a movie can get, it just doesn't get any dummier then this.

"Breaking Away" was another sort of cheesy film, not quite up to the full flavor cheesiness like "American Flyers", but at least it was entertaining.

The most interesting cycling movie I've ever seen, and maybe because I was on the fringe of the stuff they talk about, is "Icarus", it's a long movie and dry in spots but it's very relevant to the sporting world and will open your eyes as to what goes on. If you watch this film always remember that what they are doing in that film can and is expanded into all realms of sports, even down as low as high school level sports, stuff they don't mention in the film but you do have to keep that in your mind as you watch. There are other films about doping but this one I thought was by far the best.

"Ouicksilver" was another cheesy film but it was entertaining.

"Premium Rush" is sort of like the movie "Speed" except changed for cycling, it is a very entertaining film though and I enjoyed it.

There are a lot of cycling documentaries a person can watch too, I don't much care for those because they tend to be boring.

 

[the delgados]

Re:

I agree with the thoughts about the movie "American Flyers" being cheesy! What I want to know is how that one guy was able to ride at say 20 mph while keeping his cowboy hat on? I could never understand the draw of that movie, even if you go on the internet and search for the best cycling movies that one is always mentioned and well received and called a classic, I just don't get it. And yes there were "Russians" in the film, and since the Russians were fakes it added to the full body and hearty cheesiness of the film.

The "Flying Scotsman" was a slow movie but at least it was based on true events.

"Pee Wee's Big Adventure" is as stupid as a movie can get, it just doesn't get any dummier then this.

"Breaking Away" was another sort of cheesy film, not quite up to the full flavor cheesiness like "American Flyers", but at least it was entertaining.

The most interesting cycling movie I've ever seen, and maybe because I was on the fringe of the stuff they talk about, is "Icarus", it's a long movie and dry in spots but it's very relevant to the sporting world and will open your eyes as to what goes on. If you watch this film always remember that what they are doing in that film can and is expanded into all realms of sports, even down as low as high school level sports, stuff they don't mention in the film but you do have to keep that in your mind as you watch. There are other films about doping but this one I thought was by far the best.

"Ouicksilver" was another cheesy film but it was entertaining.

"Premium Rush" is sort of like the movie "Speed" except changed for cycling, it is a very entertaining film though and I enjoyed it.

There are a lot of cycling documentaries a person can watch too, I don't much care for those because they tend to be boring.

Hey Froze.
I'm going to tell you a secret I've never shared with anyone on this message board. Reason being is no one would care, but here goes: Breaking Away literally changed my life. I'm not kidding you; when I watched the film and thought about its inherent meaning, I decided I wanted to race bikes. Keep in mind that Breaking Away is not just about bike racing.
Breaking Away is about escaping your everyday mundane life. That really resonated with me.
I kid you not, I started training the day after watching the film. In three years I went from a chicken leg smoker to riding cat 1 and training with Olympians. That is how good that movie is.
I would never put it in the same category of the truly awful American Flyers. That movie is an abomination.

 

[StyrbjornSterki]

Re: Re:

...I would never put it in the same category of the truly awful American Flyers. That movie is an abomination.

Will you marry me?? :lol:


Seriously, Breaking Away has a number of moments, some of them absolutely hilarious -- such as when Dad walks in on Dave shaving his legs -- that nobody but one of the cognoscenti could every understand. It's film as shibboleth.

That other film (which I will not deign to mention by name) has nothing to compare, none of Breaking Away's naïveté or light-spiritedness.

 

[the delgados]

Re: Re:

...I would never put it in the same category of the truly awful American Flyers. That movie is an abomination.

Will you marry me?? :lol:


Seriously, Breaking Away has a number of moments, some of them absolutely hilarious -- such as when Dad walks in on Dave shaving his legs -- that nobody but one of the cognoscenti could every understand. It's film as shibboleth.

That other film (which I will not deign to mention by name) has nothing to compare, none of Breaking Away's naïveté or light-spiritedness.

Will you support me?
If so, I do!