final ascent through Riverview Cemetery.
– Watch video below –
Portlander Merritt Raitt’s dreamy commute takes him from his home in Ladd’s Addition, along the Willamette River via the Springwater Corridor Trail, and then over the river and up the hills to Oregon Health Sciences University. It’s such a nice ride that Raitt decided to make a movie about it.
But Raitt didn’t make just any movie, he painstakingly edited a play-by-play of his commute that mimics a stage of the Tour de France — complete with narration by legendary announcers Phil Liggett and Paul Sherwen.
Raitt, a 50-year old cardiologist at the Portland VA Medical Center, says he’s a “big pro race fan” who often hears Phil and Paul in his head while he rides to work. After attending Filmed by Bike last year, he was inspired to combine his dreamy commute with his dream of riding in the Tour de France.
In his short film, “Commuter Dreams,” Raitt has edited the commentary of Phil and Paul so it matches his commute perfectly — from the “first move of the day” (when he sprints ahead of the pack on the Springwater), to “riding into the belly of the whale” (the “high mountains” through Riverview Cemetery). There’s even the obligatory helicopter flyover shot, fist-pumps at the finish line, and podium girls (his wife and daughter)!
As someone who spent most of their college years watching old Tour de France videos (just kidding mom) and reciting Phil Liggett quotes with teammates on training rides, I think Raitt’s movie is spot on brilliant!
Watch it below:
By the way, Raitt says he entered the film into Filmed by Bike, but it wasn’t selected into the final program (the jury must not be big racing fans!).
Thanks for reading.
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Brilliant!
Awesome in so many ways. I’ve pipped Fignon, Roche, and LeMond at the line quite a few times…
Good on ya, mate!
Very clever. To think of it is one thing but to actually edit that together took some effort. Loved it! Totally worthy for Filmed by Bike though I don’t see it in the program schedule. Can’t wait til April to watch many more.
http://filmedbybike.org/program/
J.R.,
i forgot to mention in the story (have added it)… but Mr. Raitt said that he did enter it into Filmed by Bike but it didn’t get selected.
I ride my aerobars like Lemond in the last time trial of the ’89 Tour. I even whine about today’s over-hyped and phony Tour winners. I did it naturally, you see, and although out of fame and out of glory, I am the ONLY American Tour de Francer, everyone else is a fake. I’m not bitter about the Trek fiasco, getting shot by my brother and law, and not living up to my potential. Hey, Merckx has a gut too, why am I always getting flak about it?
Thanks Merritt! That made my day already!
too bad it wasn’t in film by bike…I think this movie is great.
That was the best 10 minutes I spend today. Brilliant!
That’s awesome! I love the helicopter/tram shot. Filmed by Bike is nuts for not accepting that.
Totally loveable.
More films than ever were submitted this year but we only have enough time for two programs so many good movies did not make the cut. The jury works hard to select the very best for the festival.
Shorter films generally have a better chance of making it in. With our time limit of 8 minutes, a film that clocks in at 7:29 is VERY LONG! For this festival of bike-themed movie shorts, our motto is “Shorter is better” and “Edit, then edit some more.”
Filmed by Bike accepts re-edited submissions and for filmmakers who did not make it into the festival we encourage them to submit again the next year. We’ve seen filmmakers whose work is accepted one year but not the next. A lot of it depends on the jury, a different diverse group of 7-9 people every year.
It’s so exciting to see this enthusiasm for Filmed by Bike! We’re in our 8th year. The first year we said we’d be elated if 40 people came to the show – and we got 80. Now well over 2,000 come out to watch bike movies on the silver screen.
GO PORTLAND!
Ayleen
Love it! Great minds think alike – meaning that on my You Might Be A Cyclist If… 365 days of cycling riffs Calendar – coming out one of these days – hopefully this Fal, I have a one in there that goes… “You Might Be A Cyclist If… your afternoon commute is actually an exact re-creation of Lemond’s Tour De France come from behind win.”
Raitt – you rock, Man – and you have a last name that sounds like an 80s Big Hair Band, so you rock even harder in my eyes.
Yes, with the warm weather comes the Tour de Commute once again. Many riders even those not swaddled in lycra, have high hopes of passing everything on the road.
Just don’t forget to acknowledge the riders you pass (“on your left” bell DING!), and give people some room.
Fun movie by the way.
Great movie! Really enjoyed it. Loved the “helicopter” shots! 🙂
My favorite part was when the narrators are talking about how bicyclists need to use another rider to block the harsh side winds from them, to maintain speed…
…and it shows his poor six year old son acting as the wind block along the Springwater Trail.
Priceless, tee hee!
What a great way to approach such an epic commute! I just laughed my ass off. Totally awesome.
Just saw this most excellent movie – awesome! As to not being accepted by the Filmed by Bike committee, let’s just call a spade a spade: the film fit the “short” criteria. Just be honest and say it’s not what you were looking for.
Can we put together a write-in vote!?!
It is awesom
Loved it!
I laughed so hard, milk came out my nose…I got trouble at work.
Bravo! Two thumbs up.
I am surprised this didn’t get in Filmed By Bike. What this means to me though is that the films that did get in are really funny and will be a lot of fun to watch. I’d love to see the ones that didn’t make the cut on a B sides DVD.
I twittered the video at Phil & Paul and Phil replied! He mistook me for the creator but it’s awesome to know he likes it.
@turbodog Absolutey brilliant! There’s a job for you in TV, if you’re not already. Phil
http://twitter.com/PhilLiggett/status/10067004824