Sky Atlantic - British Cycling Road To Glory

Pross

Apologies if this has been covered before (I've been away) but there are two documentaries coming up on Sky Atlantic that might be of interest http://skyatlantic.sky.com/bradley-wiggins-tour-of-duty/two-new-cycling-documentaries-coming-to-sky-atlantic

I'm not sure how hard hitting they will be given that they are commissioned by the main sponsor so I doubt there'll be a huge expose on Wiggo's doping regime but could be quite interesting.

richa

Very timely. The first of these is tomorrow!

"British Cycling: Road To Glory will exclusively air on Sky Atlantic HD and Sky Atlantic from Thursday 30 August at 8pm while Bradley Wiggins: Tour Of Duty will follow later in the year."

Mikey23

Thanks for the info

Paul 8v

Series linked, thanks for the reminder!

calmx5

is there any way you can watch this, you know..........without sky?

inkyfingers

calmx5 wrote:

is there any way you can watch this, you know..........without sky?

Go and visit a friend who has sky?

rick_chasey

calmx5 wrote:

is there any way you can watch this, you know..........without sky?

Monopoly?

blazing_saddles

Watching it now.
Good stuff so far.
Not fussed on the girlie commentary, though.

sonny73

Really enjoyed it, well put together I thought, nothing shockingly revealing but it was still a good watch and always interesting to see a teams background wheels in motion. And not that it wasn't obvious already, but man Brailsford is one serious grafter.

Rodrego Hernandez

Sonny73 wrote:

Really enjoyed it, well put together I thought, nothing shockingly revealing but it was still a good watch and always interesting to see a teams background wheels in motion. And not that it wasn't obvious already, but man Brailsford is one serious grafter.

Brailsford has made himself out to be seen as one serious grafter. Does he need to be at those races? No, and the reason why he isn't at them so much is that he isn't a tactician / DS but was making tactical decisions. He treats the team like it is his toy! In one breath he says he is like a conductor of an orchestra, the next he is in a meeting saying that he has ideitified weaknesses in the team that need addressing.

Fair play to him for getting a sponsor on board but he is just one man taking credit for a whole load of other peoples work. It's a one sided promotional documentary by Sky for Sky.

Next weeks instalment about just how 'anti-drugs' he is will be fun and may come back to haunt him one day seeing as he recruited Yates, Leinders etc.

napoleond

I really did think it were very good.

twotyred

In one breath he says he is like a conductor of an orchestra, the next he is in a meeting saying that he has ideitified weaknesses in the team that need addressing

And the contradiction is where?

I'm sure if a conductor thought his first violinist wasn't up to the job he'd say something!

Pretty good programme but so far but no real insights into their methods of picking riders, training and tactics

Pross

Rodrego Hernandez wrote:

Sonny73 wrote:

Really enjoyed it, well put together I thought, nothing shockingly revealing but it was still a good watch and always interesting to see a teams background wheels in motion. And not that it wasn't obvious already, but man Brailsford is one serious grafter.

Brailsford has made himself out to be seen as one serious grafter. Does he need to be at those races? No, and the reason why he isn't at them so much is that he isn't a tactician / DS but was making tactical decisions. He treats the team like it is his toy! In one breath he says he is like a conductor of an orchestra, the next he is in a meeting saying that he has ideitified weaknesses in the team that need addressing.

Fair play to him for getting a sponsor on board but he is just one man taking credit for a whole load of other peoples work. It's a one sided promotional documentary by Sky for Sky.

Next weeks instalment about just how 'anti-drugs' he is will be fun and may come back to haunt him one day seeing as he recruited Yates, Leinders etc.

Sorry, but most of that is b*llocks. He is the one who brings in and manages all the 'do-ers', he is always on the lookout for the best in their fields. Surely part of his role is to review what is going on and identify areas of improvement? The conductor analogy isn't contrary to that as part of a conductors role in rehearsals would be to identify individual or sectional mistakes within a piece of music and then work with those involved in order to get them close to perfect for the actual performance. He admits he doesn't say thank you enough and that it is a major weakness of his. Coaching at any level has to have an element of review in order to make continuing improvments and that is Brailsfords job (and one that he excels at). Can anyone seriously argue that Sky don't have a bit of a weakness tactically at times? It is something that the 'forum experts' on here regularly comment on, particularly on one day races or if 'Plan A' doesn't work in a stage race. He is also a lot less hands on with Sky these days and far more gets left to the DS for the race from what I can see.

To me he comes across as an excellent, but workaholic, manager. I wasn't expecting a 'warts and all' documentary but I think it did give a very good insight into the behind the scenes work that goes in to running a successful cycling team. I know other teams such as Garmin have done similar films in the past but I haven't seen any of those so to me the amount of detail they (and presumably most of the other teams) go through pre-race was quite a surprise.

rick_chasey

Not too boring is it?

A lot of Brailsford chat on here which doesn't bode well.

Am watching it tonight but GF will be impatient to turn it off if it's just him talking monotone about management structures and that some of his riders are quite quick,

Pross

Rick Chasey wrote:

Not too boring is it?

A lot of Brailsford chat on here which doesn't bode well.

Am watching it tonight but GF will be impatient to turn it off if it's just him talking monotone about management structures and that some of his riders are quite quick,

I only caught the second half (despite being the OP!) but it was a decent mixture of Giro footage, pre-race meetings on the bus and clips of interviews with various staff such as Rod Ellingworth and Steven de Jongh as well as riders but Brailsford is on more than most as you would expect.

Richmond Racer

Well, there's bound to be at least some Brailsford management speak, but yeah, as long as it's not dominating it.

The only other two films re current teams that have come out in the last couple of years that I've seen are Chasing Legends and Journey to a Dream, in each case produced with HTC and Garmin respectively, so neither were exactly warts and all.

I did see a tweet last night from Simon MacMichael re last night's prog saying how surprised he was by how 'refreshingly honest' the Sky prog was - I think it may have featured Cav and MSR....

Richmond Racer

Pross wrote:

Rick Chasey wrote:

Not too boring is it?

A lot of Brailsford chat on here which doesn't bode well.

Am watching it tonight but GF will be impatient to turn it off if it's just him talking monotone about management structures and that some of his riders are quite quick,

I only caught the second half (despite being the OP!) but it was a decent mixture of Giro footage, pre-race meetings on the bus and clips of interviews with various staff such as Rod Ellingworth and Steven de Jongh as well as riders but Brailsford is on more than most as you would expect.

Did I get it wrong? No searing insight into what actually happened to Cav's form at MSR?

Pross

Richmond Racer wrote:

Pross wrote:

Rick Chasey wrote:

Not too boring is it?

A lot of Brailsford chat on here which doesn't bode well.

Am watching it tonight but GF will be impatient to turn it off if it's just him talking monotone about management structures and that some of his riders are quite quick,

I only caught the second half (despite being the OP!) but it was a decent mixture of Giro footage, pre-race meetings on the bus and clips of interviews with various staff such as Rod Ellingworth and Steven de Jongh as well as riders but Brailsford is on more than most as you would expect.

Did I get it wrong? No searing insight into what actually happened to Cav's form at MSR?

Dunno, I only saw the Giro part of the programme.

afx237vi

It's on Sky Anytime for anyone who missed it.

greasedscotsman

Pross wrote:

Richmond Racer wrote:

Did I get it wrong? No searing insight into what actually happened to Cav's form at MSR?

Dunno, I only saw the Giro part of the programme.

Not shown. We've gone straight from Tirreno Adriatico to the Giro.

Also surprised that Cavendish and Eisel have a twin room!

alihisgreat

greasedscotsman wrote:

Pross wrote:

Richmond Racer wrote:

Did I get it wrong? No searing insight into what actually happened to Cav's form at MSR?

Dunno, I only saw the Giro part of the programme.

Not shown. We've gone straight from Tirreno Adriatico to the Giro.

Also surprised that Cavendish and Eisel have a twin room!

I thought most of the pros shared?

greasedscotsman

ALIHISGREAT wrote:

I thought most of the pros shared?

Err, I was joking that they didn't have a double.

Churchill123

I watched it and found it was such a good insight into the things that you don't normally get to see!

As someone who is relatively new to cycling and watching it.. Its great to see behind the scenes and get a better understanding of what goes into winning stages and tours.

rick_chasey

Rick Chasey review:

4/10.

Utterly boring. Trudges through the season like Buzz Killington. The behind the scences stuff could have been good, but was ruined by bland nothingness. Nothing we didn't know before, nothing that you couldn't have thought up yourself. No insights into anything, save for one or two tiny scraps.

Beyond that, the focus on Brailsford was a mistake. He's terrible TV, utterly boring.

I mean, when the program finishes on the cliffhanger "I have 195 e-mails to read" you know you're in the doldrums.

Plus points? It was pretty and well shot.

inkyfingers

Rick Chasey wrote:

Rick Chasey review:

4/10.

Utterly boring. Trudges through the season like Buzz Killington. The behind the scences stuff could have been good, but was ruined by bland nothingness. Nothing we didn't know before, nothing that you couldn't have thought up yourself. No insights into anything, save for one or two tiny scraps.

Beyond that, the focus on Brailsford was a mistake. He's terrible TV, utterly boring.

I mean, when the program finishes on the cliffhanger "I have 195 e-mails to read" you know you're in the doldrums.

Plus points? It was pretty and well shot.

Devil's Advocate mode...

Being broadcast on Sky Atlantic it probably wasn't designed for you, it was probably designed for people who have a limited knowledge of Pro cycling (yeah, like me, before you say it ).

I watched half of it then had to give up due to screaming child, will watch the rest if I get a spare moment. It struck me as rather average, not good, not terrible but then, like you I know how it ends.

rick_chasey

inkyfingers wrote:

Rick Chasey wrote:

Rick Chasey review:

4/10.

Utterly boring. Trudges through the season like Buzz Killington. The behind the scences stuff could have been good, but was ruined by bland nothingness. Nothing we didn't know before, nothing that you couldn't have thought up yourself. No insights into anything, save for one or two tiny scraps.

Beyond that, the focus on Brailsford was a mistake. He's terrible TV, utterly boring.

I mean, when the program finishes on the cliffhanger "I have 195 e-mails to read" you know you're in the doldrums.

Plus points? It was pretty and well shot.

Devil's Advocate mode...

Being broadcast on Sky Atlantic it probably wasn't designed for you, it was probably designed for people who have a limited knowledge of Pro cycling (yeah, like me, before you say it ).

I watched half of it then had to give up due to screaming child, will watch the rest if I get a spare moment. It struck me as rather average, not good, not terrible but then, like you I know how it ends.

True, but my gf, who's a passing fan at best, and presumably part of the said target audience was climbing the walls at half an hour.

I mean, I know people in TV are lazy, but seriously, 195 emails over the weekend? That's not a lot.

disgruntledgoat

Rick Chasey wrote:

inkyfingers wrote:

Rick Chasey wrote:

Rick Chasey review:

4/10.

Utterly boring. Trudges through the season like Buzz Killington. The behind the scences stuff could have been good, but was ruined by bland nothingness. Nothing we didn't know before, nothing that you couldn't have thought up yourself. No insights into anything, save for one or two tiny scraps.

Beyond that, the focus on Brailsford was a mistake. He's terrible TV, utterly boring.

I mean, when the program finishes on the cliffhanger "I have 195 e-mails to read" you know you're in the doldrums.

Plus points? It was pretty and well shot.

Devil's Advocate mode...

Being broadcast on Sky Atlantic it probably wasn't designed for you, it was probably designed for people who have a limited knowledge of Pro cycling (yeah, like me, before you say it ).

I watched half of it then had to give up due to screaming child, will watch the rest if I get a spare moment. It struck me as rather average, not good, not terrible but then, like you I know how it ends.

True, but my gf, who's a passing fan at best, and presumably part of the said target audience was climbing the walls at half an hour.

I mean, I know people in TV are lazy, but seriously, 195 emails over the weekend? That's not a lot.

You see, I've never understood this... Who are all these people who send e-mails over the weekend? Why do people send work e-mails at 2300h? Is this to look "dedicated"?

Don't tell me BC are as much about presenteeism and brown nosing as every other company i've ever hated working for?

inkyfingers

Rick Chasey wrote:

inkyfingers wrote:

Rick Chasey wrote:

Rick Chasey review:

4/10.

Utterly boring. Trudges through the season like Buzz Killington. The behind the scences stuff could have been good, but was ruined by bland nothingness. Nothing we didn't know before, nothing that you couldn't have thought up yourself. No insights into anything, save for one or two tiny scraps.

Beyond that, the focus on Brailsford was a mistake. He's terrible TV, utterly boring.

I mean, when the program finishes on the cliffhanger "I have 195 e-mails to read" you know you're in the doldrums.

Plus points? It was pretty and well shot.

Devil's Advocate mode...

Being broadcast on Sky Atlantic it probably wasn't designed for you, it was probably designed for people who have a limited knowledge of Pro cycling (yeah, like me, before you say it ).

I watched half of it then had to give up due to screaming child, will watch the rest if I get a spare moment. It struck me as rather average, not good, not terrible but then, like you I know how it ends.

True, but my gf, who's a passing fan at best, and presumably part of the said target audience was climbing the walls at half an hour.

I mean, I know people in TV are lazy, but seriously, 195 emails over the weekend? That's not a lot.

It was certainly very formulaic... big star joins, can he fit in? Big star struggles...oooh, let's have a meeting....we'll make some changes....big star does better. Wow, isn't pro cycling hard work etc etc etc.

I'd like to have 195 e-mails to answer (so long as they were all from customers.

Pross

Rick Chasey wrote:

inkyfingers wrote:

Rick Chasey wrote:

Rick Chasey review:

4/10.

Utterly boring. Trudges through the season like Buzz Killington. The behind the scences stuff could have been good, but was ruined by bland nothingness. Nothing we didn't know before, nothing that you couldn't have thought up yourself. No insights into anything, save for one or two tiny scraps.

Beyond that, the focus on Brailsford was a mistake. He's terrible TV, utterly boring.

I mean, when the program finishes on the cliffhanger "I have 195 e-mails to read" you know you're in the doldrums.

Plus points? It was pretty and well shot.

Devil's Advocate mode...

Being broadcast on Sky Atlantic it probably wasn't designed for you, it was probably designed for people who have a limited knowledge of Pro cycling (yeah, like me, before you say it ).

I watched half of it then had to give up due to screaming child, will watch the rest if I get a spare moment. It struck me as rather average, not good, not terrible but then, like you I know how it ends.

True, but my gf, who's a passing fan at best, and presumably part of the said target audience was climbing the walls at half an hour.

I mean, I know people in TV are lazy, but seriously, 195 emails over the weekend? That's not a lot.

Are you sure she wasn't climbing the wall having had to sit and watch TV with you for half an hour? 195 emails may not be much but unlike your inbox it probably wasn't full of adverts for male enhancement pills and adult dating

Jez mon

Rick Chasey wrote:

inkyfingers wrote:

Rick Chasey wrote:

Rick Chasey review:

4/10.

Utterly boring. Trudges through the season like Buzz Killington. The behind the scences stuff could have been good, but was ruined by bland nothingness. Nothing we didn't know before, nothing that you couldn't have thought up yourself. No insights into anything, save for one or two tiny scraps.

Beyond that, the focus on Brailsford was a mistake. He's terrible TV, utterly boring.

I mean, when the program finishes on the cliffhanger "I have 195 e-mails to read" you know you're in the doldrums.

Plus points? It was pretty and well shot.

Devil's Advocate mode...

Being broadcast on Sky Atlantic it probably wasn't designed for you, it was probably designed for people who have a limited knowledge of Pro cycling (yeah, like me, before you say it ).

I watched half of it then had to give up due to screaming child, will watch the rest if I get a spare moment. It struck me as rather average, not good, not terrible but then, like you I know how it ends.

True, but my gf, who's a passing fan at best, and presumably part of the said target audience was climbing the walls at half an hour.

I mean, I know people in TV are lazy, but seriously, 195 emails over the weekend? That's not a lot.

Show off

To be honest I sort of suspected this might be a bit of a duff program...

rick_chasey

S'not me. I'm managing plenty less, but I'm not saying it's a lot.

More to the point, how is that of interest in a TV program?

The head of British cycling has a lot of e-mails. No waaay.

I mean, it even finished on that.