This is an incredible movie, and it’s sad that it’s basically not shown or recognized anywhere. Searching “Off the Rails” won’t show this film until the second page, and it’s an amazing piece of work.
14 Months, 10,000km, Moscow to Beijing by Pedal power.
A 52 minute film. Winner of the Grants Film Festival 2002 (Austria).“Waist deep in a melting pool of snow, feet slipping on the icy bottom, the bikes sinking further, we pushed on. Around us the mist lowered as darkness descended upon the Taiga forest. “No, go back, its pointless!†Villagers had cried seeing us ride by. We were coming to realise the wisdom of their words. The road had become a series of swimming-pool size puddles that were growing as the two metres of snow continued to melt. Ahead, five, ten, twenty kilometres of pushing, trudging? We didn’t know…â€
It was March, the beginning of Spring in the northwest corner of Russia. Struggling to make 6km a day, Tim Cope & Chris Hatherly, both 20 year-old Australians had embarked on an epic journey across Russia, Siberia, Mongolia, and Northern China, finishing in Tiananmen square, Bejing.
This film, shot and narrated by Tim Cope & Chris Hatherly will take you into the minds of the adventurers, the contrasting landscapes of the Gobi desert and Siberia, and the homes of hundreds of local people. It documents their extraordinary adventure across a continent to Beijing and accompanies their book about the same journey.
This really was an outstanding movie, I enjoyed it and it made me think back to my own (albiet MUCH shorter) bike trek… I recommend it if you’ve got an hour to kill.