Kawasaki's Roger Lee Hayden is featured in the documentary DVD Speed on Two Wheels, where viewers get an opportunity to see behind the scenes at the AMA SB paddock.
Speed On Two Wheels is a DVD which takes a closer look at the world of sportbikes and provides the viewer with a behind-the-scenes look at the AMA Superbike series. Developed as an hour-long television program for Discovery's Science Channel,
Cry Havoc Productions has added 15 minutes of extra footage and repackaged its television product into a formidable 59-minute DVD. The result is an enjoyable hour of viewing pleasure for both the sportbike fanatic and the casual observer.
The Scoop
When I was given the pre-release copy of
Speed on Two Wheels, the quick summation was "It's like the AMA SB version of Faster" - the feature-length film Faster being the Ewan McGregor-narrated account of the MotoGP championship. It is an apt comparison in the sense that, just as the AMA SB series doesn't quite measure up to MotoGP in prestige and quality, so too
SOTW doesn't quite pack the wallop of Faster. The previous statement isn't a dig on
SOTW but rather a compliment on the quality of the MotoGP-based film.
Still, comparing the two is unfair to
SOTW as it is a very entertaining and informative DVD in its own right. While watching the program there is the occasional reminder which clues you in on its TV origins, like the fades where obvious commercials would have kicked in, or the film's narration, which sounds just like the narrator you would hear on a cable television show. It's not bad, unless you're measuring it up to a Hollywood pro like McGregor. Maybe for the sequel Cry Havoc can mortgage the farm and spring for Morgan Freeman or James Earl Jones, but the current narrator is just fine.
The comparison of
SOTW and Faster is also not quite exact because, while Faster was made to portray the personality and drama of the MotoGP paddock,
SOTW is more of an examination of high-performance sportbikes which also happens to deliver a closer look at the AMA SB series.
Following Kawaski riders Roger Lee and Tommy Hayden during their 2005 AMA Supersport campaign, viewers are treated to an exclusive look at how a factory-supported team works. The cameras detail the process of a bone stock bike taken fresh out of the crate getting turned into a full-on race-ready machine. The audience also gets to see how a bike is fine-tuned when the film chronicles a mid-season test at the Road Atlanta circuit. It is fascinating to watch the give and take between rider and crew as they analyze data to dial in the perfect setup.
Six-time AMA Superbike champion Mat Mladin also contributes his perspective on being a professional racer during the 59-minute SOTW DVD.
also benefits from plenty of commentary from actual AMA riders like Yoshimura Suzuki's Aaron Yates and six-time AMA Superbike champion, Mat Mladin. The Superbike-dominating Mladin comes off as a likeable veteran in the movie as he explains the physical mechanics and mental state of a rider turning laps in the AMA. Roger Lee and Tommy Hayden supplement the Mladin and Yates footage to paint an interesting picture on just how difficult/exhilarating it is to be a professional racer. They also touch on the importance of conditioning to a racer's success, with Mladin commenting on how a lot of people can go faster than him for a lap or two, but the real trick is doing so for 28 laps.
More than just a show about the AMA SB series,
SOTW takes it a step further and, as would befit a program produced for Science Channel, goes into closer detail about the physics of how a sportbike works. In reality, the AMA SB series serves more as a backdrop for examining the principles behind high-performance sportbike machines.
Motojournalist and author Nick Ienatsch plays the role of expert instructor, relating the seeming complex physics which govern motorcycles, like gyroscopic effect and counter-steering, in layman's terms. The explanations and demonstrations from Ienatsch are quite entertaining and easy to comprehend, making
SOTW a film which is approachable to those new to the sport or unfamiliar with sportbikes altogether, yet the movie won't bore loyal racing fanatics who already know everything about sportbikes (or at least think they do).
The film also discusses how the physics and results in racing translate onto the road. To that end viewers get to see AMA Superbike's first-ever champion, Reg Pridmore, take students through his CLASS school, where they learn skills on the racetrack which they can take home and apply on the road for a safer riding experience. SOTW also provides an inside look at the Ducati assembly line in Bologna, Italy, where the film examines the "winning on Sunday helps sell on Monday" philosophy which drives the sportbike market.
Tommy Hayden, the eldest of the Kentucky racing clan, is also featured in SOTW. The film documents the process of turning a stock bike into a factory racer.
SOTW is an informative and entertaining film which would make an excellent gift for any diehard motorcycle racing fans, AMA or otherwise. The ability to appeal to both the hardcore insiders and the casual observer are the mark of a great motorcycle film, which gives
SOTW a thumbs-up from MCUSA. AMA SB fanatics will appreciatethe addition of
SOTW to the old DVD library; the less gung-ho could get by with just remembering how good the show was on the Science Channel instead of spending the $24.95. Either way
SOTW makes for an entertaining hour, even if it isn't quite a feature-length film.
Product: Speed On Two Wheels
MSRP: $24.95
