This is not the usual sports story about overcoming the odds of some mean adversary or situation, yet there is an element of that. Graeme Obree (Jonny Lee Miller of Melinda & Melinda) lives with his wife and young baby trying to make a living with a bicycle shop. His wife Anne (Laura Fraser of Vanilla Sky) is wonderfully emotionally supportive and helps out financially by working as a nurse. 

As a young boy Obree was bullied at school and to help deal with that his parents bought him a bicycle to make a speedy exit. This grew into a love for cycling, and as a young man he won a number of amateur racing events. However, when he tried to use those skills to support his family with his own cycling shop, it was a financial failure. 

Obree’s spark of an idea to turn pro cyclist by building his own bike and competing for the World One Hour record was a stretch, as he had no sponsorship. His best buddy Malky (Billy Boyd of LOTR:ROTK) became both his manager and publicity agent.  

Before his bike shop went bust, Obree met and became friends with Baxter (Brian Cox of Red Eye), a local minister. He provided the expected spiritual counseling but his most important input to Obree was helping him with his bi-polar depression disorder. You are given a hint of the dark side of this story, as the film opens with a scene of a suicide attempt. 

Using a unique bike design that included washing machine parts, along with riding with his body in a crouch position that became known as the “Superman,” Obree broke the world record for distance traveled in one hour. However, it only lasted a week. This made his bouts of depression worse.  

Fortunately, Obree’s friends and loved ones continued to give him encouragement and he eventually sought medical help. This permitted him to compete in and win a number of other cycling events around the world. More importantly, he was able to have a balanced life. 

Brian Cox and Laura Fraser were particularly effective in portraying the importance of love and friendship amidst the bravado of competitive sports. 

Douglas Mackinnon, a young veteran director of some fine British TV series, took this on as his first feature film. A trio of writers, again from British TV, wrote the screenplay. 

The film contains some great racing segments that provide the thrill that one gets when watching a luge event at the Olympics. Fans of Lance Armstrong and Greg Lemond will consider this film a must see, because it not only shows exciting skinny tire racing (as opposed to fat tire mountain bikes), but what it takes to not just compete, but to win in all aspects of your life.