Battle at Durango

First-Ever World Mountain Bike Championships

     

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    Durango, Colorado

    The action and inspiration of the first ever World Championships at Durango, Colorado, endure in this spectacular award-winning race documentary that covers the grueling struggles, fierce competition and undaunted glory of six momentous days.

    The Wild-West town of Durango in its vivid autumn splendor provides a dazzling mountain backdrop as contenders engage in brutal skirmishes leading to the final, spirited battle when the victor captures the coveted world-championship gold medal and rainbow jersey. With a staggering array of the world’s top racers, original musical score (in hi-fi stereo) and pro interviews.

    Featuring Ned Overend, Juliana Furtado, John Tomac, and a host of others. An American classic.

    First World Mountain Biking Championships on VHS

    Inside a decade, the intrepid sport of mountain biking soared to unprecedented status.  In September 1990, the world linked wheels at the first-ever unified World Mountain Bike Championships in Durango, Colorado.  This “natural phenomenon” drew involvement from those who began the sport to those who scaled it to worldwide proportions.  Major-league sponsorship, rainbow jerseys, and a pride o the world’s finest riders demonstrated that mountain biking had come of age.  The week-long affair was like a cosmic prom held in the breath-taking, head-spinning Rocky Mountains.

    The beauty, excitement and drama of six historic days in the mountains are captured in this one-hour home video.  A montage of multiple-angle, helmet-cam, aerial and bike-mounted footage chronicles the sweat and dust, beat of the climb, and roar of the descent.  One dazzling backdrop dissolves into the next as riders challenge the unyielding mountain angls, thin air, themselves and each other in a sport that emphasizes technique and endurance, camaraderie, and respect and enjoyment of Nature.

    In the crucial Cross-Country Championship, 35-year-old hometown favorite and father of two, Ned Overend, dices with young Thomas Frischknecht of Switzerland and a squad of hungry contenders for 36 grueling miles to emerge victorious.

    In the Women’s Championship, American Julie Furtado, a relative newcomer to mountain biking, seizes the Cross-Country win from established national mountain-bike champion, Sara  Ballantyne.

    Of special interest are the World Championship Downhill races.  Greg Herbold, a Durango resident, charges down the 1,500-foot rocky ski run in a sizzling 6 minutes, 36 seconds, on the edge of control. Canadian Cindy Devine glides down in 7 minutes 40 seconds, just a split-second faster than her teammate and major competitor, Elladee Brown.

    The Hill Climb, Dual Slalom and Observed Trials events are featured with performances by more of the world’s top riders.  With a fast-paced original musical score (in hi-fi stereo) and pro interviews, “Battle At Durango: The First-Ever World Mountain Bike Champinships” unfolds history in hypnotic fashion, promising to become a special-interest video classic.  Never has a mountain-bike race been more thoroughly and masterfully recorded.

    Cast & Crew

    Mountain Bike Pros: Ned Overend, Juliana Furtado, John Tomac, Greg Herbold, Tinker Juarez and many more

    Director: Mark Schulze

    Studio: New & Unique Videos

    VHS Release Date: 1990

    Run Time: 59 minutes

    International Sports Festival Spirit Award

    IMDB

    Special Endorsements

    “Battle at Durango” is presented by New & Unique Videos in affiliation with the National Off-Road Bicycle Association (NORBA) with sponsorship from Mountain & City Biking Magazine, Raleigh Cycle Company of America, PowerBar, Mountain Bike Specialists and Aussie Racing Apparel.

    Winner of The Spirit Award

    “Battle at Durango: First-Ever World Mountain Bike Championships” won The Spirit Award at The International Sports Video & Film Festival of 1998.

    Original Soundtrack

    The soundtrack of Battle at Durango: First-Ever World Mountain Bike Championships, composed by Buzz Barnaba, brings a high-energy, adrenaline-pumping atmosphere that mirrors the excitement of competitive mountain biking. The music is layered with dynamic rhythms and intense beats to match the thrill of the race, emphasizing the grit and determination of the athletes. Barnaba’s compositions often blend rock elements with percussive undertones, creating a suspenseful and immersive backdrop for the action-packed visuals. The soundtrack enhances the film’s high-stakes environment, making viewers feel as though they are part of the ride, capturing both the raw nature of mountain biking and the celebratory spirit of the first world championship. Listen Now at Bandcamp.

    This release should be a hit with mountain bikers everywhere.  Battle At Durango is a highlight tape of the first-ever World Mountain Bike Championships in Durango, Colorado, in 1990.  Many of the pros seen in Ultimate Mountain Biking can be viewed battling for the coveted world-championships gold medal.  It features spectacular scenery, original music score, race footage and pro interviews.  Fast-paced action and sharp quality make this tape fun viewing for everyone.

    Billboard Magazine

    Mountain & City Biking Magazine

    …An hour-long package of each and every event, capturing the grueling hill climb, hair-raising downhill, exciting dual slalom, and dramatic cross-country races.  You’ll see just how tough the sport of mountain biking can be, and how the Americans came away with the lion’s share of gold medals, victorious over challenges from over 20 countries, including crushing wins in both the Senior Women’s cross-country by Juliana Furtado  and Senior Men’s cross-country by the super-human Ned Overend.  The video is of the highest production quality, including helmet-camera footage, bicycle-mounted photography, and even aerial shots. 

     

    NORBA News

    The 1990 World Championships at Durango, Colorado, may be over, but action and inspiration endure in this spectacular race documentary… The video captures the action using eight broadcast cameras and a multitude of different angles… Original music score, pro interviews and a delightful pre-championship ride with Overend add up to a highly entertaining and historical home video designed to thrill and inspire cycling aficionados for years to come.

    Bicycle Guide

    Any true videophile mountain biker’s library is incomplete without a copy of the 1990 World Championship video, Battle At Durango, if for no other reason than the soundtrack.  The original score features ‘The Aphid Stomp’  by the Aphids, and the reason this is so important to me is that I play in the band and co-wrote the song.  I think Ned Overend appears somewhere in the video too, but I could be wrong. – Charles Kelly

    With world-class fanfare, Durango, Colorado, hosted the first mountain bike championships in September 1990.  While entrants from Colorado and California predominated, participants from other states and foreign countries also exhibited their skills.  Separate races for men and women included hill climb, downhill, cross-country, and dual slalom competitions and trial events.  Agile camera work captures the intensity of the competition as riders strain uphill, hit holes, or jump bumps.  Celebrating the winners, this scenic program will enthrall both enthusiasts and viewers new to mountain biking.  Ages 12 – adult.

    Booklist

    A comprehensive and exciting program (with) close-ups of riders suffering on the ascent, along with footage from bike-mounted cameras and interesting aerial shots from the ski lifts overlooking the course…  As might be expected, some of the video’s most exciting visuals came from the downhill part of the cross-country, and the downhill event itself.  A generous portion of the tape is devoted to this discipline, and the thrilling descents of Greg Herbold, John Tomac  and others.  The judicious use of slow motion gives us some idea of just how rigorous and electrifying an event this is….     A point-of-view camera is perhaps given its most interesting assignment in the observed trials, when we’re taken along for a “ride” with winner, Hans Rey,  as he hops and bounces over rocks, culverts and other obstacles….

    Velo News

    New & Unique Videos offers you the video of the first unified world championships. Lie down on your sofa and watch the infernal descent of Purgatory, the climb test, the cross country, the Trials and the spectacular parallel slalom! Sixty minutes of interviews, non-stop action, aerial shots and cameras mounted on the handlebars will transport you into the incomparable atmosphere of the championships.

    VTT Magazine, France

    Video Software Magazine

    Off-road two-wheelers will enjoy Battle At Durango: Mountain Bike World Championships.

    Filmed with several cameras, including one mounted directly on “King” Ned Overend’s bike during a test of the cross-country track, the video passionately shows the six days of the competition, starting from the opening ceremony up to the ending awards ceremonies for cross-country races.

    Tutto Mountain Bike, Italy

    Video Story Magazine

    Funny helmets and Spandex pants abound in New & Unique Videos’ Battle At Durango: The First-Ever World Mountain Bike Championships.

    Video depiction of the six-day, unified World Mountain Bike Championships held in Durango, Colo., September 1990.  A montage of the races and racers accompanied by an original musical score in stereo.  A portion of each sale goes to land access groups.
    American Bicyclist Magazine

    Overseas! Magazine

    Mountain biking at its best… Experience the excitement of the first-ever World Mountain Bike Championships on video with the Battle At Durango.  This one-hour documentary covers the fierce competition at Durango, Colorado, and features pro interviews.