None of this is free. But that’s what makes the payoff so sweet.

Anyone who has ever stuck with a training plan to prepare for a new challenge knows this. Anyone who has pedaled through a cold winter to reach new distances come spring knows this. Chances are if you’ve ever ridden a trainer indoors, you might have felt yourself banging up against that wall and asking yourself, why?

“Free,” the new film from Machines sets out to capture the inner dialogue of the rider who has found themselves at this crossroads and come out the other side with a reason… something to hold on to when those questions start to bubble up within.

For us, riding bikes is about so much more miles and elevation. It’s a means to something greater. It’s about personal growth as much as it is about pedaling. That feeling of weightlessness after cresting a mountain can release you from other things weighing you down in ways you wouldn’t suspect. The simple knowledge of the amazing things your body can do – like climbing to the top of a mountain – can buoy you up when you begin to doubt yourself.

If you’ve ever found yourself struggling to explain this thing we do to a group of people who just aren’t getting it, show them this film.