Bell Helmets

10 For 10 Film

Following 10 Bell Athletes At Andorra DH WC

To commemorate the first full season on the UCI World Cup Downhill race circuit of the Full-10 Spherical helmet, Bell worked with Chapter Studios on a the documentary film, “10 For 10.” For the project, Callum Philpott and Oliver Forster embedded themselves with 10 athletes competing in Bell Full-10s for race week on the Pal Arinsal course stage in Andorra in early August, 2023. From the start, the film’s intent was to put race fans “in medias res” beyond the tape to be with racers on course walks, at meals, for bike set up and adjustment in the pits and finally to the days of actual racing.

When Chapter Studios briefed the project during the early days of the 2023 World Cup campaign, no one knew which of the proposed racers would still be healthy for this weekend (several were not). No one at Bell or Chapter Studios could have anticipated that any of the athletes would be riding a wave after a great showing at the World Championships in Scotland just a few weeks before (two Bell riders ended up pulling on their rainbow jerseys and helmets for the first time at Andorra). And no one could have ever imagined what the weather would be like on the Pal Arsinal course (legendary).

World DH races have been hosted at Vallnord, Andorra since 2008, but in 2021 the all new Pal Arinsal bike park was opened. The 2023 course underwent several changes from the 2022 interation, and several provisions were made to regulate the dust on the bottom sections of the course. Dust, however, would not be an issue for this year. Storm cells rolled through the region all week. Rains soaked the 1.6 km track and cancellation of the Elite races was a very real possibility right up until the morning of race day.

“When you throw a dart at a date on a wall calendar months in advance, a project like this is a huge gamble,” said Dan Powell, Marketing Manager of Bell. “But what Chapter Studios captured in this film; the intensity, physicality, sheer will and luck of race week is something that any one with an interest in mountain biking can appreciate. We could not be more proud of this film or the performance of these athletes.”

The film follows 10 Bell athletes: Antoine Vidal, Charlie Hatton, Andreas Kolb, Dom Platt, Danny Hart, Thibaut Daprela, Erice Van Leuven, Lisa Bauman, Hugo Marini and Jack Piercy as they make their preparations for, and race at, Andorra. The film also contains appearances by Amaury Pierron, Gee Atherton, Max Commencal, Leo Abella and others. Finally, “10 For 10” prominently features the still photography of estimable lensman, Sven Martin.

To learn more about “10 For 10,” visit BellHelmets.com or follow Bell Helmets Bike on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.