Pedals pump, thighs burn. The suspended second when you’re neither up nor down, until your handlebars tip, and suddenly, the wind rips past your cheeks as you fly on two wheels. Talk to any cyclist, whether they’re a competitive road racer, BMX rider, mountain biker, or commuter, and they will all agree. A bike—the passion, freedom, and camaraderie it brings—can change your life.
Cycling changed Tor Bennström’s life. In fact, it’s the reason he and his wife, Laura, moved to Greenville in 2019. After experiencing the Swamp Rabbit Trail and George Hincapie’s Gran Fondo, Bennström felt pulled toward the area’s diverse bike offerings and the community they fostered. And even though the COVID pandemic arrived just after they moved, the business consultant speaks with fondness about hitting the road with a local cyclist group at 5:45 a.m. in the middle of winter.
“Cycling kept me sane and fit over that period,” Bennström says. “I fell in love with riding my bike with those I care about most.”
Bennström can hardly remember a time when he wasn’t biking. He learned to ride on his family’s portico in Italy at age 7, and he even had a paper route in New York as a teenager. Wherever he’s lived, including Boulder, St. Louis, and Charlotte, Bennström has found that bikes speak a universal language.
So when he came across the Bicycle Film Festival on social media earlier this year, Bennström knew it could amplify the Upstate cycling community. The festival began in New York City in 2001 after a bus hit avid biker Brendt Barbur. Wanting to share his passion for cycling with others despite his accident, Barbur created an event celebrating the best of bikes. Twenty years later, the festival is now in more than one hundred cities worldwide, showcasing hundreds of films about bikes—from shorts about food delivery riders in Milan to underground BMX communities in Seattle.
“I’m so enthusiastic about the ability of the Bicycle Film Festival to bring different types of people together,” Barbur says. “You can have billionaires standing next to bike messengers.” For Bennström, the film festival seemed a natural way to gather Upstate people and bring awareness to a worthy cause. It’s why connecting Rusty Miller and his OnTo Cycling team to the festival was an obvious partnership.
Biking changed Miller’s life as a teenager. After the Tour de France “took his breath away,” he discovered racing and the challenge and joy it brought to life. His passion inspired him to found OnTo Cycling, a premier program that trains young, elite cyclists. Now, as a competitive racing coach to our nation’s best young riders (who just happen to be in the area), he sees cycling as an avenue to build strength and character.
“My life’s work is to change the career and life trajectories of the most talented young cyclists in America,” Miller says. “The ones who will someday represent us in the Tour de France and the Olympics. But I’ve never lost sight of the fact that bikes change lives in all kinds of ways. Everyone who takes up riding will better their life in some way, whether by increasing their fitness and health, connecting to a community and culture, or feeling the sheer joy of the wind in their face as they pedal down the road.”
The festival, sponsored by Methodical Coffee, will be held at the Peace Center on Saturday, October 1, with two showings. Bennström sees this initial event as just the beginning. In years to come, he hopes the festival will anchor an entire cycling celebratory weekend, including educational events, art exhibitions, even a race.
When Bennström thinks about what Greenville’s inaugural Bicycle Film Festival will offer those who attend, he smiles. “I hope it helps people appreciate the universe of cycling,” he says. “And I would hope that it would give them a different perspective. A global perspective of how lucky we are to live in a place like Greenville. It will open your eyes to all the ways that people experience cycling. It’s universal.“
Bicycle Film Festival, The Peace Center, Saturday, October 1, 5:30pm & 8:30pm. For more information, visit bicyclefilmfestival.com; purchase tickets at peacecenter.org.
Photography by Richard Van De Water
