Update (23/06/05): I've been contacted by the man himself Alex Rankin, who assures me that the footage is not sped up. He's copped quite alot of flak about supposed sped up footage in the past, so I've come to the conclusion that it musn't be. From his point of view it just wouldn't be worth the pain and arguments (and internet battles). So, I formally appologise to Alex and congradulate him on making riders look so damn fast!

Earthed 2, Dirt Mountain Bike Magazine’s second edition of their much famed, much praised Earthed series of Mountain Bike videos. So, is it what it’s cracked up to be? Read on.

It’s been another year. That means another World Cup series, another Norba series and one more World Championship.  So what’s missing?.. Oh that’s right, you didn’t get to see any of them!

Earthed 2 to the rescue, well at least if you’re after footage from the World Cups and World Champs. It’s only got two rounds (Snowmass & Idaho) of the Norba series, but don’t fret as Clay Porter’s Synopsis already covered that.

The footage is not limited to races, about half the DVD consists of non-race footage. Rather than rattle off each section I’ll just list the chapters with brief summaries.

• Intro
• Laguna Hills (so-cal) – Hill, Atkinson & Neetling
• WC1: Scotland (Fort William)
• John Cowan’s backyard
• Neil Donoghue & Richard Cunyghame – Just a couple pinners
• WC2: Frane (Les Deux Alpes)
• Australia + Armadale 4X – Kovarik, Wacka, Rennie, Hannah and a few more
• Mont Chery, Les Gets (frame)
• WC3: Austria (Schaldming)
• Dave Wardell
• UCI DH BMX (Woodland West , CA) – Pretty sick Bmx action with big jumps
• Ben Reid and Friends (North Wales)
• Norba: Sandpoint (Idaho)
• 20 inch – Some dirt jump action
• 94 Worlds Track, Vail (Colorado)
• Junk Drawer (random stuff)
• Nathan Rennie – Renwa’s section including his flip whip
• Norba: Snowmass (Colorado)
• Greg Minaar in Vail (Colorado)
• World Champs (Les Gets, France)
• Iron Horse in So-Cal
• WC Final: Italy (Livingo)
• Mick Hannah – Sik Mik’s section

You can see quite clearly you’re getting quite a lot of footage for your money. That in itself is justification enough for your purchase Earthed 2 without reading further.

But, if you’re a still not quite convinced that Earthed 2 is worth your cheddar then read on.

While I think Earthed 2 is a very good video, I think Earthed 1 was better. If you haven’t already bought Earthed 1 then buy it instead. I’ve read mixed opinions about the place, some people prefer the original over the sequel (like myself) and others think the opposite so don’t take my opinion as gospel.

I feel that Earthed 2 was a bit lazy. This is evident in the Laguna and Minaar sections. I dare you to count the number of times you see the same shot from different angles. I mean really, there’s a fine line between getting the most out of a good shot, but they have gone WAYYY past that. I went from being in awe to scrambling for the remote to hit the next chapter button. Not a huge issue, but an issue none the less.

Moving on. One gripe I have with both Earthed films is that in some sections the footage appears to be sped up. Shoot me if I'm wrong, but there are a couple points in the film where you say to yourself "that is definitley sped up". The particular point in Earthed 2 was when a rider runs into a tree at what looks like 30-40km/hr and stops without falling over or anything. While this gives a bit more wow factor and makes boring sections seem more interesting, it makes crap riders look fast. I’m not going to delve too deeply into this as it is a pretty sensitive topic (its an internet forum hot topic, battles a plenty).

Sountrack. What is it with MTB movies and soundtracks these days? Are they trying so hard to escape the cliché of the old MTB films that they are willing to put any old thing on? Or is it simply the personal preferences of the creators? Probably the latter. Anyway, its pretty damn average in my opinion (mind you, music taste is a personal thing). I'll the inventor of the mute button for this one.

Overall the video is good, the problem is that we’ve been spoilt in the last 2 years with both Earthed 1 and Synopsis. The standard is still very high, and down hillers alike will enjoy it.

So in short, if you have Earthed 1 and need a new video, buy Earthed 2 (or Synopsis). If you don’t have Earthed 1, buy Earthed 1 and/or Synopsis, then buy Earthed 2.

Big thanks to For the Riders for supplying us with the review copy.