Docuseries “Call of a Life Time” highlights Heber cyclists

Photo: Life Time Grand Prix

HEBER CITY, Utah — A new documentary featuring two local cycling favorites, Keegan Swenson and Sofia Gomez Villafane is now streaming on YouTube. The ‘Call of a Life Time’ series is streaming for free on the platform and highlights professional cyclists from Heber City.

Specifically, the series highlights Sofia Gomez Villafane (second overall in the Life Time Grand Prix) and Keegan Swenson (finished first overall in the series) showing viewers up close and personal moments with these cyclists that Instagram and other forms of media don’t deliver.

Keegan Swenson dominated the Life Time Grand Prix series winning Sea Otter, Crusher in the Tushar, and Leadville Trail MTB.

“It was an awesome time this year,” Swenson said in a press release. “I was stoked to do something different and it was cool to have the best racers in North America all together at these six rounds for a good mix of mountain biking, gravel, and just different terrain. Cool to wrap it up here in Arkansas with Big Sugar.”

Documentary-style film projects like ‘Call of a Life Time’ provide intimate insights into pro athletes’ lives. Filmmaker Shannon Vandivire of Texas took on the project of documenting these six off-road events, capturing the incredible athleticism of the men and women competing for the podium and prize money.

“I never felt like I could tell the full story through a still photograph,” Vandivire said. “When I was 17 years old I became mildly interested in film. With the evolution of YouTube, I took myself to YouTube university and I started learning how to turn a digital camera into a film camera.”

Vandivire is the CEO and director of the production company Collaborative. Having Life Time as a client, Vandivire had the difficult task of taking off-road bike racing, compressing the time and experience into an entertaining and somewhat emotional transition to the screen.

Cycling is a complex activity to follow and Vandivire was able to simplify it and tell the story of the cyclists.

“What inspires me is that off-road cyclists are incredibly disciplined people, they truly have inspirational lives, and they demonstrate a lot of character,” Vandivire said. “I think they are role models. I saw the opportunity to highlight the characters, whether or not you are really interested in following the point by-point, if you can get to know a piece of the industry and it gives you a foothold to care about it, that was the goal, and will be for season two.”