We asked Mario Beauregard from Collectif Parlee to write a short introduction about what the project is all about and what it means to him.
“We, at Collectif Parlee, believe our approach is a game changer.For as long as we can remember, amateur cycling sponsorship has been the same: a check in exchange for a company name printed on a jersey, the hope for great results, and, hopefully, traditional media coverage.
But the results are quite uncertain, the crowd in front of podiums usually scarce and the media coverage non-existent.
So we decided it was time for a paradigm change.
Not only because the old system isn’t working, but also because we’re not only racing. We also love to ride and train, to have fun and to suffer, and we find there is beauty in friendship through cycling and in the misery of epic rides for which we are the only witnesses. We believe that the stories we share may not only be interesting for other cyclists, but for everyone who has a passion that runs deep. Any passion.
So instead of printing company names on jerseys and dream of podiums, we propose to tell those stories through videos and photography, casting the team in the lead role. Singular moments of the season are to be captured, assembled, set to music before being released to our social media platforms and those of our partners.
Those season-defining moments will be used to emphasise the cyclist’s lifestyle, how this affects our mindset, our take on life, our health and ultimately, the equipment we decide to use.
We ride for the sheer beauty of cycling, with the desire to persevere through the toughest challenges. Through the lens of a camera, our adventures are exposed much like the bonfire stories are meant to be told.
They define us as athletes, but above and beyond, as humans.