In September 2022 Rob Warner signed off on the Mountain Bike Downhill World Cup. It had been his life for nearly 3 decades.
After a turbulent racing career he transitioned into being the sports commentator.
Raw and unsolicited it was the beginning of a new era of broadcasting. Through his unmatchable knowledge, enthusiasm and love of downhill he became the voice of mountain biking.
Fourteen blissful years followed, the sport growing almost as quickly as Warner’s ego before at the end of 2022 the unthinkable happened.
Robert Warner was no longer ‘The Voice’.
To say he took it badly is an understatement. He no longer knew who he was, or why he even existed. There was only one way through it. To go to rock bottom and start again.
In this candid documentary Canadian film-maker Nick Van Berkel has access all areas documenting Rob as he’s never been seen before. From his most vulnerable to the start of him fighting back, this is a film sure to leave a tear in your eye.
Can he find
’The Way Back?’
Thankyou to Giant Bicycles for letting me make this film and to the awesome Nick Van Berkel for bringing an idea to life—Rob Warner
Gathered some of Rob's most iconic phrases through the years, some would get you in trouble nowdays but those were the days, Freecaster and beers for the win.
Look at the time!! How Danny Hart can sit with balls that big. Look at that whip! Come on Peaty! Get on those f*cking pedals!!! "Thank God I have a suspension chair" (on Steve Peat's run at the 2009 world champs). Steve Peat has done more for downhill mountain biking than Osama Bin Laden has done for terrorism. He hit the deck harder than an old lady on a cruise ship. He's is on a rampage like a dog with two dicks. He's as loose as a clown running through a minefield. He looks like he's shit a lego deathstar. He's angrier than a man with a fork in a world of sup. He's all over the place like a monkey dry-humping a football. He's off like a Jewish foreskin. He's off like a Russian boder. He's gone down harder then the US economy. He's going to wake up feeling like his neck took a Viagra. He's letting it all hang out like a fat bird in a bikini. He's gone down like a pair of cheap tights! He wants this more than an out of work rapist. His ass has opened up wider than a hippos yawn! He has gone down faster than one of those french breast implants!! That's as popular as a ginger-haired step-child. That would have opened up his arsehole like a vintage golf bag. Thats uglier than ET with skin cancer. This man's got less brain than a service station pasty. This is more packed than a Chinese cemetery. Although the king of pop might be dead, we still have a thriller for you. So don't sit at home and beat it. I'm sweating like a whore in church. If he pull this off there will be an uprising worthy of a middle eastern country!
Sam Hill: The Winged Assassin/Thunder from Down Under Gee Atherton: The Vulcan Bomber Ben Cathro: The World's Tallest Man
There is zero doubt in my mind that had Rob stayed on World Cup races in 2023, its popularity would have surged instead of shrunken. I thought the decision to stay with Red Bull was strictly his decision but UCI/discovery may have thought his style was too raw or bro for their "professional" style (whichis hilarious to even type out given what a train wreck commentary was last year until Gwin and some other pros showed up to pull the pants up).
But Warners absence, along with addition of Semis, made 2023 a pretty sad year for DH. Sure, there were some exciting wins & some really good things to happen like Goldstone winning twice and Benoit taking the Worlds but unless they bring Rob on or improve the coverage somehow, I have little interest in subscribing to watch and listening to Cedric carry on like a 15 year old.
OK, now that you mention these zingers, I can see why he wasn't asked to commentate if their goal was to bring the events to a wider audience. Any reasonable broadcaster wouldn't want to field the number of calls or emails generated by all the people that would get the panties in a knot over some comment or another.
@MustRideAllTheTrails: He stuck to his guns w/ his comment that it was Redbull that helped make him who he is & he was staying in but maybe that was diplomacy(?) RB is great and Im sure Rob is taken care of... but it does make sense that Disc/UCI would've suggested a break. Not sure we'll know for sure (or do we?) Just seems like the sure-fire way to piss off 50-75% of DH fans on earth.
Of the 12-15 guys I know who were DH freaks for years. none sub'd to GCN last year to watch. I did for about 4 weeks and it was such shite that I cancelled & watched highlights instead. I even offered my user/pass to most buds - they didn't even take me up on it. I don't blame them. I am sure coverage improved (esp w/ Gwin) but Id wager Discovery lost 50% or more of the DH fanbase last year. Rob IS downhill commentary. His loss is stark.
Some more from my list: - It's rumored that when Greg Minnaar gets on the pedals he can stop the Earth's rotation because he has so much power - Danny Hart has testicles the size of weather balloons - It's wetter out than a dolphin with a bladder infection
@nastynate711: Me and my mate met Rob at Fort William not for the first time, but this year i think it was 2016/2017 he was making his way slowly down the side of the track on a Santa Cruz something because although it was great weather, the shaded parts were still slick and/or muddy and so the bike slid and down he went into the shaded muddy part he was navigating! So my buddy and I start crossing the track to help him up/make sure he was fine and Rob being Rob the cursing was well on it's way and he wasn't happy as it was a stupid fall so pulling up his bike i said to him "Rob, that was uglier than a bag full of Arseholes. Are you okay?". The angry Rob just exploded into laughter and cleaned himself off still laughing and said "Good memory, that was a fair few years back". And i said it was Brendan Fairclough crashing in some mud filled forest section someplace but i could be wrong. Rob said nothing as we gave him a bottle of water, mars bar and a huge handful of blue clean-up roll. We spoke for a few minutes, he thanked us for the help, the laugh and the pit stop then he said he'd better go or Peaty would think he'd stole his pit bike.
I don't watch live DH Racing now and Rob not commentating is a big part of it. I knew Downhill was turning into something i wasn't liking when there was a few Mercedes-Benz PICK-UP Trucks peppered around Fort William including one at the Road Gap. Who the F*** is filling the back of that painted flatbed with anything except water while washing? That was the start of the Dumbass SUV craze and the ending of my watching DH Live.
Agreed on Rob Warner.
With the current commentators, honestly, who cares. Focus on the race and the split times, and soon the commentary will be not that important.
Redbull, for Hard-line, you need to let Rob loose! Just let him free to call it how we all want it. One liners, language (a little) and Rob to be Rob. That last jump had me in tears too, wasn't expecting that. Can't wait for Tassie!
I'd listen to him read the phone book. (for everyone less than 30 years old, a phone book is a thing with names and phone numbers in it). Also, he makes Giant bikes cool.
Looks to me like Rob might be coming back with the giant as some sort of ambassador/ media / mentor, who’s knows maybe they’ll make their own videos of the races moi moi style which has become better than the real coverage
Rob you are a man among men. Your podcast and the guts that took knowing full well that you would likely break up at any time and then to share deeply personal things about a diagnosis? You are a freaking champion mate. I welled up more than once because just like your commentating, you made me FEEL it. And that is the component of greatness in calling a sport. I hope you read this and I really give zero #@&$ about any up or down votes, ever really, but surely not with this one. Of course you are missed on the WC. And this is just an honest man’s opinion that has been going to and watching WC since the early Grundig days.. YOU are the voice in my (most likely most of ours) head to WC mountain biking like Phill Liggett is to grand tour road racing. Mic drop and thanks brother for just always being a great guy. You deserve every smile you have coming. Thank you Red Bull and Giant bicycles!
Can someone tell me where in Mexico this trail system is? I’ve got family down there and I may two birds with one stone my next trip down there. AND if anyone wants to be my guide I’d be super stoked for it
Cardosanto Bike Ranch, look them up in instagram, 30 min drive from Mexico City. Also look up @yorchdeavila he offers one on one / group sessions there
@MrRight: I thought one of the big reasons why people weren’t happy with Discovery was because of the commentary. I would think hiring Rob would be a step in the right direction to improving things for 2024.
@stubs179: Rob stated on the Ride podcast that he was devastated when he learned he wouldn’t be commentating on the Word Cup for 2024. It didn’t sound like he was even offered the job with Discovery for 2023, I assume he would jump at the opportunity to commentate in 2024 if Discovery offered it to him. This did not sound like an official announcement of his return.
Is this a video saying he's coming back to WCs as an announcer? I feel like thats what this video was about? No? I wasn't going to pay for them this year, but if he's back i will pay.
His appearance on TRC podcast was so honest, sincere, and eye-opening. It had me eagerly anticipating this video, hoping for an equally genuine take on Rob's experience over the last few years.
I'm a long time doting fan of Rob, but this spoof is absolutely horrible.
Look at the time!!
How Danny Hart can sit with balls that big.
Look at that whip!
Come on Peaty! Get on those f*cking pedals!!!
"Thank God I have a suspension chair" (on Steve Peat's run at the 2009 world champs).
Steve Peat has done more for downhill mountain biking than Osama Bin Laden has done for terrorism.
He hit the deck harder than an old lady on a cruise ship.
He's is on a rampage like a dog with two dicks.
He's as loose as a clown running through a minefield.
He looks like he's shit a lego deathstar.
He's angrier than a man with a fork in a world of sup.
He's all over the place like a monkey dry-humping a football.
He's off like a Jewish foreskin.
He's off like a Russian boder.
He's gone down harder then the US economy.
He's going to wake up feeling like his neck took a Viagra.
He's letting it all hang out like a fat bird in a bikini.
He's gone down like a pair of cheap tights!
He wants this more than an out of work rapist.
His ass has opened up wider than a hippos yawn!
He has gone down faster than one of those french breast implants!!
That's as popular as a ginger-haired step-child.
That would have opened up his arsehole like a vintage golf bag.
Thats uglier than ET with skin cancer.
This man's got less brain than a service station pasty.
This is more packed than a Chinese cemetery.
Although the king of pop might be dead, we still have a thriller for you. So don't sit at home and beat it.
I'm sweating like a whore in church.
If he pull this off there will be an uprising worthy of a middle eastern country!
Sam Hill: The Winged Assassin/Thunder from Down Under
Gee Atherton: The Vulcan Bomber
Ben Cathro: The World's Tallest Man
“Look how effortless and smoothie is. This man is smoother and faster than the Bonneville salt flats.”
“Look how smooth he is. If he was any smoother, he would have to be liquidized.”
was too raw or bro for their "professional" style (whichis hilarious to even type out given what a train wreck commentary was last year until Gwin and some other pros showed up to pull the pants up).
But Warners absence, along with addition of Semis, made 2023 a pretty sad year for DH. Sure, there were some exciting wins & some really good things to happen like Goldstone winning twice and Benoit taking the Worlds but unless they bring Rob on or improve the coverage somehow, I have little interest in subscribing to watch and listening to Cedric carry on like a 15 year old.
In response to Aaron Gwin’s 2011 World Champs crash when he was actually up on Danny’s time.
Of the 12-15 guys I know who were DH freaks for years. none sub'd to GCN last year to watch. I did for about 4 weeks and it was such shite that I cancelled & watched highlights instead. I even offered my user/pass to most buds - they didn't even take me up on it. I don't blame them. I am sure coverage improved (esp w/ Gwin) but Id wager Discovery lost 50% or more of the DH fanbase last year. Rob IS downhill commentary. His loss is stark.
- It's rumored that when Greg Minnaar gets on the pedals he can stop the Earth's rotation because he has so much power
- Danny Hart has testicles the size of weather balloons
- It's wetter out than a dolphin with a bladder infection
So my buddy and I start crossing the track to help him up/make sure he was fine and Rob being Rob the cursing was well on it's way and he wasn't happy as it was a stupid fall so pulling up his bike i said to him "Rob, that was uglier than a bag full of Arseholes. Are you okay?".
The angry Rob just exploded into laughter and cleaned himself off still laughing and said "Good memory, that was a fair few years back". And i said it was Brendan Fairclough crashing in some mud filled forest section someplace but i could be wrong. Rob said nothing as we gave him a bottle of water, mars bar and a huge handful of blue clean-up roll. We spoke for a few minutes, he thanked us for the help, the laugh and the pit stop then he said he'd better go or Peaty would think he'd stole his pit bike.
I don't watch live DH Racing now and Rob not commentating is a big part of it.
I knew Downhill was turning into something i wasn't liking when there was a few Mercedes-Benz PICK-UP Trucks peppered around Fort William including one at the Road Gap. Who the F*** is filling the back of that painted flatbed with anything except water while washing? That was the start of the Dumbass SUV craze and the ending of my watching DH Live.
On a side note, discovery/uci if you’re watching this get people like Aaron Gwin again back in the commentary booth; or someone of the similar ilk.
That’s the only thing that’s made it watchable.
That last jump had me in tears too, wasn't expecting that.
Can't wait for Tassie!