A new documentary about Liv Cycling founder Bonnie Tu is premiering on YouTube on Tuesday, October 22.
The documentary, titled Bonnie, explores Tu’s vision for a women’s cycling brand, the challenges she faced in the often-staid world of cycling, and the triumphs she and Liv have achieved through perseverance and sheer force of will.
Tu conceived of the women’s-focused brand Liv in 2007, when she could find neither a bike that fit her nor a kit tailored specifically for women as she prepared to ride that year’s Tour of Taiwan. She had recently taken her passion for cycling more seriously, and the Tour was slated to be her biggest endeavor yet. However, try as she might, the then 57-year-old couldn’t find equipment on which she felt comfortable.
“A women’s bike is not just taking a men’s bike and shrinking it,” Tu says in the film’s trailer.
Within a year, Tu, then CFO and executive vice president of the bicycling megabrand Giant, founded Liv, which was dedicated to creating bikes and cycling kits focused on women’s bodies and their needs. Since then, Liv has become a massive brand in the cycling space and remains the only major bicycling brand in the world dedicated solely to women.
“Why not?” Tu asks in the trailer. “We start our own.”
Liv is also a key player in women’s racing as one of the main sponsors behind the Liv AlUla Jayco WorldTour team, whose stable of riders includes Spanish champion Mavi García, Letizia Paternoster, who won a stage at this year’s Tour of Britain, and Australian national champion Ruby Roseman-Gannon.
Liv is one of the main partners of the Tour de France Femmes, sponsoring the white jersey for the best young rider classification.
“I could see the excitement in young girls’ eyes as they saw their heroes ride by (during the Tour de France Femmes),” Tu said ahead of this year’s Tour. “If we can inspire one more girl or woman into cycling by creating more opportunities for her to watch the women’s race, we’ve done our part.”
The brand also sponsors an off-road team, Liv Factory Racing, which competes in UCI World Cup Cross-Country events, along with its developmental Grassroots Program.
In a promotional press release announcing the film, Cassondra Spring, Liv’s global brand manager, said, “Bonnie Tu didn’t just spark change for female cyclists—she challenged the way things have always been done in the cycling industry. Her determination and resilience have opened new doors and inspired a whole new generation of ‘troublemakers’ who aren’t afraid to push boundaries and create lasting change.”
You can watch the trailer for Bonnie on Liv’s official YouTube channel. The full film will premiere at the same link at 8 p.m. Eastern. You can read more about the documentary and Tu’s commitment to “make mischief” on Liv’s website.
Michael Venutolo-Mantovani is a writer and musician based in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. He loves road and track cycling, likes gravel riding, and can often be found trying to avoid crashing his mountain bike.
