This episode of "30 for 30" is one of the sadder ones you can see. You might even want to keep some Kleenex handy! It's the story of Tim Richmond--a NASCAR driver who you might have never heard of, as he died more than two decades ago. What makes this unusual? Well, he was at the top of the game AND he died from AIDS--something that really scared folks back in the 1980s. And, sadly, like most celebrities who died from AIDS during the era, no one talked about it--and folks denied the disease. In fact, while the people interviewed today all seem to have come to terms with HIV/AIDS, a few still seemed to be possibly in some denial--and maybe the film is as well, since they never really discussed how Richmond contracted the disease--and one guy said what a great eligible bachelor he was. Since there was no evidence of drug abuse (and normally using needles would have been detected and destroyed his ability to compete) or blood transfusions, Tim's sex life was oddly ignored. Gay, straight or bisexual--it's odd this wasn't mentioned. However, despite this odd omission, a very compelling episode--one that is sure to impact you.
6 Reviews
Tim Richmond.. a life full of promise..
brimcq547729 September 2013
Very interesting film about NASCAR driver Tim Richmond.. I really had never heard of the man but being a fellow Ohio native i had to check it out.. Such a short, tragic life.. He died so young and this special really shows a small taste of what he might have become had he curbed his reckless ways.. Really one of the first high-profile AIDS cases, especially a heterosexual contracting the disease .. What's really lost a bit in this story is all the lives this man destroyed by continuing to have unprotected sex with many women knowing he had AIDS... AIDS can effect everyone..even someone who considered himself to be invincible.. His carefree ways made him a star on the race track but those same careless ways in his personal life cost him his life..
A Memorable Story, Even For Non-Racing Fans
ccthemovieman-124 January 2011
Warning: Spoilers
This was another fascinating episode in this series, and I say that despite having no interest in auto racing. i only remember the name "Tim Richmond" but couldn't tell you anything about him until after watching this show.
What a fascinating guy, a boost for his sport (NASCAR) with this good looks, Joe Namath-like playboy image, frank interviews and wild victory celebrations.....but what a brutal ending to his life. You see, as is chronicled in this story, Richmond had a little too much fun with the ladies and contacted AIDs. This was a little before the public knew straight guys could get the disease, too.
We see how Richmond, not wanting to divulge the nature of his illness that would kill him at the age of 34, covered it up and even continued racing after long bouts of severe illness. How he could still win races with horrible coughing spells and literally dying, gives you an idea of the man's driving talent.
In the end, though, like a number of the 30-30 shows, we are left with a sadness at the end because of what transpired.
This is a very memorable episode.
What a fascinating guy, a boost for his sport (NASCAR) with this good looks, Joe Namath-like playboy image, frank interviews and wild victory celebrations.....but what a brutal ending to his life. You see, as is chronicled in this story, Richmond had a little too much fun with the ladies and contacted AIDs. This was a little before the public knew straight guys could get the disease, too.
We see how Richmond, not wanting to divulge the nature of his illness that would kill him at the age of 34, covered it up and even continued racing after long bouts of severe illness. How he could still win races with horrible coughing spells and literally dying, gives you an idea of the man's driving talent.
In the end, though, like a number of the 30-30 shows, we are left with a sadness at the end because of what transpired.
This is a very memorable episode.
No one is invincible
dpdundass29 April 2015
This is a very well done documentary about on of the best talents to turn a wheel. It is also a very sad cautionary tail. Despite what another reviewer has complained about, 30 on 30 did talk about Tim's sex life but i think that review wanted to hear that Tim was gay so he can continue to delude himself that heterosexual sex can't transmit HIV. Nearly 20 years on we know better, and if you pay attention although no one comes right out and says it Tim was a total hound. His sister pretty much summed it up and she loved him deeply. Gone fare too soon, they should have done a movie about him instead of twisting his life into Days of Thunder.
Underrated Documentary for an Underrated Legend
quintongills855 April 2019
Warning: Spoilers
This is by for one of the best 30 for 30 documentries ever! Tim Richmond could have and would've been one of the biggest names in Nascar and possibly taken the sport to mainstream appeal sooner had he lived. Sadly we know that he was purposely forgotten by NASCAR. This documentary thrust him back into the public conciousness. To the limit not only tells a sports story but tells another side to the early days of the AIDS crisis. Like Magic Johnson or Eazy-E Richmond was heterosexual male that thought HIV/AIDS was just "a gay dieases" and his life after finding out is just as compelling. The film doesn't try to hide his faults but present them as is. But mostly it shows a man that had a love for life and racing.
A Look at AIDS and Those Around It
Michael_Elliott4 November 2010
30 for 30: Tim Richmond To the Limit (2010)
*** (out of 4)
Nice entry in the ESPN series takes a look at Tim Richmond, the Nascar racer who found himself quickly becoming the main star of the sport only to have the rub pulled from him when his lifestyle of partying and sex had him die of AIDS at the age of 34. The documentary features interviews with his sister, friends, co- racers and we even get some archival interviews with Richmond himself. I think the first twenty-minutes or so of this are pretty standard stuff as we hear about Richmond's talent and good looks and how he was quick, funny and just the type of person you'd want to know and hang out with. This section is certainly very entertaining but it's really no different from any documentary out there. Where this film finally picks up is in its second half once Richmond learned that he had AIDS and the fact that he kept it a secret even when the media said he was either partying too hard, was messed up on drugs or was hiding something else. I think seeing the AIDS paranoia from this era of the 80s is a stark reminder of what it was like back then. Some people might think it was wrong for Richmond to keep it a secret but as his sister said, unless you walked in his shoes and were faced with coming out when everyone would have been scared of you then you really can't say too much. Hearing various drivers call themselves ignorant because "Southern Boys" didn't think straight men could get AIDS was interesting plus the fact that Nascar didn't want to be the first sport with someone with AIDS.
*** (out of 4)
Nice entry in the ESPN series takes a look at Tim Richmond, the Nascar racer who found himself quickly becoming the main star of the sport only to have the rub pulled from him when his lifestyle of partying and sex had him die of AIDS at the age of 34. The documentary features interviews with his sister, friends, co- racers and we even get some archival interviews with Richmond himself. I think the first twenty-minutes or so of this are pretty standard stuff as we hear about Richmond's talent and good looks and how he was quick, funny and just the type of person you'd want to know and hang out with. This section is certainly very entertaining but it's really no different from any documentary out there. Where this film finally picks up is in its second half once Richmond learned that he had AIDS and the fact that he kept it a secret even when the media said he was either partying too hard, was messed up on drugs or was hiding something else. I think seeing the AIDS paranoia from this era of the 80s is a stark reminder of what it was like back then. Some people might think it was wrong for Richmond to keep it a secret but as his sister said, unless you walked in his shoes and were faced with coming out when everyone would have been scared of you then you really can't say too much. Hearing various drivers call themselves ignorant because "Southern Boys" didn't think straight men could get AIDS was interesting plus the fact that Nascar didn't want to be the first sport with someone with AIDS.
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