Clint Buttler
The field had over seventy riders and I’d never been in a pack that big before. At the line I was sizing up the competition. They were all unfamiliar and some of them looked rather intimidating. I did know two of my team mates quite well—Leif Johnson and Adam Ross. I’d been racing with Adam and Leif all year and our teamwork had led Adam and I to four 1,2 finishes.
The course was a typical four corner Criterium, the pack was sketchy, and the wind kept the likelihood of a successful break to a minimum. Adam got caught on the wrong side of a crash early on but managed to catch back on. I covered two early breaks that I probably shouldn’t have even bothered with, and after the initial breaks nobody made a serious effort at getting away. We didn’t contest any of the primes because we were saving it all for the win. Rick Parks looked strong and stayed near the front of the field for the whole race.
In the last lap we all worked our way up near the front and Leif broke to the outside where Adam and I lined up behind him. Unfortunately Rick was boxed in. Leif powered his way up to the front of the pack leaving Adam and I at the front of the field going into the final turn. Leif yelled a primal, “GO!” and boy did we! Adam came through with a wicked sprint/lead out and we scored our fifth 1,2 finish with third place at least a bike length back. I’m the one who will end up wearing the Championship jersey, but it truly belongs as much to my teammates as it does to me.
We caught up with three of the four DBC racers that participated in the Cat 4 district championship. They all agreed that it was a basic 4 corner crit, that the field was sketchy, and that it was windy. Outside of these basic facts the truth became difficult to discern. Here is the interview, judge for yourself.
DBC--"This was the first time you had raced with Rick Parks, what was your
impression of him."
Clint--"Nice guy...he looked strong and stayed at the front of the pack for
the whole race.
Adam--"Yeah...he did, he was up there and that kind of helps out
psychologically. He seemed pretty cool...you know, not the type of guy who
would come around his own team mate."
DBC--"Adam, how far from the line where you when Clint
came around?"
Adam--"About 10 meters!"
Clint--"It was about 200 maybe 150"
DBC--"Adam, when did you realize that Clint was on
your wheel?"
Adam--"At about 12meters from the line"
DBC--"Clint, did you feel threatened by the uncoming
pack?"
Clint--"Yeah...there were right on us"
Adam--"The pack still had a lap to go!"
DBC--"Was Leif a factor in setting up the win?"
Clint--"The three of us have been racing together all year and Lief has
consistently set us up for the sprint. He's a total team player."
Adam--"Agreed, Leif is a team player. For example, Leif would never come
around his own team mate with only 5 meters to go."
DBC--"Adam, you sound a little bitter. Is there any love lost between you
and Clint as a result of his victory?"
Adam--"No love lost, we push each other and that works for us, but let me
just say publicly that Clint suffers from Sprint-Envy. He wants my sprint so
bad he can taste it."
Clint--"I'll admit that I respect Adam's sprint, but Adam has a near fatal
case of Championship Jersey envy. I did buy him Chamipionship vest
though...as a thanks for the unintentional lead out."
Adam--"That's true, he bought me the vest."