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Britton satisfied after Utah, looking for more at the USA Pro Challenge

Rob Britton
August 13, 2014
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Team Smartstop
Photo credit: Jonathan Devich

Last week U.S. squad Team Smartstop continued to be the revelation team of the season. After tallying wins at the Redlands Bicycle Classic, the UCI Winston-Salem Classic and the U.S. Professional National Championships earlier this year, it should come as no surprise that Team Smartstop was a legitimate force at the Tour of Utah. Despite being what is considered to be a third division team with a mere continental status, in 2014 Team Smartstop has consistently been in the mix at high level races against top level WorldTour and Professional Continental teams.

This past week in Utah, they had a two pronged approach. “With a guy like Jure Kocjan we had someone who was capable of winning stages, so with that being a possibility we really went all in for him,” said Rob Britton – one of three Canadians on Smartstop’s roster. In the opening three stages, the team was successful, setting Kocjan for two second place finishes and he wore the yellow jersey for two stages.

Britton was a loyal teammate during the early stages and then he was given some freedom. “I had hoped to break the top ten but with how steep and long some of those climbs were it was not so easy keeping pace with guys 5-10kgs less than me,” reflected Britton. It’s safe to say that after completing his duties early in the race for Kocjan, he was likely facing a disadvantage against other top climbers who had remained sheltered for most of the race beforehand. The fact that Britton was in the mix was fantastic feat given his scenario.

Despite Britton’s stellar performance, as is the case with many top level athletes they are never quite content. “Personally I’m a little disappointed with my final placing,” said Britton after citing a wee bit more fatigue than his competition and perhaps being limited by his physiology.

When looking ahead to next week’s USA Pro Challenge in Colorado, it’s likely we’ll see a slightly fresher Britton on the major climbs with a little more fortitude given his team’s plan. “With Colorado coming up our objectives are very similar to Utah, but I will likely have a bit more personal freedom to reach for that top 10 because the sprint stages come later in the race,” said Britton.

At the moment, Britton is a solid bet to be the top placed Canadian overall at the USA Pro Challenge given the consistency he has demonstrated all season. He’s been on the podium at the Tour of the Gila and at the Tour de Beauce already this year; two challenging races with lots of climbing. Despite being one of the top riders on his team, the all for one mindset that permeates through Team Smartstop, the very ideology that has been a catalyst for success this year, continues to prevail. “In a perfect world to win a stage in Colorado would be the dream, either for myself or the team,” said Britton.

The USA Pro Challenge is set to begin this coming Monday where Rob Britton and Team Smartstop will once again be the underdogs against some formidable WorldTour squads.