WHEN FORMULA 1 DRIVERS GO ROGUE

Words and Images - James Raison

The Covid-content-crunch has been hard on all cycling media outlets so I wanted to tell my strangest cycling story of 2020. I figure the return of Formula 1 is a perfect time to talk about the time Valtteri Bottas lined up for a Tuesday night Adelaide crit and I might have (did) sold photos to a Finnish lifestyle magazine… It’s a weird story.

THE RIGHT PLACE ALWAYS AT THE SAME TIME

The post-Tour Down Under glow of January 28 was a simpler time. It was before we knew 2020 would get all 2020 on us, and the day when Finnish Formula 1 driver (8 time race winner and 2019 World Drivers’ Championship runner-up) donned a dapper red shower cap, shoved some pins through his custom kit, and risked his entire career for a chance at club crit glory.

Most would expect an international sporting celebrity competing at amateur level to draw media attention but the fine folks at Norwood Cycling Club (NCC) protected Valtteri’s privacy. The fact he was in Adelaide at all was enough to make the news. But NCC respected his privacy and kept the media in the dark. They did tell one camera-carrier within the media spectrum though. Me.

Imagine lining up against a Formula 1 driver…

I’ve spent the last year or more shooting a lot of NCC’s races and giving free access for the participants to use. The club is packed with hard working volunteers busting their butts to put on races so I enjoy lending some time and expertise to capture the event, fill up social media streams, and perhaps attract more people to the races. The club gave me the heads-up about Valtteri because they knew I’d shoot the race anyway but be chilled about it.

NCC crits are quite spicy in January as riders hit peak fitness for the Aussie Summer. B-Grade is the stomping ground of the Australian Institute of Sport and Australian Cycling Academy Womens squads, and a bevvy of strong local provocateurs make sure the pace is hot. Victoria Park’s short course rewards the powerful with the flat course mostly spent at full-gas, and one corner forcing a hectic sprint on exit to hang onto the bunch. It’s legendary for wind whipping across its open expanse too.

So how did Valtteri do? Not well. But that’s to be expected. Formula 1 drivers tend to love their cycling but the surge-heavy-high-power of crit racing is outside of their wheelhouse. The F1 elite tend to be exceptional triathletes for their ability to sustain tempo-efforts. Valtteri quickly fell off the back and ended up a couple of laps down by the end. Despite this, I still rate B-Grade as the appropriate place for him because it’s a shenanigan-free pack where someone on an estimated $8 million USD salary can race safely.

Valtteri saw out the full race time before generously lingering after for some selfies with the excited punters, then bid a hasty exit before any media trucks rolled up.

GEAR AND TECH

He was aboard a Canyon Ultimate, rocking a mixed DT Swiss and Roval wheel combo, SRAM Red eTap HRD. His kit was a fantastically Finnish custom set from Pedal Mafia resplendent with his number, flags, and the slogan “Never Give Up”.

It was an interesting setup; high-end for sure but not the pampered and immaculate setup one might expect from a multi-millionaire. There were more expensive, newer, and more exotic bikes across all of the grades. He must’ve been waiting for the baffling Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 bike that was announced a couple of weeks later to general bemusement and seemingly forgotten as the world slid into Covi-pocalypse.

F1 COMES (BACK) TO VICTORIA PARK

Adelaide’s premiere criterium track, the beloved Victoria Park, has a strong connection to Formula 1. Most of its tarmac was used by the Adelaide Grand Prix from 1985-1995, the Le Mans race in 2000, and been the Supercars season opener since 1999. It hosted the Adelaide Motorsport Festival too which has featured some retro F1 cars.

Racing at Victoria Park then, depending on course format, can mean crossing the start/finish line of the racing circuit, rumbling over grid markings, and riding colourful curbs. Wet days can be hazardous as water brings dormant motor oils and fluids to the surface if the race is held close to the Supercars event. The summer criteriums also happen during the incremental creep of barriers and grandstands as the complex converts to a race track ahead of March.

Valtteri then was using the same tarmac is Finnish F1 drivers Mika Hakkinen and Mika Salo. Pretty cool, right?

HOW DID THIS EVEN HAPPEN?

It turns Valtteri was hanging out in Adelaide ahead of the Melbourne Grand Prix with his partner and sterling Australian cyclist Tiff Cromwell from Canyon/SRAM. She’d also been here through January training for, and racing at, the Tour Down Under. That’s all there is to it. At the time their relationship was kept quiet. Unfortunately I found myself answering far more questions about their relationship than I was interested in doing.

WHAT WAS THAT THING ABOUT THE FINNISH LIFESTYLE MAGAZINE?

My phone was quite literally buzzing the next day with messages and queries. Word had got around that I was the only photographer there. My set of 30 unseen photos was suddenly valuable. I’d shot the whole race and captured everyone there but Valtteri certainly got more attention than most. I wasn’t actively shopping them out, but answered questions with the same answer: yes I’ve got photos, and no I haven’t shared them. Late afternoon saw me bored of dealing with tyre kickers and putting together an Instagram post with Valtteri’s shots. Uploading would render them monetarily valueless since they’d already been shared for free but I’m no paparazzi so I didn’t really care.

That was until I got a phone call about potential interest from Finland.

The next 3 nights saw some very strange late-night emailing between myself and a Finnish media buyer/re-seller. They wanted to purchase and on-sell the photos to a “lifestyle” magazine. I didn’t really know what that meant, but a deal was struck, the photos were transferred, and apparently I no longer own the rights to these photos in Finland. Being a nerd, and a long-time lover of Formula 1 and cycling, I decided to put together an extensive list of details for the buyer in the hopes whatever article would be steered towards the sporting interest. I sent it through, and crossed my fingers that the photos were destined for a classy publication.

Instead of answering questions about sport I got a slew of uncomfortable, often repeated, relationship questions that I would’ve abstained from answering even if I’d known any information. As you can see below, the final article looks to have focused largely on relationship information. I don’t speak Finnish, so maybe I’m wrong, but I doubt it.

THE LEARNINGS

I’ve found a couple of takeaways from this experience. Firstly, you need to reconcile selling photos with losing control over how they’re used. I’ve spent hundreds of hours shooting bike races for free so it’s tough to refuse a pay day when they come around. Still, I carry some guilt for my role as accidental paparazzi, even without knowing what the final article says.

Second, the people at Norwood Cycling Club are awesome. They respected Valtteri and Tiff’s privacy and valued their attendance more than the media attention and extra spectating that would’ve come to the race by shouting it from the rooftops.

Thirdly; cycling is such a fantastic sport for the ability to mix elite athletes with everyday amateurs. Adelaide races regularly regularly feature professionals, olympians, and elite cyclists from other disciplines all sharing tarmac. It’s wonderful, and something that local race fans don’t take for granted.

Finally, Valtteri seems like an awesome dude. He was friendly, seeming almost shy, and indulged the Formula 1 fanboy cyclists who approached with misty-eyes and requests for a photo. We who frequent NCC Summer crits can only hope he comes back to pin on the numbers again.