Bicycle racing returns to the streets of Pacific Grove!
The Butterfly Criterium hadn’t been run since 1978 (when it was won by a young punk named Greg Lemond), so it was good to see a great Pacific Grove tradition revived.
Rounding the corner by the post office.
The Start/Finish area on Lighthouse Ave.
The pro women’s race.
Spectators enjoying classic Pacific Grove summer weather. Cold, windy and damp.
Pro, Logan Loader, takes a turn at full speed.
Three riders open a gap in the Cat. 3 race.
Let’s just hope they don’t wait another 30 years before doing this again!
Xasáuan Today 
Thanks for the nice entry. It was really cold that day of the race. I wish i could have been there to watch it.
The 1978 1,2,Pro Pacific Grove criterium was not won by Greg Lemond. It was won by Kevin Lutz. Three guys broke away–Lemond, Lutz and Bob Cook. Lutz won the sprint, and Greg Lemond’s second-place finish was stripped from him when it was revealed that he had used senior gearing even though he was still a junior (against the rules). I know this because I raced with the juniors that day. I watched the senior 1,2,Pro race with some friends. I saw Lemond in the field, and thought he has rolling out a big gear. Race officials examined his bike after the race, and discovered he had switched his gears just before the race. This story also made the cover of Velo News back them.
Also, the last year the race was held was 1980. I know because I also raced Pacific Grove in 1979 and 1980, when a spectator stepped out on the course during the junior race, and was hit. A subsequent lawsuit ended the event.
My mistake–the correct spelling is LeMond.
Interesting. A local legend bites the dust. The last of the old Butterfly Criteriums that I was actually there for must have been ’76 or ’77. The year it was won by George Mount. They had a rule that you were eliminated if you got lapped and George attempted to eliminate the entire field in the opening laps. Didn’t succeed at that, but still had no difficulty riding away to a solo win in the closing laps.
I just stumbled upon this article. Thanks for correcting the record Brian but the facts are still a little off. I did win the race and beat LeMonster in a break with him and Bob Cook ……in 1979. The Butterfly Criterium was held until at least 1980 because I won it that year too. Both wins were covered in Velo-news and I still have old copies.