Cathy Clark claims glory in the Bee Super Bowl Challenge
SANDPOINT — We're still waiting to hear back from the higher-ups, but we may change the name of the annual Bee Super Bowl Challenge to the Clark Super Bowl Challenge.
That's because for the third time in six years a member of the Clark family has won the Bee Super Bowl Challenge. This time it was Cathy Clark who claimed all the glory and the $100 prize.
Cathy predicted the Tampa Bay Buccaneers would upset the Kansas City Chiefs 31-17 and Tom Brady would take home the Super Bowl MVP for a fifth time. Cathy was eight points off the actual score and she nailed the MVP.
Her two twin daughters, Amy and April, won the challenge in 2016 and 2020 respectively. Luck and educated guesses seem to run in the family.
Submitting picks for the Bee Super Bowl Challenge is a yearly tradition for the Clarks. Amy, April, Cathy and Cathy's husband, Wayne, email in a pick separate from one another and once they have all turned one in they share their selections with each other so they can have a friendly competition on Super Bowl Sunday.
"It's fun," Cathy said. "We really enjoy doing it. Every year, it's something we look forward to."
Cathy admitted she was a bit surprised that she ended up winning the challenge due to the lack of scoring by the Chiefs. She kept rooting for Kansas City and Patrick Mahomes to find the end zone just once in the fourth quarter, but the Bucs' defense shut them down.
Despite not getting any help from the Chiefs late in the game, Amy and April kept reassuring their mom she was going to win. Cathy said her daughters kept texting her throughout the night as the score continued to trend in her direction and they kept telling her, "Mom, I think you got this."
"You hope you're going to win, but then when you do it's like oh my gosh," Cathy said about her reaction to winning.
Last year, the Clark family watched the big game together. This year, Cathy and Wayne watched the Super Bowl inside the confines of a hotel room in Boise and away from their two youngest daughters.
After realizing victory was hers, Cathy made sure to let everyone in the family know it was her time to shine. She'll have bragging rights in the family until another Clark can win the challenge, which could be next year at this rate.
The only one that remains without a Bee Super Bowl Challenge win is Wayne. Cathy said he nearly won the challenge a few years back and she joked about holding this victory over his head until he emerges victorious.
"Yeah, I could," she laughed.
Of the 70 picks that were submitted for the Bee Super Bowl Challenge, 47 picked the Chiefs. Cathy rolled with the underdog for two reasons — Tom Brady and defense.
"I knew that the Bucs had a good defense so that's why I went that way," she said, "but I just wasn't sure on the Chiefs and how high they would score, so I thought well I'll just go low on them."
Cathy, 63, is an assistant manager at the local Goodwill. She has worked there for 12 years and plans to retire on March 11.
Cathy could use the $100 to buy an early retirement gift for herself, but instead she plans on taking the whole family out for dinner to celebrate the Clarks' continued dominance of the Bee Super Bowl Challenge and to begin strategizing for next year's Super Bowl.
If there was one thing we learned from this year's Super Bowl it's this: Don't listen to the experts, listen to the Clarks.