A running account of the "race without an entry fee"..... The Tuesday night ride

Tuesday the 23rd

Aren't you glad you rode tonight?

The passing thunderstorms kept the field on the light side tonight. By ride time thought, the rain had stopped for the most part and as everyone headed further north, the roads were dryer and dryer...

    Chris C was up front as soon the flag dropped. Mike McG was there as well the Gibertoni to make sure he wouldn't sneak off. The ride mostly was quiet for the first several miles. No one was attacking on the early on. A disruption in the paceline up front as the ride got closer to the light on route 68 triggered a shift response and a few guys jumped up to try to nab the lihgt. It was green all the way and everyone made it thru no problem. Construction on the first part of Moss Farms closed everyone down and it took a little while to get back going again.
      Once it did, guys like Ciocci. RalpheeBaby Allen, Nuemotion and a couple of others were pushing the pace and got a bit of a gap but it was all together for the rest of the way to the Chicane. Chris C upped the ante on the riser up to Marion and a few guys followed him.... Pescatori, Ciocci, Hunter P, Special Ed, etc. Again, gaps were few and far between, although Chris C and Special Ed looked to keep the hammer down as the ride went by the turn for the short loop. They had help from The Best-Looking-Ralph-Ever, and Hunter P. Gruppo Compacto to the light on 322.
      After the light, it slowed down a bit and everyone recollected. It took a but to get going again and Guido ( good to see him back ) was ever so patient with the ride as the field lolly-gagged its way to the construction zone. The more delicate guys in the field held sway and it was declared a neutral section thru the dirt road. Guido helped spark interest in going fast once everyone got thru the dirt and had a chance to wipe down their Asian-made plastic bikes. From there it was fast as a few guys hit the front running ( Rusty, Chris C, Nuemotion, Rory D, Mountain Man, etc ). As the ride came up on the turnaround, Ciocci ride off and was allowed to go. Chris B then poked out of the field and quickly took a gap in the crucial 150 meters before the corner to Welch. The only one to go with him was Hunter P and the 2 rolled off a gap, went up and over Ciocci and extended it nearly the whole way to the hill thanks to Chris B's blatant disregard for the sprint coming up. Behind the peleton seemed content with letting the chips fall as they may, giving the break the chance to fall short. Chris C and Ralph A? did jet off the front right before the hill kicked. Up front, the 2 leaders worked well together and Hunter P easily got the points as Chris B didn’t contest after being the early afterburners for the escape.
      The ride came back together on the backside without any incident or anyone thinking about attacking. Chris C did seem feisty during a couple of moments but the field was attentive or the lights were red, keeping everyone together. Together aaaaaaaaall the way back into Cheshire and over 322. The pace was tempo at best. Guido again picked up the slack up front on a couple of occasions. Going up the false flat on Peck, no real action... The ride has gotten too friendly as of late. More people need to be less concerned with looking like they are calm and composed and actually try to fight their way off the front.
      The run in to the Stop n Shop sprint was fast, with a few guys getting an early jump, ( Ciocci, Nuemotion, Chris C, The Full Nalini, etc ) Chris B was back at it and this time he brought Little T up across the gap, T had little problem taking it over Chris C and the 1 or 2 others that put up a fight. Moving thru Cheshire was uneventful, as an early red light let all catch back on and gave no one the chance to sneak off.
Once past all the lights, Ciocci fired things up on the front and then Guido continued pulling the field single file. It settled down but with the smaller field left on the road, the battle for the sit n sprint would end up shredding the peleton. The Full Nalini.The Gibertoni, and Little T ended up in front of the remains, with T taking it with a last minute surge, coming out of the Gibertoni's shadow. Up the hill chris B took it over Mountain Man, Hunter P, and the Gibertoni.

Good ride everyone!