Never give a gun to a duck
Last night was one of the better nights of the summer for the SG ride. There was no Tuesday night training race at Rentschler Field, so the ride had a big boost of get-up-and-go (Brian Wolfe, Aidan C, Rich Nadeau, Aaron Black, Mike Williams and a couple of others).
As a reminder, the SG ride next week will head north to throw down in the final training race of the summer at the 'rent. Should be a good night of fast racing. No doubt there will still be some out in Hamden but the real action will be at the crit.
Right off route 10 tonight, Dillon P and Tommy K rolled off the front and set to work building up a gap. There was no immediate chase. The pace stayed honest and a kilo later, they were back in the pack. From there Mr Black went to work ramping up the speed. He'd spend several minutes upfront pushing things along. Behind, Chris C, Hacker, Alan B, Mike W, and Rich N kept him on a short leash and pulled through a lot too. Great to see Tall John mixed up in the washing machine upfront as well. The first attack came from Hunter P, who tried to sneak off before the light on route 68/70. MrBlack jumped off the front as well but the light was red, and it was all together heading onto Moss Farms.
Alan B took to the front there and ramped it up early on, with Black behind him. Rich N and Hunter P responded as well, and as that group came to a draw off the front, Ciocci and MJA attacked hard in unison. Those two got a good gap that they were able to hold onto nearly the rest of the way down Moss Farms. Chris C jumped late to bridge and that got the rest of the pack to fill in behind.
The corner into the chicane was fast and with the chase going full-bore, the field got strung out in a hurry. Kyle C hit the rise to Marion hard, and then Hunter P attacked again, getting a gap thru the corner. In a few hundred meters, Alan B, Black, Rich N, Mike W, Henk P, MJA and a couple of others bridged up. That made for a dangerous group up the road that the pack wouldn't ignore. Efforts from the Sernyak, Brian G, Chris C, Brian Wolfe, and Aidan C kept it close. It was all together going past the industrial park. A few more attempts off the front before the light but they were half-hearted.
Onto Mount Vernon, where Black, Alan B, The Sernyak, and a couple of others cue'd up on the front but it stayed together. There was another attack off the front going up the false flat, led by the usual guys, but that didnt get too far. Alan B stayed on the gas and broke loose as the field was coming back together/resetting for the turnaround. He would hang onto a 3-5 second gap turning onto Welch. A couple of hundred meters later it was all together.
Heading thru the corner onto West Street, Black was upfront along with Steve Grey and Chris C. A new guy in an italian jersey as well (Name?). The pace was fast into the sprint, with Chris C doing a final big pull, sending Hunter P off his wheel to take the sprint just ahead of Little T. The fast guys behind tried to keep it rolling on the backside but there were too many thinking the same thing + a red light by I84.
From there, the pace slowed down a bit as the ride rolled back into Cheshire. Black would try again on Atwater st, and then on West Johnson heading into the light on route 10. Both times it was sewed up. Alan B, and MJA responsible for most of the pacing.
Sean Cahill attacked hard early on East Johnson, and he took along MJA. They didn't get too far as the long downhill by the greenhouses makes it hard for just a couple of guys to ride clear. Onto Cheshire Rd where Max A, Dan Smith, Brian W and Girard got involved in a big push off the front that almost went clear, but again, too many guys not willing to be far from the front meant it was altogether for the climb up route 70.
That entire stretch saw Alan B lead it out with Hunter P glued to his wheel. Sean C, MJA, BLack, Chris C, Aidan C, Ciocci, Kyle C and a couple of others shuffled around a bit behind them, but overall it was a very fast pace up the hill. It was enough to split the field. The light was red though which gave the guys wanting to sprint for the orchard sign a chance to jump out front and the fighters who were gapped a chance to latch back on.
Alan B rolled off the red light fast and had a gap. Sean C and Black came through and caught him. Hunter P jumped off the wheel of a "where's the sprint line" Black to take the points. Alan B, of course, tried to roll off the front. He had company, but there were enough guys to fill in the gaps and catch back on before the light.
The rest of the ride was steady. MJA had a couple of digs, Max A, Chris C, Black as well. Black attacked the hill on Boulder Rd, Sean C and Dan Smith were up there too. There was a small gap turning onto Tuttle but during the downhill it came all back. The rest of the ride was steady fast. For the finish, a bunch of guys ripped thru the final corners in position. A brief slow down let Hunter P attack with 500 meters to go. Alan B and Dan Smith went with him. There was some touch of wheels, a hard brake check, some line crossing, nearly an accident. Once things got sorted out, a big push from The Senryak, Steffen H, MJA, Black and a couple of others was needed to bring Alan B back. In the end, it was MJA, Black and then Steffen H taking the final race.
