Everyone is excited to be back together as one big happy family!
With there being no race up in East Hartford, it was back to 2011-like numbers at SGR tonight!
It was great to see a couple of the Essex crew back out again. Guess they weren't completely scared off after last week. Out of the gate,Big Red and Aaron B were ready to go. Once off route 10 the ride was a bit slow to get going though. Soon enough, the pace got going behind Wild Bill, Dillon P, Steve Grey, a rider from Class Cycles, along with others.
Aaron B pushed the pace up the early parts of the Mountain Rd, and no one went with him. He had a bit of a gap when Wild Bill jumped to bridge, and then Hunter P which created a dangerous trio off the front, and the rest of the pack got to chasing hard. The break had 200 meters at one point, but it started to come back as everyone drew close to the light on route 68/70. The light was red, and it was grouppo compacto.
Onto Moss Farms, where the Body Over Bikes guys pushed it thru the corner, along with Hacker, Chris C, The Sernyak, Hunter P, Steve B, and Aaron B. The reaction was quick from the pack, and it came back together soon after. Hacker jumped and attacked once more, taking along Kevin M and Rich N. Traffic at the 4-way intersection brought it all back together. Going up to Marion, Little T jumped along with Dillon P, but that fell apart a little way up the road as Bill Clark, Scala, Aaron B, Costa Rica John, and a couple of others chased hard.
Then Aaron B led off the front with Kevin M and Hutner P. That stretched it out as the ride came up to the light on 322. The light was green but there was a trailer that wasn't turning right away, which caused a problem when everyone shot thru on the far right. The leaders in the pack were in a tough spot. Slamming on the brakes when the whole pack saw green could have caused a pileup. So slipping thru as best as possible was probably the only option.
Four riders got thru first and then kept the hammer down. Steve B, Rich N, Turner French and Steve Grey. That group got to work heading onto Mount Vernon.
Back in the pack, CW and BoB took care of early pace-setting, but it was a bit short of a full-on chase. Wild Bill then hit the front, then Joe K, then Costa Rica John and Aaron B. That got the pace going. More tricky riding around a UPS truck by Mount Southington slowed everyone down, giving the break a few more minutes.
Up front, Steve B was setting a big pace, and as the break hit the false flat section on Mount Vernon, Turner French and Rich N were dropping off the pace. The two up front stayed on it though. Wild Bill put in another dig as the pack rolled thru the false flat section. Xander Beck and Hacker also pushed the pace, which brought the gap back to the two leaders. Before the catch was made, there were some shenanigans from Aaron B, Erin Rand, Hunter P, and Costa Rica John, but the bullets were spent by the time the two leaders came back for good.
As everyone reshuffled, there was a big surge from Class Cycles, Costa Rica John, Wild Bill, and Hunter P. That let Noah Black slip off the front going the corner for Welch, and the pack let him roll. Aaron B tried to encourage a bit of a chase as everyone got close to the uphill corner, but overall it was mellow. Then Little T jumped for at the base of the hill, Steve Grey jumped, Costa Rica John, Aaron B, Kevin M, HUnter P, Hacker, and Steve B all jumped as well. Noah was caught, Kevin M kept chasing, and LIttle T led everyone out into the wind. Aaron B jumped first for the sprint, but Costa Rica John was able to stay with him and then scoot around for the sprint with Hunter P rolling in behind.
The front group of sprinters kept on it and then caught a green light. They got held up at the next light though, which gave the pack a chance to catch back. Chris C gave someone an ear full, but most didnt know what he was talking about, which often would qualify as senility. Then Chris was trash-talking Mike Hons, mistaking him as Hunter P, which is also a sign of you-know-what.
Everyone stayed together heading back into Cheshire. Bill Clark, the Sernyak, and one other tried to sneak off the front but no dice. The pace stayed calm all the way to the base of the greenhouse climb. Costa Rica John was the first to jump on the climb. Then the pace slowed down a bit as no one was eager to test themselves into the wind. Evan B rolled off the front briefly, then Mike Williams and Steve B punched it. That got the pace going up the rest of the climb but the light was red at the top. Costa Rica John, Aaron B, Hons and Hunter P jumped hard on green, then Little T started the sprint from a ways back. Aaron B then jumped with Hunter P behind. Aaron sat up after passing T, giving Hunter P the sprint.
There were the usual attacks on Coleman and Boulder but nothing stuck. Billy Clark, hit the front, then Wild Bill, then Costa Rica John, then Hunter P with Scala on the early uphill of Tuttle. It was all together, though by the downhill on Tuttle. For the finale, Little T took the sprint in front of the usual crew.
