Points
Tuesday the 30th
Nothing Like Rolling the Dice on a Tuesday Night
There was a smaller group out tonight. About 30 or so. Jon F, and Hacker were back, which was good to see. Right off the bat, or in this instance, right off Route 10
Hunter P attacked immediately after route 10. He was joined a bit later by Turner F, Evan W, Noah B and Little T. That group came together on South Brooksvale, and held a solid gap onto Mountain Rd. At the stop sign for Higgans, cars were turning everywhere, maybe not stopping, maybe rolling thru the intersection, but so were the riders. That slowed the break down enough to to allow the chase to come back. Turner F rolled a bit off the front before the light but it was staying together to the light.
Nothing too exciting happened on Moss Farms. Hunter P attacked hard going past the industrial park and had a gap going to the light. It was green for him, and the entire pack sitting 100 meters behind. That brought it all back togehter for Mount Vernon.\
Aside
from a brief dig by the Bodies Over Bike guys ( Rich N and Thomaas B) the pace was
lackadaisical leading up to the turnaround. Evan W attack ed
on Welch an was allowed to roll. Soon after Sean M rolled off the front and joined, making it two off the front pushing hard. They would hit the base of the hill with a couple hundred meters. The two worked hard well together, with Sean M pulling the majority of the way to the sprint and thru the top of the hill first. Behind for the pack, a red light right before the sprint, and stacked cars at that light negated the sprint, even tho a couple of guys went for it. The two up front tried to maintain a gap
but the lights on the downhill brought everything together.
Hunter P and Hacker put an attack going thru the chicane onto Atwater. They snuck thry a yellow light before the highway off ramp. Behind, a
questionable decision by the field to follow through the red kept them in check. Later on Atwater, TK and Henk escaped off the front timing it very nicely with
the traffic light at route 10 and that would be the last they were seen
for the evening. While there was some discussion of putting together a
chase, any attempts were disorganized and so the group sputtered along
to the base of greenhouse.
Tuesday the 23rd
Hey Who's That Guy?!
The ride tonight started off lazily. Nothing really happened until Mountain Rd, when Turner French and Noah B took off the front. Hunter P bridged up but the light was red. Turner F stayed at the front on
Moss farms keeping the pace high but there were no attacks, no gaps.
Right before the Chicane,
MJA unfortunately lost his camera and computer on some bumps. In a sign of priorities gone wrong, he stopped to U-turn to go back to collect them. That tempered the overall approach to the
light on 322.
Turner and Sean M looked like they were getting ready to
send it early on Mount Vernon which got everybody at attention. A group
of six or seven with all the teams represented rolled off the front but
couldn't get the speed high enough to make the gap stick.
The pace reset on Mount Vernon, but with about 750 meter to the corner for Welch, Sean Maher, Chris Brits and
Turner French hit the front and had a couple of rotating attacks. That would go onto to spring Sean M, Sean Cahill and a late joining
Hunter P. Those three got to work and took a 150 meter gap into
the corner on Welch. Right after the peleton turned the corner, Evan Woodford attacked hard off the front. Surprisingly, no one went with him and he efficiently made his
way up to the group before the hill leading into the corner.
On the hill, Little T and Turner jumped off the front. Little T crossed the gap first with a couple hundred meters left to sprint, with Turner coming across soon after. T was able to get thru the sprint first with the breakaway staying largely intact behind him.
On the back
side the group of riders, now six strong, came together but red lights
kept them from staying off the front of the pack.
It
stayed together from there. Going all the way back over route 10 to the
greenhouse climb. Early on the climb there. Evan Woodford attacked off
the front and was allowed to get a gap. It fell upon Turner French to
set the pace up the climb and chase the break. It was down to
about 50 meter or so when Evan snuck through the light alone. That gave him a
clear run into the Sprint point. Behind Sean Cahill was the first to
wind it up for the group coming off of the stoplight. Hunter P jumped on
his wheel and then came around but let off the gas too soon, allowing
little T the chance to come around.
From there, Evan W would be caught early on during the backroads. It stayed together, with Little T getting the final sprint.
.
Tuesday the 16th
Mo-Mo-Motoring Along
Evan W and MJA were all over the place in the first half. Off the front, on the front, chasing the front.
Little T with the Turnaround Sprint
Heading over route 10 on the return, Turner French and MJA picked up a the draft from a car on East Johnson and in a blink, were gone for the night.
Tuesday the 9th
It's like the real housewives of the Peleton
The families were all back together after the Rent wrapped up last week. So with the Blacks, Steve B, Sean C, Hunter P and NHA back in the fold, it was sure to be an exciting ride. However, the heat and humidity was turned up to 11 so that would serve to tamp down the top end of plenty of guys.
Once again, right at the start, Hunter P took off and was allowed to roll solo. He held a gap until halfway down Mountain Road. Hacker, Thomaas B and Brian Suto Returns were among those chipping in to keep the pace high as the pack slowly got up to speed. As the break was getting close, Turner French accelerated an split off a small chase with Sean Maher and MJ-The-finish-line-is-my-Pants-Alio. That made for a fearsome group up front but the pace wasn't there to keep the gap going, so it was all back together towards the end of Mountain Rd.
The pace chilled a bit on Moss Farms but there were a few moves and there. Joe K rolled off the front, which got Hacker going along with a couple of others. Then past the chicane, Little T took off up to Marion but that was short-lived. Then Steve B rolled off the front and had gap. Sean Maher did a big pull to bring him back and it was all together for the light. Steve went right back to it after the intersection, but with Turner French and Hunter P also attacking, the entire pack sped up it response.
The trip down Moss Farms was uneventful. Solid pace but no attacks or breakaways. The pace wound up on Welch for the turnaround, and Little T launched it into the headwind. A few guys were there to match his pace, and then just as guys started to look at each other, Steve B launched a well-timed attack for the line. That was successful, and Steve B took it. Behind, Little T rolled over next with Hunter P behind.
It all came back together on the backside and there were no big moves until getting back into Cheshire. MJA pushed hard past I84 but no gap. Joe K tried to make a lunge for the traffic light on 322 but it was red for him and the entire pack (which was down to about half it's original size as guys withered under the heat)
Onto the Greenhouse climb where Turner French took the early reigns on the front, setting a solid pace. When Hunter P was done at the front, Sean Cahill hit it with a well-timed attack and was off to the races for the line. He would not be caught. Behind him, Hunter wound it up shortly after the light. He took off with Little T on his wheel and was able to hold it to the line for 2nd after the fast greenhouse climb. Sean C was collected after that, and it was all back together for the run in back to Hamden.
MJA had a couple of digs on the rollers in Hamden, which served to keep everyone on their toes. Then, on the top of Boulder Sean M took off again. He hit the downhill hard but was being chased hard by Hacker and MJA. He would get swallowed up with a couple hundred meters to go. Steve B launched it for the sprint off Turner French's wheel. Little T had a bit of a gap to make up but he would get his revenge when Steve B sat up a hair as the road flattened (but well before the line). Timing this finish, which is one of Connecticut's most tricky semi-amatuer, half-pro, long-lived, much-hyped, ego-bruising, heart-stopping finishes is difficult. Little T continues to have the charge for it. He went over the line first, then Steve B, followed by MJA.
Great ride everyone!
Tuesday the 2nd
SPRINT POINTS!
Turnaround
Sean M
Little T
Turner French
Greenhouse Climb
Little T
TK
Sean M
Finishing Sprint
Little T
Turner French
Rich Nadeau
Tuesday the 18th
We'll Miss You Brian O
Brian is moving back to Co-Co-Colorado. He's been a force on the road during his time in Connecticut. He'll be missed. It was great weather to welcome all to the SGR to see him off. It was a hot one for sure. There were probably many that were hoping to ease into the ride tonight but once the ride turned off route 10 Hunter P took off. He was joined right away by Steve B and Chris Brits.
The chase was on pretty much right away. A couple of streets later. Turner French was coming up to the group. Chris Brits came off, and there was some parked/stalled/loitering cars that made it tricky for the peleton to stick together. All the same, it was all together coming up to the light on route 68. From there, onto Moss Farms, more attacks led to Sean M and Steve B getting off the front as the pack went past the industrial park. Behind, Sean Cahill was chasing to get up to them lickedy-split.
The light was just green enough for the two in front, but Sean C stopped, along with the rest of the pack. That would be all the leaders would need to stay away for good.
There were some spicy moments for the pack near the turnaround. Good to see Damien Roy at the ride. He was pushing the pace hard on the pack heading up to the corner to West St. Sean C took consolation by getting across the sprint point for 3rd.
On the backside, Hunter P snuck off the front moving thru the lights / I84 ramps getting onto Atwater. The pack waited and then got help up by some ramp traffic. No one wanted to go hard in hard in the heat.
Up front, Steve B rolled off from Sean M on the Greenhouse climb. That's how the evening ended. Three lone riders off the front of heat-stricken peleton looking for the ice cream stop.
Tuesday the 11th
Another "Retro" Evening at SGR
Another night of good vibes at the ride this week. Most of the usual strongmen were up at the 'Rent for the crit there. So it was smoother and steady sailing tonight at SGR. The workload was spread politely among most of the riders in a fairly well organized pace line for nearly the entire evening.
No
attacking or team tactics. Things got a little spicy before each of
the sprints but in a fun way. There was a strong tailwind for the way back south, which only added to the speed and steady cruising pace.
For the sprints, it was copy and paste each time:
Little T
Turner French
Sean Maher.
Little T
Turner French
Sean Maher.
The only exception being Hacker pushing and shoving his way onto the podium for 3rd on the final sprint.
Tuesday the 4th
Kinda nice not having ten pink jerseys attacking every two minutes.
The CCAP's TNC kicked off tonight, so a good portion of the SGR regulars were up in East Hartford. That left a small but nimble group for the ride. As expected, it was pretty smooth, with lots of people rotating through with good efforts. There were a few attacks of course.
Little T jumped on Welch from the base of the turnaround sprint and solo'd to get the first sprint. Behind, Sean M was next across with Turner French in third. Those three stayed on the gas and kept a gap hopeful, but they were eventually got caught at a red light, bringing it back to grouppo compacto as Angry Ron used to say.
From
there the pace stayed steady, and it was great to have new guys getting in the
mix. Matt, the Amity Bike Tri guy, in his second or third week at the SGR, is proving to be pretty strong and
not afraid to work at the front.
Turner French went to the
front going up the Greenhouse Climb. TK came up and took a
good pull to close the gap for his sprinter as everyone approached the light, which was green for everyone. Little T was able to take the sprint with a new guy taking second in a blue jersey (Name???) and
Sean M getting the third spot.
Sean M was not done, and he attacked to ride off the front. He kept up an impressive gap until the base of the final hill prior to the four way stop at Cook Hill. Turner Frnch jumped to close the gap, taking along Little T. Those two bridged up and both passed him by the top of the hill. Then Amity Matt bridged up, pulled through and stayed on the
gas up and over the last bump, and down the hill into the final sprint.
Turner jumped first, which is firstly too soon, and then Little T came around him to get the
last sprint. Turner and Matt rounded out the "podium"
Next week is another TNC, then everyone and their mothers should be back for what will surely be a surly SGR on the 18th.
Tuesday the 28th
Two Breakaways for the Price of One
One week the ride is boring, the next week it's back to being excited as finding that last fry at the bottom of the bag.
The group was smaller tonight. Just 23 or so out there. It was anyone's game out there. The ride got off to a rocky start though, with traffic hanging things up turning onto Mountain Rd. Then there was some aggressive overtakes by cars later on Mountain Rd. By the time that all cleared Sean M was in place to push hard to the light on route 68. Hunter P and Noah B were along for the ride, making three off the front pushing hard for a gap. The light was red though so it was all back together.
Things calmed down a bit on Moss Farms. Steve B fired it up going into the Chicane, but he was not allowed too much of a leash there. Little T and Hunter P were bridging the gap, which got everyone's attention. Steve B kept the gap going though. Going past the industrial park, the front of the ride was breaking up a bit as the chase hotted up. In the end, it would come all back together by the light on route 322.
Onto Mount Vernon, Sean M pushed off the front with Aaron B and Hunter P. That move lasted for a km or so. As it was all coming back together, Chris C pushed off the front. Then Jeff Gelt bridged strong, along with Nic Villamizar. With CVC and CW represented up front, there was little chase. The trio rolled clear, getting about 250 meters at one point. Dan Smith, CedricB and one other Angel were at times ramping up the chase. The leaders had an insurmountable gap at the turnaround. Behind, Little T would launch into the deep, and there were a few to go with him. There was a brief moment when perhaps a bridging effort to the trio could be made, but that door closed quickly as the leaders were getting thru the I84 interchange lickety-split. .
The chase developed, with Hunter P and Jon Fecik getting involved it keeping the pace high. Heading back to the 322 crossing, both the leaders (or course) got thru the light quickly. But the peloton also didn't have to come to a full stop.
The leaders still had a solid 200 meters heading to route 10. Just about out of sight from the chasers. But lo- the chase got the green light going across 10 so it was clear that it would all be coming back together. the gravel construction was cleared up and it was all back to route-normale. The catch happened at the top of the hill on E Johnson, turning onto Meriden Rd.
Things calmed down for about 12 seconds. A group of 6 pushed off the front, led by Sean M. Chris C stayed up front as well, but that gap was never more than 100 meters. Sean Cahill and Steve B were getting into position coming up to the Greenhouse Climb. That rounded up everyone for the climb.
The ride split up again on the climb, with the front 5-6 guys pushing off the front early on, and stronger riders hanging back for the second half of the climb. Steve B took acorss the gap with Hunter P and a few others on his wheel. He went across the gap and then off the front as the climb was ending. That led to a proper sprint for the line, which Little T jumped late for and nabbed, with Noah B and Sean Cahill on his wheel.
After the turn off 70, Sean M rolled off the front again but was not allowed to go anywhere alone. More gaps during the next couple of streets, but it stayed all together as there were no big attacks. the next big move was the one that was going to go the distance. Steve B pushed off the front on the Tuttle uphill. Sean M and Jon Fecik were there as well. Behind, the Black Bros slowed the chase down just enough for the group to go clear by the 4-way stop sign/intersection. The chase was moderate. The leaders were drilling it.
The break stayed clear by a plentiful margin,. Steve B was first across that final sprint line.
Great ride to wrap up the month of May. Next week, the CCAP's TNC kicks off at Rentschler Field. There are just 4 weeks of that series (June 4th, 11th, 25th, and July 2nd) but each week will feature full results reported to USAC. The next big week at SGR will be on the 18th.
Tuesday the 21st
And Another Breakaway Gets It
The ride got off to a lazy start today. CW, without Turner French, was up there but did not attack the corners early on. Dillon P had an early push that got things going a bit. Then Brian O got going on Mountain Rd, followed by Chris C, and Steffen H. Then Cedric B, Steve B and Hunter P moved up and got involved but that got the rest of the field jumping across the gap. Brian O tried one last push before the light but it was red so it all came back together.
Onto Moss Farms, the pace didn't ramp up too much. CW hovered near the front, A couple of Angels were up there, Rusty as well. Brian O pushed off the front and was allowed to roll clear Sean Cahill lit it up going over a rise that made things interesting into the chicane, but it stayed all together, chasing Brian O. It was together soon after though, in time for crossing 322. the light was green, giving the entire pack a free pass there.
On the other side, Brian O again rolled off the front. This time, Steffen H jumped up and got up the road, making it two off the front with a 100-meter gap getting onto Mount Vernon. Behind, CW was sitting on. Then, a little way down the road, Hunter P was found taking lackluster pulls at the front, giving the two a chance to get another 100 meters or so. Always in sight, though. The chase was left to CVC, who were missing their power forward, Sean M. Little T, Tommy K Video, and mostly Chris C, were driving the pace up front.
Gettting near the end of Mount Vernon, Jeff G took a flyer with a NHAngel rider, and then Sean Cahill jumped across to them both. After seeing he was along in the briding attempt, Sean C was all in, and quickly made his way into the gap to the two leaders. He would get up there with a few hundred meters until the corner for Welch. That made for 3 up the road and gaining on the rest.
Behind, a group of 5 or 6 led by Noah B and Chris C split off the front and into the gap. Little T jumped from the chase, taking Steve B with him. Neither had much of a chance to catch the trio up front. On the lead into the sprint, a couple of surges each from Brian O and Sean Cahill, and the teammates were able to shake Steffen H from the group. Those two took the sprint point with no struggle for the line. Behind, Steve B (?) was able to get across the line next in front of a shattered peleton. One rider who was crushing it, though was Inma Ruz, who
It all came back together on the downhills and across the highway. The next action saw Steve B jumping off the front at Atwater, just past the hill. He would eke out a couple of seconds, which was on the way to being erased as all made their way to the 322 crossings. Steve B had a legit gap going under the yellow light there. The rest, just 30 meters behind, properly stopped for the red. That gap was all Steve B needed to finish up the ride alone, although he would not catch the two leaders.
Tuesday the 14th, Con't...
Steve B was not going to be caught, and everyone knew it.
For some reason, a couple of the Magenta guys persisted in riding as though there was a need to defend the gap and discourage the chase. The pace turned silly-lazy for a while. The competitive element of the ride was over at that point. There were no more sprints to take. No more points to give out.
Everyone rolled thru the detour in orderly fashion. The speed picked up a bit going down Blacks Rd but that was gravity talking. As everyone made the right-hander to get back on course before the Greenhouse climb, Steve B came charging by, determined to create Gap2.0.
Seems he did the normal route, riding thru the road construction and then back at the breakaway until meeting the shortcutting peleton. At this point everyone was throttled down and piddling (pittling?) along and so Steve rolled off and up the sprint climb alone.
At the bottom of the climb, Chris C was apparently done with his extended recovery interval, got fed up with the "blocking" antics, and yelled at Brian O to move out of the way so that those who would actually like to ride bikes could do so. Brian nodded in acknowledgement with his dominant butt-cheek but didn't quite relent either. That continued up the climb at an impressive 250w until Chris went out of his way to push, curb, or ride Brian O into the yellow line. Only problem is a car was oncoming. The car had to brake, hit the horn, and Brian had to do a bit of evasive maneuvering.
That started the shouting match between Chris C and the CW guys. Thank goodness everyone was rolling forward or else they'd be punches thrown.
Oh wait, there were punches "thrown" anyway. As the two jawed, Brian may or may not have taken a swing at Chris C. And then he may have tried to crash Chris in a subsequent corner.
That's how it ended up. Sure the pace got going near the finish and there was some sprinting at the end, but it was all over-shadowed by the dust up that should have never happened.
Steve B racked up 5 points for definitely being the first to the Greenhouse climb, regardless of the route he took, and 2 bonus points for not getting a flat in the gravel construction section.
Tuesday the 14th
Men Turned to Boys on Their Pedal Bikes
Good weather = another good turnout for the ride. Which got started normally, and without much fuss. Turner F rolled off the front on South Brooksvale and no one cared to go with. Once he got a bit of a gap the magenta guys took up the front but there was little urgency from the rest.
Furner turned onto Mountain Road (where the ride usually gets spicy) with a 150-200 meter gap. Eventually the chase started behind. Dan S kicked it off, then Jon Fecik. Sean M had a big pull at the front that kept TF in sight. All the same, he would get to the light on 68 fifteen sec ahead of everyone else, which was enough to get thru the light. The rest had to stop for a moment or two.
Onto Moss Farms where CVC keep up the pace with some help from Fecik, Hunter P, Rusty, Cedric B, and a couple of others. Turfner had a line-drive's worth of a gap turning onto Marion. Sean M took another big dig with Ben Bruce, Brian Oliver, and Hunter P right there. That got the pace going up and gap coming down. Sean Cahill was lurking near the front and as soon as there was a lull in the chase, jumped into the gap, taking only the strongest 3 or 4 with him. Those would get up to Turnef with a couple hundred meters to the light but it was red, bringing everyone back together once more.
Onto Mount Vernon, where there were a few groups and attacks and moves off the front. More often than not it was CW busting something out with a couple of others, leaving CVC to chase. Tommy K's Video, Little T, Chris C, and Sean M all getting involved in trying to bridge, chase, counter. Getting onto Welch, Sean M would lead a group of 5 or 6 off the front. Chris Brits, Brian Oliver, Noah B and a couple of others would turn onto West St pushing hard. They opened up a small gap as the sprinters (Little T, Hunter P and TunerFun) sized up the next 30 seconds. Brian O was not waiting, and he took off alone for the sprint line. He would get it in front of Noah and Chris Brits.
On the backside it all came back together once again. The group got caught at a couple of the lights by I84 and as everyone was ramping up to get going after stopping for one, Steve B had a good jump and launched it. No one was in a position to go with him, and he would get green at the light by Jude Ln. The pack had to stop again.
That would be all Steve B would need.
Or would it!?
Tune in next time for another episode of As the Pedals Turn
Tuesday the 7th
Surprise Surprise Gravel Detour Brings Drama
Solid numbers out tonight once again. The ride will be humming along until the Tuesday night crit series kicks off at Rentchler Field. Four weeks of fully scored racing means there is no recap for SGR then. There will be guys out but most will be up north.
Back to the ride, MgntXprss was up early, bringing the pace up. Brian O and Turner along with Body Over Bike, Tom K, and Jon Fecik were all pushing the pace up front. Chris Brits had a dig off the front on Northbrooksvale but didn't get too far off the front.
Per usual, the pace ramped up on the early part of Mountain Rd, this time with David Lapierre come up to the front briefly. A small group with teams represented (Sean Cahill, Steffen H, Chris C) pushed off the front on Mountain Rd, but enough guys were there to fill in the gaps. Sean M then had a dig to get to the light. Hunter P jumped on that, and that brought the rest. The light was red anyway.
Onto Moss Farms, where the powderkeg-conditions continued. The pace was high with Turner F, Jon Fecik, the two Seans, and David L pulling through a few times. Going thru the chicane and up to Marion, everyone was together, but soon there was a gap forming to a strong group (Brian O, Sean C, David L, Brian Wolfe) pushed off and was allowed to get a gap. It was full gas going over the highway but everyone was to get the green light crossing 322. This brought it all back together, but conditions were ripe for counterattacks.
The one Rider up to the challenge was David l, who launched it off the front early on Mount Vernon. The rest were content to watch him go up the road, and he quickly built up a lead of 100m or so.
The gap yo-yoed the entire way down Mount Vernon, at times getting up to 30 seconds. Towards the end of Mount Vernon, a group of four or five, led by Jeff Gelt, pushed off the front to close the gap. That ended up with just Jeff G making it all the way up to David L, and the gap was down to 50 meters or so going through the corner for Welch. Soon, it was just David L off the front, pushing to the turnaround.
Hitting the hill before the corner, Little T jumped hard, taking along Turner F and Hunter P. Those three got up to David L soon after the corner, just in time to start playing games to the sprint. The break had a solid gap and were not getting caught from behind. Little T jumped to get it in front of Hunter P and Turner F.
On the backside, Turner dropped his chain on the downhill and had to stop. David L pushed on with Hunter P on his wheel, but a red light at Jude Lane brought it all toghter again.
Chris Brits was pushing off the fron again on the downhill but that didn't work this week and it was all together. Hunter P pushed off the front on Atwater, but that didn't last long either, and the light on 322 was red.
Once over 322, everyone was setting up for the detour (nobody wanted to race with CX bikes so we had to detour East Johnson's new gravel road section). David L attacked hard on the hill on West Johnson, taking along Hunter P. Those two hit Reinhard with 100 meters and grew the gap up the hill to the corner. Behind, the peloton moved thru the corners quickly but safely. Up front the leaders had too much of a gap and were able to build on it getting to the greenhouse climb and up it.
Never were they in sight, and that's how it wrapped up off the front.
For the pack behind, the greenhouse climb was fairly sublime as it appeared that the Raspberry Rush group had played all their cards and fatigue seemed to have set in. Little T rolled over the line at the orchard for third. There were some harder efforts once past the light at 68, but nothing stuck as far as breakaways go. Going into the sprint, Sean C started the sprint from the bottom of the bump, with Steffen H on his wheel. Little T came around them both for the finale.
Tuesday the 30th
New Faces, Same Speed
Another big group out tonight with a few tos sveral new riders out. A couple of youngsters from Verge (Aidan Vollmuth and Stpehn Savino da 3rd) were out there to throw down tonight. Aidam coming to us all the way from New Jersey! He was active up front early on, joining the likes of Sean M, Turner F, Jon Fecik, and Chris Brits.
That said, there were no big moves off the front for the first 20 min or so, all the way up to Moss Farms.
Turner F had another couple of digs on Moss farms and heading up to the route 322 overpass. A couple of times Sean M came to the front and steamrolled his way across the gap. Chris C also had a dig by the industrial park.
Onto Mount Vernon, where a group of four led by Steve B, pushed off the front but never got too far up the way. There were a few more gaps heading down Mount Vernon, but it stayed together more or less all the way to Welch. A gap opened up as guys were chasing to the corner, leading to a group of about six or seven hitting the hill with a small gap. From behind, in the chase, Turner F jumped across the gap and through the leaders on his way to taking the Sprint. David Lapierre tried to jump to keep him in check but came up a little bit short. Over the top of the rise and thru the line, it was Turner F, followed by G Money from New Haven Angles, and then Steffen H.
On the backside, it all came back together. Then near the end of the downhill stretch on West Street, Chris Brits jumped off the front before the double corner onto Atwater. He snuck away and made the light and was on his way solo. Behind, everyone was meh with the gap, watching Turner F, Sean Cahill, and Steve B instead. Brits made it count, and was able to hold it all the way to the light on 322, which he got across quickly. The pack had to wait, and that was all the lone rider needed to stay clear.
The rest of the drama for the evening was had by the peleton rolling over the chunky gravel on East Johnson. 3 or 4 flats happened in that stretch, taking out Dillon P, Chris C, and Cedric B. The ride will have to detour around this for a few weeks! Brits was not caught. Thru the greenhouse sprint it was Hunter P and then Little T next over the line. For the finale, it was Little T in front of Steve B for 2nd and 3rd place points.
Tuesday the 23rd
SGR Rookie Ignites a Proper Showdown
Another good-sized crowd out today for SGR. Once again, the medium loop was chosen at the start. Long loop fans will have to wait for next week or the week after.
Once the ride started, the pace was decently quick, with accelerations coming nearly right away from Steffen H, Steve B, Brian O, and a couple of others.
On Mountain Rd Turner French hit the gas and that split off a group of about 7 or 8 of the strongest. The group kept the gas up the series of risers early on Mountain, but the gap would start to come down as enough guys were in the chase to bring the pace up. As the connection was being made, TF surged again, and only New Haven resident Andrew Suzuki stayed with him. Those two got a gap going as there was no immediate response. The gap was about 12 seconds at the light, which everyone got green. The chase was on now, but fewer bodies were willing to bring the pace up on Moss Farms. TF and Suzuki stayed on it and the gap was holding steady at 100 meters.
The leaders had to do some traffic dodging right the chicane, but that didn't slow them down too much. Going past the industrial park, the gap came down to just a handful of seconds after Sean M had a long pull at the front. Even so, the two up front came into the light with a big enough gap that when they squeaked thru the changing light, the chase had to hold up. That was it for the night. The breakaway was back in sight briefly as the ride came back over 322 in the opposite direction, but once again the peleton had to stop and wait the light out.
The leaders would roll the rest of the ride together. Behind, the next "action" was Brian O sneaking off the front at the base of the Greenhouse climb/sprint. He had the gap but eased enough to be nearly chased down by Little T right, meaning the two split the points.
Moving to the last part of the ride, Steve and Brian attacked again a couple of times. Sean M did a bunch of work reeling them back in. Steffen H had a solid dig off the front trying to play spoiler going into the final sprint. Steve B and the Little T were able to catch and come around though. Still well-behind the breakaway though for the 4th or 5th week in a row. Next week should be another barn-burner!
Tuesday the 16th
The Raspberry Rush Keeps the Pressure On
The weather was great for the ride tonight, and there was a solid-sized group out tonight.
Early on, there were a few guys that tried to get off the front. Dillon P was pushing off the pace. He was joined by Tom Krol and at another instance, Nate Belke from New Haven Angels.
Then it started getting real, with Brian O attacking a couple of times in the first 20 min of the ride. When he went, the other Magenta guys would stop and admire for a bit, then go about figuring out who was going to go next. CBrits shot off one or twice. Steve B tried. Turner French also, but each time that set off the front 1/4 of the pack and just served to ramp up the pace.
Onto Moss Farm, where Turner French launched it as soon as he could. Hunter P and Steve B went with it, and once again, the stronger riders in the pack responded quickly. Sean Maher and Hacker foremost and urgently chasing. The attack was caught but Turner kept on it. He rolled through the chicane and up onto Marion with a 50-meter gap. Behind a chase group was forming with Hacker, Hunter P, Steve B and a couple of others. Sean M took to the front and closed the gap down a bunch, and then Brian O jumped but it was all coming back together at the light. Turner was held up as well.
As soon as the ride got going again, Brian O surged off the front along with Ben Bruce, Hacker, and Sean M. That trio had the blessing from the five families to go clear. Steve B jumped across the gap as the ride turned left onto Mount Vernon. He would eventually make the bridge up to the group. The peloton behind waited to see what would happen, and nothing did. The break would ride clear and stay clear, at least from the rest.
Later on, just past the Greenhouse climb, Steve B attacked the group. Hacker responded, taking Brian O with him. Sean M and Ben fell off, and that is the order they all finished on the night.
Next week, the long loop returns, and with it, more opportunities for everyone else to practice their spectating skills!
Tuesday the 9th
The Ride Gets Going, and So Does the Break
The first big ride of the year, featuring perfect weather and more than 35 riders out. This one was wrapped up early on. Turner French, Hacker and Chris C rolled off the front on Moss Farms and stuck the landing.
They stayed off the front for the reminder of the ride. TF did the lions share of the work pushing the break and there was no sprinting or attacking within the trio.
Behind, the pace was decent, but a couple of teams were playing defense for the break.
Tuesday the 26th
Steve B takes the sprint solo, and Turner French takes the finale with a group split by late attacks.
Tuesday the 19th
More Team Dynamics = More Successful Breaks
Turner French and Chris C rolled off a gap early on and were allowed to roll clear.
Tuesday the 12th
SGR is back in action!
There was a decent turnout for SGR#1 (short loop edition), with
about 25-30 riders at the start. Naturally, the Central Wheelies
(Wheelers, Wheelites?) had the numbers forming about 1/3 of the group at
the start and about 1/2 by the end.
The
pace at the beginning was pretty reasonable. Everyone seemed in good
spirits and the weather was about as perfect as you could hope
for, especially for mid-March in New England.
Many
of the guys out tonight were getting the outdoor bikes back into shape, and there were many
mechanical issues to be had. Right at the start, on the ride up Rt. 10,
there was a loud clang in the back and someone commented that
(apparently) Soft-spoken Paul's wheel had broken a spoke. Heading up to Mountain
Road, Rusty's gear kept slipping and catching and he had to grind up the
short little hills for a bit. And on the ride down Cheshire Road, TK
broke his saddle and had to ride the rest of the way either standing or
gently perched on it - avoiding any potholes, of which there are
aplenty. (If you follow him on Strava, you can see his picture.) And
there were several of us with very squeaky chains and rubbing gears.
Christian D's high-pitched chain was a contender for the most annoying but
that's probably because he (and probably everyone else) heard it the
whole ride. And no, he won't be pouring vegetable oil on the chain as a
CW rider begrudgingly suggested, but he will use some chain lube (for the
first time in about 4 months) or maybe it's time to wax that sucker.
As
mentioned, in the first half, there were a few attempts at breakaways,
but they were either brought back pretty quickly or thwarted by a
traffic light. It seemed Central Wheel would have a rider attack while
the rest helped block. But Crowell and his CVC cronies along with some
of the CCR regulars did the necessary work to bring those back. Some of
us just were happy to sit in the pack and watch the fireworks unfold.
We
shed a few riders along the way, but it was pretty much gruppo compacto
as we turned onto Cheshire Road. Just a bit down Cheshire Road, Turner
F. from Central Wheel attacked. Up until then, Steffen H. from CCR had
not done any attacks but had been willing to help bring breakaways back
only to have someone counter attack once they bridged back up. Having
had enough of that, the big German jumped on Turner's wheel and the two
of them sped off. The CW squad did their usual tactic of riding in the
front at a tempo pace blocking any half-hearted attacks. The CCR boys
weren't going to help with the chase, leaving it mostly up to the CVC
riders.
Either they didn't have
the legs, were recovering after the last chase, or didn't think the two
of them would last very long, but they let them go. And we all watched
as the two of them rode off into the sunset never to be caught again.
Not
for a lack of trying. Once the lead had built up quite a bit, going up
to the Greenhouse sprint, there was a small breakaway group that
included Little T, Crowell, and some CW riders. Little T won the
intermediate sprint for third place. For anyone keeping score for the
season, the jury is out on who won first, but since Steffen H. commented
that Turner held up on that climb to let him rejoin, the money is on
Turner getting first and Steffen second.
The
chase continued down the Cheshire/Wallingford border while the grupetto
now down to about 10 riders at best gently and without any urgency
pursued the leaders.
In the
final sprint, Turner got first, Steffen second, and a bit further back,
Little T outnumbered by a crew of CW riders again was the best of the
rest for third place. And for anyone worried, TK delicately made it with
the back of the main field on his broken saddle - the darkness made it
that much harder to avoid the potholes.
Enjoy the weather folks! Hopefully, next week is as nice and has an even bigger turnout. The days are getting longer!
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