Tuesday the 30th

Turnaround!
Little T
Sean Quadzilla Cahill
Sean M

Greenhouse!
Little T
Sean Quadzilla Cahill
Sean M

Finale!
Little T
Rich Nadaeu
Maher

Tuesday the 23rd

Eyes Bigger than his Balls

Another great turnout for ride as everyone is training for the 62.5 miles race disguised as a fundraiser, the CCAP's Breakaway Benefit. More new faces were out, (Great to see Sean Cahill out) as well as a couple of the stronger riders from the last couple of weeks. 

Soon after route 10, Hunter P jumped off the front and took along Steve B. Those two were going hard for a couple of streets worth, but some traffic in a corner gave the pack the chance to come back up. From there the pace stayed high as guys like Rich N, Jon Fecik, Sean M, and TCC were rotating through the front, keeping the pace high. The start of mountain rd saw a few guys looking like they were getting ready to gun it but it didnt amount to much. Hunter P and Steve B launched it again off the front as the light on route 68 came up. The light went green at the last second, giving everyone the pass. 

On Moss Farms, Steve B wasn't done. He stayed near the front and that turned into an attack with Hunter P and Chris C. There wasnt much of a gap from that. Just a hard push that drove the pace up. 

Tom K and Sean M lit it up going up to Marion, and with Hunter P attacking the gap, then Steve B, it looked for a moment something could be developing but enough guys responded and filled in the gaps before the ride went by the industrial park. Tom K was still working the front as the ride got close to route 322. He had a couple of guys with him. 

The light was green as everyone approached. The leading 3 or 4 guys made it clean. There was a 10-15 meter gap to the next group of 18-20 riders. Then another similar gap to approx 10 riders making up the third group. The first group was fine going under light. The next group, if it was adhering to what certain loud mouths on the ride bitch and moan about, should have slammed on the brakes and stopped for the safety of all those behind them. They didn't. No one rider can be blamed or penalized of course, but this was another illuminating instance that shows the reality of the ride.

We're going to do what we're going to do. Some moves will be considered dumb or unsafe, but in the end rarely anything is done that is truly dangerous. Everyone wants the ride to be as safe as possible, however we ALL are going to break the "rules" at some point. Anyone that complains about specific actions but shows a double standard is not to be taken seriously.

The group that got held up continued on after the light and reportedly had a great time working hard as a smaller group. "Way harder and better than with the entire pack"  

Up the road, Steve B continued his assault off the front with repeated attacks. Sean M was up there as well. Steve went all in for a big attack halfway on Welch and was able to take it all the way to the sprint. Little T was second over the line. 

Back into Cheshire, Steve B and Chris C slipped off the front on East Johnson ave after the light on Route 10. Seeing an opportunity up the road, Little T bridged up to that group on the hill before the corner for Meriden Rd. That made 3 up the road cruising toward the greenhouse climb. Out of nowhere like Batrman, Sean QuadZilla Cahill was spotted charging across the gap. He came up a bit short and would latch on after the sprint, which Little T took from the breakaway. Cahill still gets old-man points 

Steve B stayed on the gas after the sprint, and managed to just barely catch a yellow/red light as the rest stopped. This also gave a chance for most of the group to get back together. The group got organized to chase Steve B but lots of tired legs made for a slow ramp-up. TK got to the front and pushed the pace higher just after Half Moon rd, then Sean C pulled up the riser to the corner. Chris C stayed on the front up the hill to the stop sign, where Steve B was back in sight.

 

On the descent of Tuttle, Sean C attacked to get across the gap. Those that made for two opening up a gap until Alex DS and a few others put in some work to limit it. Coming around the final turn bend through the stop sign, it was nail-biting tight, but a big surge up the second-to-last riser from Little T and Sean C ended it. Little T was able to get the final sprint, with Steve B next across the line. 

The "first half" of the year ends with a good ride, albeit with some drama. Next week, a good number of guys will be up at Rentschler Field pinning a number and actually racing bikes, so the ride could change flavor. Or, you know, it could be the same ol same ol SGR.

 

Tuesday the 16th

A couple more weeks of All-State Action at SGR!

A few new faces were out today, which was awesome. Great to Karel C and Nuemotion out on the ride. Once the ride turned off route 10, Steve B tried to sneak off the front but was tracked down soon after by CristianV and Dan Banana. The pace settled down from there, it was steady heading thru Cheshire. Dan Banana was back at the front pushing the pace before Mountain Rd. That got some attention from guys in the pack. Mike Hons was active on Mountain Rd, and Steve B tried to get off the front again before the light came up. The reaction was there, and the light was red anyway.

On Moss Farms, Cristian V and Hacker were up at the front pushing the pace. Hons took another flyer going onto Marion with a strong move, but in the end, it stayed all together. The pace was high as guys like Dan Banana and CristianV were at the front setting a strong tempo.

Across the light heading to, Cedric B, Steve B, Hunter P, and a couple of others jumped off the front to get a head start onto Mount Vernon but there were a few cars at the lefthander there which shut it down.
From there, no surprises heading north. CristianV was at the front plenty. Jeff Scala, Dan Banana, and new guy Jon Fecik. Plenty of rotation up front, no big attacks, all together for Mount Vernon.

Heading onto Welch, a couple of guys were pushing off the front. Steve May, Ben Gram, and Brent DLB with one or two others. It all came back together on Welch though. Heading to the corner, once again there were several riders accelerating to the corner and quickly turning onto West St. There was a bit of a headwind which made guys seek shelter heading to the sprint. Little T led it out and was able to stay just ahead of Hunter P and Dan Banana a bit farther back. Dan would try to keep the pressure on after the sprint, but no gaps.

Later on West St, Dan would get another chance with Steffen H but heading downhill it would be really hard to keep a gap. They kept at it though, and on Awater St the break looked like it had a chance. Behind, Steve B attempted to jump acriss the gap before the light. The light was red though, which ended everyone's breakaways.

From there, across route 10 and towards the next climb, the pace stayed steady and there were no big attacks. Heading to the Greenhouses, Scala was up there again with teammate Bill C. Once the climb started, it wasn't long before Turner jumped off the front, taking Ben Gram and Evan Woodford. Those three were allowed to get a little gap and then rolled with it. Behind Chris C chased, then VladZ, but the gap was holding. Up front Evan Wood came off the group near the top of the climb but was able to stay between the leaders and the muted chase. Turner led Ben Gram over the top and those two stayed on the gas. They slid thru the light, whereas the pack stopped and waited for 20 seconds or so. That was enough for the two up front to it back to the start all alone. 

Back in the pack, Little T jumped off the front earlier than usual, and was able to just hold off a charging Steffen H, who just came up a bit short.

Tuesday the 9th

The Tired Legs Edition of SGR

Big crowds are out as the season is in full swing, and then CCAP's Tuesday night Criterium in East Hartford series has yet to start. One bummerspot was Dan Feldman getting hit with a flat and having to peel off just a few moments into the ride. The early pace was steady and fast. Matt Zaleski was out of the blocks and riding hard. Same goes for Alex De'Souza and Esteban S. Noah B was the first to try to get off the front, and once again, it fell on everyone but CW to do the chasing. The pack was up to speed and up to the challenge, though. It was a little crowded up at the front for the corner of Mountain Rd. Cristian V was upfront and consistently ramping up the speed at the front and brought things back together. Traffic at the corner Mountain slowed it all down and reset the pace.

Over the rollers on Mountain Rd, Joe K and Chris C pushed off the front and got a gap. They went to work and held for a while. Behind, the pace was high, and the chase/counter was sorting itself out. Again it was Cristian V doing a good share of the work to bring it back.

On Moss Farms, Noah B attacked off the front, setting off a chain reaction of surges, attacks, and counters. Turner F got involved, and Hunter P was pushing through to try to see if a gap could stick. Going thru the chicane, there were plenty of guys up front ready to punch it. Little T hit it going up to Marion, followed by Brent DB, hunter P, Jeff Scala, and Evan W. Ben Grameje from New Haven was up there as well and for a short time there was a group with a gap flying toward the industrial park. The peloton got it's act together, again behind a good push from Cristian V, to get it all back together soon after. Little T stayed on the gas though, and had Brent DB along for company. Those two nursed a small gap going over the highway. Then Hunter P jumped hard and quickly joined them just in time for the light and 322 crossing, which was green - turning yellow. Behind the back was chasing hard at about 50 meters, and even though everyone could see the timing of the light, and knew it would be bright red, cruised under it. When there is a strong break up the road, good decisions (and the noisy mouths) get muted.
With it all together, the pace reset, and there were no big attacks heading down Mount Vernon. A couple of newer guys saw action near the front as the ride climbed the false flat section on Mount Vernon. TC Chioffi, Billy T, Steve May, Matty Z,  VladZ, and Monte Frank were among those pushing the pace before the turnaround.

Noah B hit the front for Welch Rd. He had Ben G up there for a while. They chase and response was quick. Hunter P pushed across the gap and wheels filled in the gaps. Joe K attacked on the hill and took a gap thru the corner. Traffic at the intersection brought the speed way down for the first 5 chasers, and that split the group a bit as the front rocketed off after the corner. Joe was brought back, and that left the sprint to come down to Hunter P, Noah B, and Little T. T came off Hunter P's wheel was able to get it cleanly in front of Hunter P and Brent DB.

It all came back together on the backside and there were no opportunities for attacks taken heading back into Cheshire. Once over 322 again, Cristian V was back at the front ramping up the pace. Again, no attacking. That's the way it would go all the way to the Greenhouse climb. Turner F, VladZ and Body Over Bike were amassing at the front leading into the climb. Right at the base, Evan W launched it. No one responded immediately and he got a gap. Turner F came to the front and rolled it most of the way. Hunter P was watching out for Evan W's gap and refused to come through, leaving a space for VladZ to take a pull. Turner was back at the front before the light, as Evan W's gap came down quickly on the flatter section. He hung tough thro and made it to a couple hundred meters, and the start of the sprint. Hunter P was able to come around and get it in front of Noah B and Little T.

One thru the light. Turner F looked like he was going to keep attacking but instead dragged it out single file for a fast run through Talmadge and Coleman Rd. The pace stayed high, and there were no attacks. A couple of guys, Evan W, Dan Dudzik, Steve May, and Chris C pushed the pace up Boulder, but not enough to keep a gap.

On the fast run down Tuttle, everyone had a chance to reset, and there were no flat tires this week in the last 500 meters. TC Chioffi was in great position and attacked/sprinted off the front, but was going for the top of the rise after the farm. Too early. Behind, Little T launched it among a lot of guys who were in position and ready on the hill. Once the traffic sorted itself out, it was Hunter P and Brent DB who emerged chasing, but still off the pace, and that was the order of finish to the speed limit sign that is on the far side of the left-hand turn onto River Rd. It's WELL past the top of the rise there, which requires a LONG sprint All this makes for a HARD  sprint to time correctly.

Great ride everyone!

Tuesday the 2nd

Spring Season was Short at SGR

The rain held off or stopped in time for the ride, depending on what part of the state you were coming from. It ended up being a normal-size crew out for the ride tonight. As soon as the ride started properly, Steve B put his head down and got to work. Once he had a gap, he put it into the next gear and sped away. Within a couple of streets, he had three for 300 to 400 m.

Behind him, his CW teammates did nothing to close the gap down. With everybody else seemingly content to settle in for the evening, the gap went up even more by the time the ride hit Mountain Road. Steve was well out of sight, and he would stay away for the rest of the evening. Kudos on scoring the first solo breakaway of the year. Behind him, it took until the intersection of Mountain Road to really get things going. Hacker tried to get a chase going along with Rusty and Sean Maher.

Later on Moss Farms, Turner F rolled off the front along with Hunter P. They held a gap until the route 322 crossing. They got the green and the pack just nabbed the red light, bringing it all back together. The ride down Mount Vernon was uneventful. Brian O, fresh off winning Battenkill the weekend prior, made a couple of attacks along with Steffen H and a couple of others.

Hacker led a group, including Steffen H, off the front in search of the sprint point, but Brian O was in there and was able to get across the line first to pick up a few points behind the solo breakaway of Steve B.

The ride regrouped on the backside despite a couple of guys trying to get in a position to get a chase group split off the front. Hunter P tried that as the ride came to the route 10 crossing. He attacked hard on West Johnson and got a gap with Evan W and VladZ. Those 3 made it under the light, and the chase had to stop for red, but then snuck thru when the coast was clear after 20 seconds or so. Up front, the three were working together. Behind, once the downhill on East Johnson was done, CW came to the front and chased hard. Turner and Aaron B took long hard pulls and brought the trio back to within sight by the Greenhouse climb. The chase was hard enough to split the peloton, with 5-8 guys not even starting the greenhouse climb with the pack. The break was absorbed with a hundred meters to the light, and from there, Little T was able to get to the line first from the pack.  

The finale into Hamden was fast but steady. A few guys were up front looking for redemption with the final sprint, but Chris C hit a hold on Tuttle in the final km and flatted. That took a couple of guys off the pace, leaving the Black brothers, Little T and Hunter P in place for the sprint. Aaron and Noah B led it off early, and Little T was able to come around safely, with Hunter P hanging on to third on the day. It was all behind the solo breakaway though.

Tuesday the 25th

Screw NP and CTL, it's SGR Time!

It was great to see a few new faces out tonight. Hacker was back (although he would get hit with a flat early on). Good to see Hill-Billy Dave Hildebrand out as well. Moto Cross Pro Brian Dussault was back out again, getting comfier with the route and group. Right from the get-go, Hunter P snuck off the front as soon as everyone turned off route 10, without much response from the pack. In a couple of corners, he had 100 meters and rolled off the front from there. It took a while before everyone got going on the front. The chase got started with Turner F & CW leading the way. Hunter P would hold on to the gap all the way to the end of Mountain Rd, where a red light forced a stop for all. The gap was down to a couple of seconds anyway.

Onto Moss Farms, where the pace calmed down a bit. After a brief reset, there were guys going for it as the chicane came up. Hons, Noah B, and Dave H pushed off the front. They would be caught on the climb out to Marion. There was a brief moment where Hunter P, Steve B, and Noah B up at the front made a group that looked like it could move, but it was all together going onto Mount Vernon.

The ride down Mount Vernon was uneventful. Every move that went off the front seemed to be chased down by Brian Da-salt (On gravel tires BTW). Brian gets a judges' point or two for his balls out riding. A real rooster that one is. There were a couple riders off the front going towards the sprint point, but that was erased quickly by Little T and Hunter P attacking up the Welch Rd hill. CW was next to go, and Turner F launched with Noah B and Steve B to come by and get a good jump on the sprint. The others were looking at each other and that let the CW trio snag all the points.

It was all together on the backside and into Cheshire. The Body Over Bike boys tried surged a bit here and there but it no one was letting anything go. There was a brief moment turning onto Atwater where Steve B, Hunter P, Turner F and a couple of others were going hard to get a gap, but the pack rode hard, and coming off the descent of West St, were able to cover the gap.

Little action off the front from there to the start of the Greenhouse climb. No big attacks. Heading into the climb, Jeffrey Scala went off the front while everyone behind was thinking "Great rider, sh$T bloke." He was caught as the climb bit. Turner F was again at the front, setting tempo up the entire climb. VladZ from CCB and Hunter P was sitting on his wheel the way up. VladZ pulled the rip cord near the top, letting Turner get a gap. Steve B then surged from behind, and then started his sprint soon after. Hunter P jumped onto his wheel and came around with a few meters to go. Behind, Little T was caught behind a couple of guys, started late, and rolled thru next.

The combination of Steve B surging, VladZ coming off, and the big sprint up front split the group, leading to a select group rolling thru the light on 68/70. Steve B, Hunter P, Chris C, Steffen H, and Little T. Steve B and Hunter P got it going and then the group was rolling. Behind, the chase was lazy getting going. Turner F spent a little time dangling off the front but no one else was super-motivated to chase. The break was working well together and stayed away. Little T was able to pop out to get the bonus point.

Tuesday the 18th

 The Long Loop is back!
 

The traditional route returned tonight, and it seemed as though most were ok with taking it a tad easier on the first night of the long loop. About 30-40 guys were out tonight. There were a couple of new faces out there to spice things up. Brent DLB and Evan W were out adding to the strong riding that TC Chioffi and Valesquez have been laying down in recent weeks.

As soon as the ride turned off Route 10, Even W rolled off the front and no one said anything in protest. Dan Smith accelerated but the first couple of corners brought him back in. Hunter P rolled off the front and used one of the next corners to escape in pursuit. The two linked up on South Brooksvale with a 150-meter gap and got to work. A late-to-arrive to the ride Jason Williams was there on course and joined in the fun to make it a trio.

The breakaway lasted until about halfway down Mountain Rd. Steve Be then took a flyer but the light on Route 68 was red. Onto Moss Farms where Turner F, Little T, Chris C, and Noah B were active on the front, but it all stayed together. Hunter P tried once again to create a gap heading to the light on 322, to no avail.

On Mount Vernon, the pace settled as guys strapped in for the additional miles.
Heading to the corner for Reinhart, Steve B put in a dig and took along Dan S, Joe Rodrigues and Chris C. Those three were allowed to roll, as a couple of the other would-be sprinters looked around at each other. Sure enough, the new guys kept it going up front. Evan W and BDLB stayed active. The leaders hit the corner with a gap that was going out. Once the chase turned onto West St, it was apparent that no one would be catching them. Hons, the BOB guys Jeff Scala and Rich N, and a couple of others tried to bridge the gap with a strong surge but a little too late for that. Up front, Steve B rolled over the crest first to pick up the bonus points.

On the backside, sensing an opportunity, the leaders stayed on the gas and got thru the first couple of lights no problem. Behind, Hunter P jumped hard across the gap with Noah B in tow. At the light for Jude Lane, the leaders coasted thru the intersection (fair play), Hunter P and Noah B rolled thru at full speed, the pack had traffic to contend with. That allowed the two chasers to get up to the leaders, making it 5 up front (Joe R had come unhitched at the sprint)

Reports say the group generally cooperated up front, although some of the pulls were a bit too spicy for Chris C. Going under the highway on Atwater, the peloton came alive, with Turner F, Little T, Steve B, and others not wanting to miss out on any of the fun up the road. After the uphill. It all came back together before the light going back over 322.

The pace settled down for a while. Dan S and Steve B unsuccessfully tried to sneak the light at Route 10. Heading to the Greenhouse climb and sprint, there were no legit early moves, just solid pacing throughout. Turner F hit the base of the climb and rolled a steady 4.6-4.9 w/kg all the up the climb. Behind him, there was record-low churn and turnover. Proving the power and pace TF was setting, everyone was content to sit in line, and there were no attacks. Right there ready to pounce, was Little T, Jeff Scala, Hunter P, Steve B and Noah B. Steve B was the first jump, from 250 meters out. Hunter P responded and was able to come around. Noah B was right there second over the line, next was Little T.

Turner F and Rich N hit the front for the section right after the light at 68-70 but it all stayed together for the backroads. Turner F and Steve B attacked hard going over the top of Tuttle and rolled the descent with small gap, but nowhere near enough to hold on for the entire sprint. Little T got his revenge on the night by launching early and holding on, with Noah B fighting hard for it all the way to the end. Hunter P was a distant 3rd past the street sign.