Tuesday the 16th

Attack Chase Repeat

Hoot of a ride tonight! Most courageous rider goes to Ben Wolfe (oh wait).

    Ok the SG version goes to Alan B for attacking Eleventeen times today. A close second to Big Red, who attacked the field on nearly every section. Between those 2, there was plenty to keep Crowell pissed. Notable attacks came on early on (Henk, right away route 10). Mount Sanford (Hunter P, thanks to dodging cars). Then on Moss Farms (Alan B, with Kyle Crowell, Henk, and Hunter P chasing). Then a bit later on Moss Farms (Gibertoni). Then still later on Moss Farms (Big Red, Hunter P). Then past the chicane (Little T). Then on Marion (Alan B). Then going over the highway (Sernyak, Kyle and Hunter P chasing Alan). Then Mount Vernon (Sernyak, Henk and THE Tim Johnson). Later on Mount Vernon (Alan B). Even later on Mount Vernon (Hunter P with Big Red). There were probably others in there as well!

    By the time the ride got to the turnaround Crowell was foaming at the mouth over all the crap paceline riding. So enraged in fact was he, that he split the field in 2 leading up to the turnaround sprint, leaving  his sprinter Little T in the chase group. Chris C was chasing down Joe K, who had jumped off the front on Welch. By the sprint line Joe had done enough to hold off Nuemotion by mere inches.

    From there the aggression showed no sign of letting up. Alan B jumped off the front going downhill, and then again going over 84 along with Hunter P and Gibertoni. Those moves, combined with the fast run thru the sprint area, lead to a small group charging successfully away from the rest down West St. Rapha Anup, Sernyak, Ryan from Expo, Hunter P, Alan B, Big Red, Ben Bruce, Gibertoni, Chris C, Kyle C, Rusty and a couple of others made up the group. It got whittled down a little more going up the hill under the highway on Atwater St as Hunter P pushed the pace up front. It all came back together at the light on 322 though. After the light turned green a couple of riders went down (THE Tim Johnson?) but everyone was ok.

    Heading up to Peck Ln, another group rolled off the front, led by Sernyak, Big Red and Ben Bruce. That didn’t get too far but Alan B used the opportunity to push the pace coming up to Route 10. He would lead a group of about 7 up the hill by Cheshire Park. For a brief moment it looked like a split was happening but Ryan from Expo did a solid pull at the front of the chase to bring it back together. The run into the sprint was all CVC and Little T was able to take this time over Nuemotion.

From there, there was plenty of red lights to frustrate the tail end of the ride. Sernyak gets the final prize.

Awesome ride everyone!

Tuesday the 9th

3 Quarters Crowell Down This Week… 

    Right from the gun (turning off route 10) Chris C was in a hurry. Turns out he was on his way to Kyle’s Confirmation….. We are still awaiting word as to whether or not Chris C was even allowed in the church.

    Anyway, no one was letting him roll off the front that early on. The Sernyak also showed up to ride and he was part of the early pacing making. Some team tactics and lots of soft pedaling allowed an early group of 8 or 9 to get a small gap before North Brooksvale but that was short lived. After that, Hunter P jumped off the front and held a gap to Mountain Rd, where he was joined by Chris C and The Sernyak. Those 3 stay off the front for a kilo or 2. Attacks and surges in the pack, The Full Nalini, Matt D and Apple Man from Yale were also up there pushing it back together. After the catch, Alan B took off and he dragged a couple of riders with him, with another couple more in between. It was all red lights at the intersection which brought it all back.

    Once onto Moss Farm, Little T got it going, along with The Sernyak and Henk. After a decent start, the pack rolled toward the chicane. Gibertoni jumped off the front and was allowed to ride free for the most part. There was some attacking and surging heading up to Marion but overall the pace was controlled. Little T was and Alan B  both took off once more but each was reeled back in before the 322 crossing.

     Once on the other side, The Sernyak was rolling off the front again, taking advantage of the lull in the pace. A couple of guys tried to get going across but by the time everyone turned onto Mount Vernon, Sernyak was clear by 15 seconds. The pace in the pack slowed down quite a bit, as no one was willing to ramp it up to close down the gap. Sernyak stayed out there for the whole time, gap yo-yoing a bit here and there.

     As the ride drew near to the corner for Welch, Alan B and Mike McG jumped off the front and they were joined by the Full Nalini. After catching Sernyak, that made for a strong 4some up the road. Still, the pace behind was unimpressive. Sean The Expo rider tried to bridge but he had waited too long, and would eventually get swallowed back up after the corner for West st. Up front, the leaders rolled thru the sprint without a struggle. All Mike McG had to do was make his BB creak a little and it kept everyone in line nicely. Behind Andrew Suzuki was putting down a solid pace to lead the rest of the group up and over. It would take a couple of lights, but the leaders would eventually be stopped and all would come back together.

     Once it was all back together, the pace ticked up a bit as guys were willing to work up front. Nuemotion, Henk, The Full Nalini and others. Charging down Atwater St, Gibertoni took off again, and then Hunter P again. The latter holding a gap all the way to the red light on 322.

Once on the other side, Alan B attacked again, Sean from Expo was ready this time and his chase led to it all coming back together again. From there it was the usual guys doing damage up front.
      Sernyak, Alan B, Hunter P, Nuemotion, the Yalies…. For the run in to Stop n Shop,  Alan B tried one more time, and was looking solid(ish) off the front. Big Red was back with the group, after having to detour earlier to head back home for a quick bit and He was charging hard. He brought a group of 10 or right back to Alan B with time to set up the sprint. Henk then led out Mike McG but Mike hit the jets too early. It gave Little T a great spring board for the last bit up the hill to take the sprint.

Tuesday the 2nd

Back to the usual hi-jinks

      When there actually is a SG ride this year, the crowds have been very good for it. Today was no different. At least 50 riders started but it was quickly winnowed down from the hard riding.
       First to bat, Dillon P rolled off and was joined by Simon B. Those 2 gained a decent gap as the pack slowed for corners and traffic. Eventually it all came back together on Mountain Rd though Simon B stayed on it a bit longer. There was some cagey riding, and some strong pulls from the usuals. But it stayed together to Route 68.
      Hacker was quick to get the pace going on Moss Farm, and he immediately had Sernyak and Hunter P along. Then Big Red hit the front and pinned it for a solid kilo, as the guys behind were content to let him power the front. The tailwind meant that everyone was riding 385w+ just to stay where they were. No surprise that a good number of guys weren’t able to keep up, even with the tail wind. As Hacker lead the front into the chicane, a gap had formed from the front 7 or 8 guys.
     The leaders would keep it going, with Hacker and Then Hunter P leading up the rise to Marion and past. A couple of Yale riders were able to get across the gap, along with a couple of others. But a handful were donesville for the day. Up front Big Red continued his dominance of the front, this time rolling off as the ride went over I84. Hunter P joined and those 2 held a gap to the red light on 322. The pause gave a few riders the chance to get back on.
     Big Red kept it going once past the light. He got off the front with Alan B and Hunter P as the ride turned on Mount Vernon but the field was chasing hard and it was soon back together. From there the ride down Mount Vernon was normal. Getting close to the turn, Alan B took off and he was joined by Big Red. Those 2 held onto a slim gap turning on Welch. Mike McG was in full pursuit along with Rob Dux. Once thru the corner, Hacker jumped hard across the gap, which set off a flurry of counters. It led to an elite group of 6 or 7 off the front with a real deal gap, 250 meters before the corner onto West St.
     Behind, the chase was slowly coming together. Little T, Hunter P, Matt from Yale and a couple of others jumped across the gap on the hill, making for a reshuffling of the front. For the leadout, Alan B would do the final long pull with Hunter P, Mike McG and Little T jumping for the sprint. It went down to T and Mike, with Mike taking advantage of his earlier jump to stay out in front for the points.
     It came back together on the backside. However, as the pack was going over the final light for the I84 interchange, Big Red, Hacker, Sernyak and a new rider on a Single Chain Ring set up (?!) drilled it on the front and peeled off a gap. Chris C also jumped in at the last minute and that group just made the light at Jude Ln. The peleton stopped and the group rolled. Into the headwind the small break was able to put time into the rest, and when they were able to squirt thru the light on 322, it was all over the chase.
    The Stop n Shop prize went to Hacker, although most of the guys were looking to primarily keep the paceline rotating smoothly.  The final prize goes to Big Red.

Great ride everyone!