This ride must be famous, new guys all over the place... in the rain no less
The assured rain that was soon to hit didnt stop about 35 guys from rolling out tonight. There was all kinds of famous-ness in the parking lot. The fastest guy from Battenkill, a winner there ( one of 35 top-steppers from that race ), a rider who may or may not have been a former national champion on the track..... and VQ Rob!
Right out of the blocks, Guido was looking to get in a good workout and hit the front started rolling away. Antonio D, Mountain Man and Hunter P jumped on and the ride got going. Peter Reed from Breakaway bikes was up there and would end up help to animate the whole ride. It was good to see Joshy G out as well hammering early on. The newbies made it thru the crap roads ok and the ride steamrolled toward Mountain Rd. Guido continued to work the front, a couple of times pulling a gap with other riders. MaHoney and VQ Rob mainly.
Mike McG moved up on Mountain road, chipping in when Joshy G came off the front. Thanks to the quick pace, guys were getting popped early on. The ride tore down Mountain Rd with a hnadful of guys doing the work. Chris C, Aidan, Little T, MaHoney, PeteReed, Hunter P, Jacinto, Guido, etc.
There was no surprises moving thru Moss Farms rd, everyone played nice the pace was decent. Chris C jumped off the front after the chicane, taking a gap into the corner for Marion. He would be joined by Aidan, PeteReed, and another new rider. Those 3 went through Chris C and had a gap as the ride approached the industrial park. That was a little too dangerous looking and the front of the peleton put in out couple of extra watts in order to keep the gap close. As the ride turned into the industrial park the rain started steady. The gap was still a fast moving 50 meters or so. Chris C again hit the front and took back most of that, stretching the pack out and nearly causing a split in the process. Mike McG and Hunter P finished it off the break. Mike continued, riding thru the trio, taking along Aidan and then Hunter P. Aidan surged as the ride went up West Johnson and Hutner P followed. Those 2 appeared determined to fight for a gap, so again, the front of the ride went in to damage control mode. Joshy G, PeteReed, Guido, Mike McG and a couple of others were in charge of keeping tabs on the front. Aidan and Hunter P would get caught 100 meters or so from the corner to Reinhart. The chase efforts good enough to spring a new break simply by attrition. Mike McG, Little T and PeteReed held a short lead heading to the crest of the road before the sprint hill. Joshy G put in a huge effort to get across the gap as best he could before hte sprint happened. Once on the hill, Mike was surely working for Little T to make sure the home field advantage kept the win from going to the new guy, and sure enough, Little T danced off the front to roll thru the corner alone.
Joshy G was intent on keeping any gap the sprint created and rolled off the front with Little T and PeteReed as the ride came up to Peck Ln. That trio killed the throttle though when Little T slid back to the group and everyone hit the false flat on Peck lane together. Near the top of that rise, Aidan ( New Haven's biggest pain monger since Craig Luekens ) hit the front running, getting things going and putting more bodies in hurt. He peeled off a gap as the ride went over the old train tracks and Guido jumped up after him. Then Mike McG went up, which started pulling more guys up to speed, but still Aidan was alone up there. Guido and Mike eventually did make it across as the ride was back onto route 10. The chase on route 10 for the 2nd week in a row put the peleton into the blender. This time a chase group pulled clear on the hill by Cheshire Park as PeteReed, Chris C and Hunter P sped off the front. Guido lost contact with Aidan and Mike on the hill but joined up in the chase, making it 4 guys chasing Beauty and the Beast up the road. The chase grew as JoshyG again bridged a hard gap, taking along Little T and one other (?).
As the chasers came up on the center of Cheshire, Aidan and Mike rolled past Stop n Shop alone, proving they don't need a sprint point to show their dominance. Red lights slowed them and allowed the chase group to catch. Damage was done though as the rest of the field was long behind, out of sight nearly. The lead group of 8 or so never had a chance to get going strong again. Red lights and traffic gave the Peleton a chance to catch up and as the ride was leaving Cheshire, it was all back together again. Perhaps someone can fill in the blanks for the rest of the ride, as the Cheshire Cycle guys rode back to the shop at this point.
All in all, a great ride despite the rain. Thanks to the new guys for making it interesting. Hope to see everyone back next week.
