Tuesday the 3rd

Rondo yelling at someone - check

Cross-eye inducing speed - check

The long loop (at only minutes more then last week) - check

Everyone's Favorite Dave spitting on someone - check

Zero entry fee - check

Robyn cursing!?!?

Another great ride tonight folks. Plenty of guys, plenty of drama, plenty of speed. And we all managed to keep it safe as well. Right from the get go the message was clear. It was gonna be one for the books. The front got crowded very quickly and a couple of guys pegged it early. There was a new guy in a TargetTraining kit who was putting on a seminar all night long. VQ Rob and Mahoney were also up there early on. It was a true drag race to get to the pave section but everyone seemed to get thru ok. Zero vehicular traffic def helped as guys were diving all over the place. From there Hunter P hit the front with Guido, Rondo, Dillon P and the Target Training guy. Strong efforts were needed to stay up front. Guido rode the front alone for kilo heading up to Mountain rd and then guys like Hunter P, Target Training, and Mahoney took over. Good to see Tall Johnny back in the fold as well. 

    Mahoney got things rolling on Mountain road, and was followed up by Mike McG and other Zane's guys. With the tail wind and everyone's eager-beaver attitude it very well could have been record time to the light at route 68 for the peleton. Tensions ran a little higher then usual when there was some slower work up front and gaps allowed open. Rondo made sure everyone was on the same page though.

    French Casey sprint started the group once onto Moss Farms after the light, but then promptly checked out for the night. Coming up to the corner and the chicane, there was a dangerous looking group forming off the front a bit ( Guido, Eric M, A Yalie, The Garbernator, Aidan, etc.)  but Chris C, Julio, and Hunter P shored up the gap before the dive thru the comer. That slowed things a little as everyone hit the hill, giving Chris C and Hunter P a chance to roll off the front briefly. It was back to full gas as the full peleton went past the industrial park and toward Southington. Only a couple of people pulled off for the short loop. Good to see solidarity. Heading over the highway, another group was muscling off the front, ( CCBer, Eric M, Mike McG, Joshy G, GGarber, Guido again, and a couple of others. ). There were a couple of guys to pull it back together, Benje, Hutner P etc. Also the light was red, so everyone got a breather.

     Aidan, Target Training and Mike McG rode hard once onto Mount Vernon, forcing everyone to pick up the slack. Joshy G started to hang out near the front and inflict pain. Hacker as well. The ride to the turnaround was more of the same, fast and deliberate. No one was accidentally finding themselves up front. The false flat section, usually a spot of field detonation was rendered moot thanks to a D bag parked in the middle of the lane. Aidan got rolling after that along with Rattatat, Eric M, and DJ Blizzack. A subsequent pull from Ratta almost broke a trio free but it stayed together. Target Training still was up there and content to go fast for everyone. Things calmed slightly before the turn to the sprint. But once onto Welch rd. it started getting interesting. There were no monster attacks or efforts as the bunch got to the corner, although Tri Doug was up there serving up some humble pie to the naysayers. He rolled thru the corner first as the strong guys lined up behind to ramp it up. Mike McG started it off immediately after the corner, pulling off a couple of riders and stretching it out into the wind. It quickly became a limited race for the sprint as gaps and distances were too much for guys to make up. Up front Mike, Joshy G, Target Training, and GrahamCrackerGarber were not getting caught. Mikey gets the notch in the belt this time, ringing the bell for first. It all came back together soon after. Giving everyone a slight chance to recover. Eric M had a dig on the descent, rolling off with a gap but gettting caught before the corner on West St.
    The ride went sedate for a while with Dillon P's demo set of Cole's the only thing breaking the silence. Once past the chopped up road on Sandbank rd., Chris C, Bike Shop Bob, Mahoney and Dillon P moved up front to set the pace and feel out the front. Dillon P then rode off alone for a bit but would come back to the group as everyone started the charge uphill by Cheshire Park. The headwind would take its toll on the run in to Stop n Shop. After the CCBer, Danny B, Peter P and Tall John got done with pulls, THX, Tri Doug and Graham jumped out front. That was short lived as Rattatat was leading the rest of the sprinters ( Jacinto, Chris C , Hunter P, Mike McG ) up and into the sprint. Little T jumped from 6 or 7 wheels back and was able to hold on to it, despite a good charge to the line from Hacker and Jacinto. 

     Once past the lights, Aidan hit the front full gas and tore of a gap that would take some chasing down. At some point Everyone's Favorite Dave took issue with the humming noise coming from one of the Yalies' ( Ian Forsyth?) cyclocross tires. Some words were exchanged, some threats to "F*ck%n pull over to get shown some more". In the end, the Yalie seemed content to laugh it off like last semester's housing bill, with Dave more determined on making a point with his saliva glands. We all got a good chuckle out of it, and once it was back to riding, it was almost time to wrap this baby up. Too many guys to list had a hand in the final kilo's. For the last push, the regulars had it timed well. Mike McG, Eric M, Jacinto, Little T off the front with Guido, Aidan, Graham and Ferraro from Central Wheel shooting across the gap. Guido rode up and thru in usual fashion.
    Up the hill, Mahoney jumped very early in response to a downright Schleckish Dillon P, but both imploded midway up, letting Hunter P get the prize for both "up the hill first" and "ugliest socks of the night". Gregg F, C-Dale Rick, Tri Doug and the Central Wheel boys also closed the ride out on the hill.