Same Ride, less bikes
The field had dwindled for the final installment of the
Tuesday night ride. There were only about 20 riders out to do this crazy ride one
more time for the year. On cue, Jordan L and Rory D jumped up once turning off route
10. This time Joe K and Chris C went along for the ride. A couple of seconds
later, Ben Bruce jumped as well, along with Dillon P, Rusty, and a couple of
others. When Hacker, Special Ed and Hutner P made their way up to speed, it
brought everything back together again, front group included.
The speed stayed high down Mountain Rd with plenty of guys to move the front along. The peleton got the light on route 68/70, leading to some guys feeling the hurt later on Moss Farms. Hacker tried to get off the front but a couple of guys covered that gap and the rest filled in the rest. As the ride sped through the industrial park, a gap opened up to a small group led by Chris C and Joe K. Also up there was the Mike Frisk, Dillon P and Rob Dux. Joe K had it pegged to the corner of West Johnson, leaving the rest to hustle across the gaps. The break was all done on the opening hills of W Johnson, leading to a slow down as everyone was re-charging for the turnaround sprint.
For the push toward Reinhard, Hacker took advantage of the slower pace by jumping hard a couple hundred meters before the corner. Ben Bruce, The Full Nalini, and a couple of others gave chase at first but started to fade off the Professor’s pace as the initial climbing of Reinhard dug in. Hacker pressed on all the same. Behind, the rest of the dwindling field was there, giving Little T a good jump off the front. Ben Bruce and Hunter P followed. The headwind there seemed to be especially stiff, standing up the guys chasing hacker and Little T as he rolled up from behind. Ben Bruce kept on the throttle and then it was just Hunter P out of the saddle. Hunter P came around Hacker at the very last moment before the corner but for all intense purposes, Hacker had made it their alone.
On the backside no one pushed the pace, leaving a chance for everyone (that was left) to come back together. Between a couple of dropped riders and others peeling off, the ride was sputtering out in true end of the year fashion. Rob Dux and Mike Frisk put in a solid push up Peck Lane and onto Route 10. Hacker got involved which upped the pace for a solid kilo or 2. By the time the ride got to the stop n shop run-in, it was down to about 13 guys. Traffic and red lights disrupted the sprint but Hacker and Little T went toe to toe all the same. Hacker looked to get a good jump on it but was snookered again at the very end. Little T rolled up to the red light first but it wasn’t a true gallop.
For the trip back into Hamden, Dillon P snuck off the front before the lights and 5:30 traffic and got enough green lights to make it back alone. The pack was forced to slow for a couple of red lights but more so to go single file to get by stacked up cars. As the core group of riders rolled into Hamden, Little T took off with the Full Nalini. Those 2 rolled off and despite Nalini’s best efforts, T stayed away.
The speed stayed high down Mountain Rd with plenty of guys to move the front along. The peleton got the light on route 68/70, leading to some guys feeling the hurt later on Moss Farms. Hacker tried to get off the front but a couple of guys covered that gap and the rest filled in the rest. As the ride sped through the industrial park, a gap opened up to a small group led by Chris C and Joe K. Also up there was the Mike Frisk, Dillon P and Rob Dux. Joe K had it pegged to the corner of West Johnson, leaving the rest to hustle across the gaps. The break was all done on the opening hills of W Johnson, leading to a slow down as everyone was re-charging for the turnaround sprint.
For the push toward Reinhard, Hacker took advantage of the slower pace by jumping hard a couple hundred meters before the corner. Ben Bruce, The Full Nalini, and a couple of others gave chase at first but started to fade off the Professor’s pace as the initial climbing of Reinhard dug in. Hacker pressed on all the same. Behind, the rest of the dwindling field was there, giving Little T a good jump off the front. Ben Bruce and Hunter P followed. The headwind there seemed to be especially stiff, standing up the guys chasing hacker and Little T as he rolled up from behind. Ben Bruce kept on the throttle and then it was just Hunter P out of the saddle. Hunter P came around Hacker at the very last moment before the corner but for all intense purposes, Hacker had made it their alone.
On the backside no one pushed the pace, leaving a chance for everyone (that was left) to come back together. Between a couple of dropped riders and others peeling off, the ride was sputtering out in true end of the year fashion. Rob Dux and Mike Frisk put in a solid push up Peck Lane and onto Route 10. Hacker got involved which upped the pace for a solid kilo or 2. By the time the ride got to the stop n shop run-in, it was down to about 13 guys. Traffic and red lights disrupted the sprint but Hacker and Little T went toe to toe all the same. Hacker looked to get a good jump on it but was snookered again at the very end. Little T rolled up to the red light first but it wasn’t a true gallop.
For the trip back into Hamden, Dillon P snuck off the front before the lights and 5:30 traffic and got enough green lights to make it back alone. The pack was forced to slow for a couple of red lights but more so to go single file to get by stacked up cars. As the core group of riders rolled into Hamden, Little T took off with the Full Nalini. Those 2 rolled off and despite Nalini’s best efforts, T stayed away.
That’s it folks!
It was another great year for the SG ride, thank you everyone who made it the most challenging group ride in CT!
Be sure to clear your calendar for CHESHIRE CROSS on Nov 15th. If you think bumping elbows with Chris C on Tuesdays is fun, just wait till you get him away from the public, in the woods, with a couple of beers! Here are some photos from last year... Special "Hill People" status is awarded to any SG Ride regulars who come out to put on a show for the racers. See you there!
