Tuesday the 30th

A Trend is Developing...
    There were less guys out for today's ride than last week. Maybe the cloudy and cold weather was keeping a few away. Once the ride going though it was rip'roarin as usual. Straight away, Kyle C kicked it off and jumped up the road, quickly getting a 20-second gap. Then, Dillon P jumped to go across and then Henk P went along as well. Behind, the pack was slowly getting going, and the Cheshire guys at the front were not chasing it down. The trio stayed out there for 2 miles but as the ride got towards Mountain RD, it was all back together again, Alan B was up front along with Billy T(hompson). Turning onto Mountain, there were a couple of early accelerations, posturing mostly. Hacker was there, as well as Hunter P, who jumped next but then was passed by Alan B, who put in a real dig. Alan stayed off the front for most of the way down Mountain RD but eventually was caught from the strong pace-making up front by the Crowells, The Sernyak Billy T, Max A, and a couple of others. Hunter P then countered, but the light was red up front, green for the pack, which brought it all back together.
     The green light encouraged Chris C, Hacker, Alan, Sernyak and Ben Bruce to stay on the gas for the early parts of Moss Farms. For a bit, it looked like the group was going to ride off but the pressure from behind, combined with a slight slowing down in the break, allowed it all to come back together. The pace and pressure stayed there though as Alan B, Hunter P, and Hacker kept it fast. Towards the end of Moss Farms, Kyle C was allowed to roll off the front, and then Alan B would jump with Hacker. The front of the pack stayed cautious though. Chris C put in a big pull heading into the 4-way intersection, which reduced the gap a lot. It was all mopped up on the rise to Marion Ave by Hunter P, who dragged a few guys across, but ended up off the front with Kyle C and Alan B. That trio kept a gap going all the way across the overpass for I84 but the Sernyak and Steve Grey were not letting it escape for good.
     After the light on 322, Alan B and Hunter P stayed on the gas and then pushed off the front thru the corner for Mount Vernon. Behind, the pack was slowed a bit in the corner, and generally was taking it's time to get up to speed. The two up front went to work holding onto a gap that fluctuated from 20-30 seconds. Never totally out of reach. Heading thru the false-flat section of Mount Vernon, Steve Grey put in a couple of big monkey-strength pulls, and brought the gap back to spitting distance with 500 meters to the corner for Welch. Billy T attempted to jump across the gap but it only served to sew it all back up.
     On Welch, Hacker, Chris C, Kyle C, and Ryan O were all up front, looking to get things started. Ryan eventually pushed off the front and took a 10-sec gap into the run-in for the corner and sprint. Behind, Steve Grey was setting a good pace along with Sernyak and a couple of others. Ryan was collected shortly after the corner, with Steve Grey, Sernyak, and Chris C setting the lead out up. For the sprint, there was a little reshuffling up front but the speed was enough not to let chasers get up into the mix. Kyle C jumped first and looked to be on his way, then Alan B. Hunter P jumped out next with Little T on his wheel. Both came around Kyle, and it was super close at the line, with Little T just edging it over Hunter P by a tire width.
     On the backside, there was some posturing by Hacker, Kyle C, Ben Bruce and a couple of others, but it was not enough to break free, plus there was a red light by I84. From there, the ride stayed consistent, but no one attacked until the short rise on West Johnson, leading up to route 10. Kyle C jumped there and perfectly snagged the green light there. The pack waited.
     Onto East Johnson, the chase got going. After the corner for Meriden Rd, Chris C, Alan B, Steve Grey and 1 other tried to escape, but Steffen H and Ben Bruce brought it all back together. Kyle C was still out of sight. Then, as the climb up route 70 loomed, Alan B went off the front with Steve Grey. Hunter P responded late but joined the two as the climb started. Alan B put in a significant effort on the front, which was enough to create separation from the peleton and bring Kyle C into shooting distance.  The other two chipped in a bit but it was mostly Alan B, working for teammate Hunter P. Kyle was caught shortly after the light, and HUnter P was able to come around to get the sprint point with Alan B in second
     The leader riders kept going, with Kyle slightly off the back, and the peleton quickly bearing down. Only Hunter P, Steve Grey, and Alan B rolled through the light by the left-hand turn, and that gap was enough to seal the deal. The trio stayed away from the rest of the ride, and Hunter P took the final sprint with Alan B behind.

Great ride everyone!