Tuesday the 16th

 The Raspberry Rush Keeps the Pressure On

The weather was great for the ride tonight, and there was a solid-sized group out tonight.

Early on, there were a few guys that tried to get off the front. Dillon P was pushing off the pace. He was joined by Tom Krol and at another instance, Nate Belke from New Haven Angels.

Then it started getting real, with Brian O attacking a couple of times in the first 20 min of the ride. When he went, the other Magenta guys would stop and admire for a bit, then go about figuring out who was going to go next. CBrits shot off one or twice. Steve B tried. Turner French also,  but each time that set off the front 1/4 of the pack and just served to ramp up the pace.

Onto Moss Farm, where Turner French launched it as soon as he could. Hunter P and Steve B went with it, and once again, the stronger riders in the pack responded quickly. Sean Maher and Hacker foremost and urgently chasing. The attack was caught but Turner kept on it. He rolled through the chicane and up onto Marion with a 50-meter gap. Behind a chase group was forming with Hacker, Hunter P, Steve B and a couple of others. Sean M took to the front and closed the gap down a bunch, and then Brian O jumped but it was all coming back together at the light. Turner was held up as well.

As soon as the ride got going again, Brian O surged off the front along with Ben Bruce, Hacker, and Sean M. That trio had the blessing from the five families to go clear. Steve B jumped across the gap as the ride turned left onto Mount Vernon. He would eventually make the bridge up to the group. The peloton behind waited to see what would happen, and nothing did. The break would ride clear and stay clear, at least from the rest.

Later on, just past the Greenhouse climb, Steve B attacked the group. Hacker responded, taking Brian O with him. Sean M and Ben fell off, and that is the order they all finished on the night. 

Next week, the long loop returns, and with it, more opportunities for everyone else to practice their spectating skills!