Glorious day....Glorious day.....
Full field out for the ride tonight. Plenty of girls ( though we still are missing Robyn ), lot's of youngsters, gents, students and punks ( though we are still missing Rondo ). The ride started off pretty tranquil and it was good to see American Casey out directing traffic once again. No one was in much of a rush. Everyone was probably too busy lathering up each others cooters with the special Battenkill Brand® Can't–Go–Too-Hard vag cream. The squirrel, the Full Nalini and Jacinto got things going with a timed attack heading into the crap raod section. Joe K, Mike McG and Dillon P were there to keep tempo and round it all back up. From there the pace was brisk up to Mountain Rd. Mike McG took a power washer to the privates on the initial hill up Mountain Rd. MoMoney and Hunter P latched on and it was a sexy 3-some up the road banging hard and going away. Neon-Boots-Yalie bridged up, making it even more dangerous. That got things going in the field and Chris C finally got to work along with Hacker., Little T and a couple of others. It was all together coming into the red light on Route 68\70
Once onto Moss Farms, Half of the CCB Toss-up took to the front along with Todd H and a couple of others. They never got very far though and it was once again The Gibertoni sewing things back up heading into the Chicane. CCB, MoMoney, Hunter P, Mike McG, Danbury Audi and a couple of others kept the pace high going into the Industrial park. Once everyone rounded the corner onto West Johson, it was CCB, Chris C, Nuemotion and a few more punching it. That turned into Mike McG and CCB off the front and charging up to Reinhard with the peleton close behind but holding the leash. Traffic at the 4 way intersection slowed the escapees and the peleton so it was offsetting fouls. Once it was all together CCB missed the turn onto Reinhard ( doh ) but everyone was right there. Hacker jumped on the very first incline on Reinhard and was allowed to go. Chris the-Badger Butler punched it was soon up to the Hacker's wheel. Hacker led it out and Chris B was able to soundly come up and over to get the sprint as Little T and maybe 1 other tried to cover the gap but were waaaaaaay behind.
Chris B kept up the pace of course on the backside, holding a gap till the top of Peck Lane when Hunter P jumped up to bridge. Tall John responded to that, sewing up everyone. From there it was as expected heading back onto Route 10 and up the hill.
The group got green lights heading into the sprint. That didnt stop Mike McG from trying early on to get a gap but it didn’t happen. As the speed was slowly ramping up, but still 500+ meters from the sprint, Chris B jumped off the front. He went all-in with the small gap and hit the base of the hill with a solid gap as Jacinto jumped from the field with Little T, Hacker and Hunter P on his wheel. Chris B clung to dear life the whole way up as Little T slowly came round. It was too close to call with Butler getting the Big-balls-brownie-points. If the line is the cross street it was Chris'. If it is the light it was T's. Good job to all as a speed record was set for the section according to Strava.
From there the ride was normal. Heading into the finale it first looked like it was all Nalini and Professor. But Nalini faded and Mike McG hung tough, tractor-beaming Little T up to pouncing distance. Hacker gets DQ'd by a jury of his peers due to standing up aplenty in that kilo which means the sit-n-sprint goes to Little T. Up the hill went Mountain Man, Hunter P, MoMoney, Monty B, the Gibertoni, Rory D, even Little T paperboy-ed his way up after taking the second-to-the-last prize. Hunter P got to the top first and this recap has broken records for the most-dashes-ever.
Great ride everyone! Best wishes to all the Battenkillers. Don't go too hard and be too tired for next Tuesday.
Tuesday the 2nd
Who's schooling who?
The Sleeping Giant Ride rolled into its 2nd proper week with a vengeance. The winds were pouring in from every ol direction which made for some interesting opening miles. As soon as the ride turned off route Chris C was the first to jump, taking along Hunter P, Mike McG and a couple of others. The Yalies were out again, 3 or 4 of them depending on who you ask and if riding a CX bike matters to you. Early gaps started to form when the Yalies ( White Cervelo? White\blk Specialized? Names? ) would punch it after chasing down repeated pedal molesting attempts from Chris C. Def a few guys getting spit out on the run into Mountain Rd….. And it wasn’t even getting started yet.
Once onto Mountain Rd, Chris C hit it hard again, taking with him Hunter P, the Full Nalini and the Yalies on the White Cervelo. That 4 got a gap that stuck for a little while and looked like it could take more but lack of team work let the peleton catch back with enough time to reshuffle the deck before the light.
After the light, onto Moss Farms, Chris C hit it again, this time with Thomaas B and 2 Yalies. That group would also get a bit of a gap before being joined by The Gilbertoni, making it 5 heading into the Chicane. It would all come back together on the rise toward Marion as the other Chris ( Butler ), Mike McG and Hunter P sewed things back up. Chris B and Hunter P would try to tear off a new gap but no one was having it and it was all together heading into the industrial park. The New Haveners were still at it, trying to ride away ( sometimes down the wrong road ) and in the process, keeping the pace high as everyone was doing battle with the wind.
Once onto West Johnson. Chris C would try again to get things going but it stayed together all the way up to Reinhard. White\blk Specialized was one of the first ones to get the sprint going along with Steve Grey ( Gray…. Whichever ). It was all soon an after thought though as Little T and Hunter P were winding it up and lighting it up. T started it with Hunter P right there and in position to come around with room to spare. On the backside, Chris B tried to sneak away on the lead-in to Peck lane, but there was plenty of bodies to pick up the slack. Up the way on Peck, a small group mashed its way of fthe front ( Yalies, Steve G, Mike McG, Todd H, Chris C, etc ) but Silent Steve, Hunter P, the Full Nalini were there to wrap it all back up by the turn onto Route 10. Chris C, Todd H, and a couple others kept it going on route 10 and there were some more small gaps that opened and needed covering. A red light before the run-in to the sprint stopped all. Well actually, 2 guys ( who usually don’t need headstarts to get gaps ) jumped the red light and got the old “Disqualified” cause of it. When the light went green, Thomaas B, Jacinto, a dude on a CX bike with tires that embarrassed the rest of us, and a Yalies or 2 jumped right on it. Even thought the peleton was pretty quick to get moving again, the group was quicker, and getting farther up the road. Jacinto jumped from his spot as the others were getting redlined and took the Stop n Shop sprint uncontested.
From there, back into Hamden, the group had to stop at nearly every light, which made for an uneventful end. The last kilo was all Nalini and White Cervelo, as the 2 duked it out with the Full Nalini getting the last laugh. No one of note when up the hill for the real man’s finish.
Great ride everyone! Let’s be even sneakier and faster next week!
The Sleeping Giant Ride rolled into its 2nd proper week with a vengeance. The winds were pouring in from every ol direction which made for some interesting opening miles. As soon as the ride turned off route Chris C was the first to jump, taking along Hunter P, Mike McG and a couple of others. The Yalies were out again, 3 or 4 of them depending on who you ask and if riding a CX bike matters to you. Early gaps started to form when the Yalies ( White Cervelo? White\blk Specialized? Names? ) would punch it after chasing down repeated pedal molesting attempts from Chris C. Def a few guys getting spit out on the run into Mountain Rd….. And it wasn’t even getting started yet.
Once onto Mountain Rd, Chris C hit it hard again, taking with him Hunter P, the Full Nalini and the Yalies on the White Cervelo. That 4 got a gap that stuck for a little while and looked like it could take more but lack of team work let the peleton catch back with enough time to reshuffle the deck before the light.
After the light, onto Moss Farms, Chris C hit it again, this time with Thomaas B and 2 Yalies. That group would also get a bit of a gap before being joined by The Gilbertoni, making it 5 heading into the Chicane. It would all come back together on the rise toward Marion as the other Chris ( Butler ), Mike McG and Hunter P sewed things back up. Chris B and Hunter P would try to tear off a new gap but no one was having it and it was all together heading into the industrial park. The New Haveners were still at it, trying to ride away ( sometimes down the wrong road ) and in the process, keeping the pace high as everyone was doing battle with the wind.
Once onto West Johnson. Chris C would try again to get things going but it stayed together all the way up to Reinhard. White\blk Specialized was one of the first ones to get the sprint going along with Steve Grey ( Gray…. Whichever ). It was all soon an after thought though as Little T and Hunter P were winding it up and lighting it up. T started it with Hunter P right there and in position to come around with room to spare. On the backside, Chris B tried to sneak away on the lead-in to Peck lane, but there was plenty of bodies to pick up the slack. Up the way on Peck, a small group mashed its way of fthe front ( Yalies, Steve G, Mike McG, Todd H, Chris C, etc ) but Silent Steve, Hunter P, the Full Nalini were there to wrap it all back up by the turn onto Route 10. Chris C, Todd H, and a couple others kept it going on route 10 and there were some more small gaps that opened and needed covering. A red light before the run-in to the sprint stopped all. Well actually, 2 guys ( who usually don’t need headstarts to get gaps ) jumped the red light and got the old “Disqualified” cause of it. When the light went green, Thomaas B, Jacinto, a dude on a CX bike with tires that embarrassed the rest of us, and a Yalies or 2 jumped right on it. Even thought the peleton was pretty quick to get moving again, the group was quicker, and getting farther up the road. Jacinto jumped from his spot as the others were getting redlined and took the Stop n Shop sprint uncontested.
From there, back into Hamden, the group had to stop at nearly every light, which made for an uneventful end. The last kilo was all Nalini and White Cervelo, as the 2 duked it out with the Full Nalini getting the last laugh. No one of note when up the hill for the real man’s finish.
Great ride everyone! Let’s be even sneakier and faster next week!
Tuesday the 26th
The CWC Kicks off with a Bang!!!
The 6PM start time meant 20 to 25 showed up for the start. The Yalies showed up ready to fight. They brought AR-15’s to a knife fight but the old men were not about to back down. The leisurely pace down RT-10 was not a sign of things to come. After the turnoff to River Road, Chris C. jumped and took a couple Yalies along who wanted to play. A small gap was created, but guys like McGinley and Todd H quickly closed the gap. The ride Down Mt Road was strung out with equal pulls being taken by the 10 guys up front. There was a bit of a gap at the RT-68 light and the light turned green not allowing for a rest. The entire group made the light (what was left of the group anyway) but I’m sure some guys ran the red.
The tempo stayed hard all the way down Moss Farms road. After the chicane, the pace quickened, going up the false flat on Jarvis St. Once onto West Johnson Chris C. jumped with Dave Rustico but all that did was light the fuse to the Powder Keg. The Yalies set a hard tempo turning onto Reinhardt but Mike McGinley was there to counter. Hacker and another Yalie countered Mikes move and took the sprint. Hacker got the points???
The ride up Peck lane was hard. Little T went to the front and drilled it up the false flat stringing it out. Chris C. kept the pressure up on Sandbank which created a small gap with one of the Yalies. A red light in front of the car wash brought everybody back together. Just as the light turned green, Jacob Hacker stormed through at 30mph turning everyone inside out to catch him. The pace was high up the prison hill when one of the Yalies dropped his glasses and then made a sudden turn into the prison driveway to get them. That startled some on the front of the group. Chris C. attempted to lead out McGinley and Little T but started the lead out too early which allowed Hacker to come around and take the sprint. The pace stayed high down RT-10. With 1K to go Mike McGinley jumped hard with Hacker and another Yalie on his wheel. This strung everyone out but also allowed Hacker to roll off the front. Todd Hamel put in a hard effort to catch Hacker but could not close the gap and the early hat trick goes to the professor. Well done.
All in all an awesome way to start the Sleeping Giant ride proper. Hats off to the "Kids" from Yale for keeping the pace high and to all of us old guys who still have a little something left in the legs.
The 6PM start time meant 20 to 25 showed up for the start. The Yalies showed up ready to fight. They brought AR-15’s to a knife fight but the old men were not about to back down. The leisurely pace down RT-10 was not a sign of things to come. After the turnoff to River Road, Chris C. jumped and took a couple Yalies along who wanted to play. A small gap was created, but guys like McGinley and Todd H quickly closed the gap. The ride Down Mt Road was strung out with equal pulls being taken by the 10 guys up front. There was a bit of a gap at the RT-68 light and the light turned green not allowing for a rest. The entire group made the light (what was left of the group anyway) but I’m sure some guys ran the red.
The tempo stayed hard all the way down Moss Farms road. After the chicane, the pace quickened, going up the false flat on Jarvis St. Once onto West Johnson Chris C. jumped with Dave Rustico but all that did was light the fuse to the Powder Keg. The Yalies set a hard tempo turning onto Reinhardt but Mike McGinley was there to counter. Hacker and another Yalie countered Mikes move and took the sprint. Hacker got the points???
The ride up Peck lane was hard. Little T went to the front and drilled it up the false flat stringing it out. Chris C. kept the pressure up on Sandbank which created a small gap with one of the Yalies. A red light in front of the car wash brought everybody back together. Just as the light turned green, Jacob Hacker stormed through at 30mph turning everyone inside out to catch him. The pace was high up the prison hill when one of the Yalies dropped his glasses and then made a sudden turn into the prison driveway to get them. That startled some on the front of the group. Chris C. attempted to lead out McGinley and Little T but started the lead out too early which allowed Hacker to come around and take the sprint. The pace stayed high down RT-10. With 1K to go Mike McGinley jumped hard with Hacker and another Yalie on his wheel. This strung everyone out but also allowed Hacker to roll off the front. Todd Hamel put in a hard effort to catch Hacker but could not close the gap and the early hat trick goes to the professor. Well done.
All in all an awesome way to start the Sleeping Giant ride proper. Hats off to the "Kids" from Yale for keeping the pace high and to all of us old guys who still have a little something left in the legs.
Tuesday the 19th
Happy Spring everyone!
The cold, the early start, and the slightly wet roads kept everyone away.
All the main roads were dry by 5:30 so those who did the ride were left scratching their helmets as to why there weren't more out.
There was 4 guys who took the training wheels off and did the short loop.
Gregg F, Jacinto, Dillon P and Hunter P. They were met by 2 Yalies, Spencer G and another ( Nick G? ).
Hopefully next week brings proper weather. Tentatively it will be a 6PM start for next week.
The cold, the early start, and the slightly wet roads kept everyone away.
All the main roads were dry by 5:30 so those who did the ride were left scratching their helmets as to why there weren't more out.
There was 4 guys who took the training wheels off and did the short loop.
Gregg F, Jacinto, Dillon P and Hunter P. They were met by 2 Yalies, Spencer G and another ( Nick G? ).
Hopefully next week brings proper weather. Tentatively it will be a 6PM start for next week.
Weekday rides
For anyone who can take off a chunk of time during the week to ride.....
We're trying out a new ride
We're trying out a new ride
Tuesday the 9th
2012 – finito !
It was a small group for the final
official ride of 2012. Maybe 18-20 guys and a girl. Things started
slowly but once everyone got thru the rough roads it got going.
MoMoney, Domination Dom ( Audi Danbury ), and Chris C foremost among
the pace-setters. Hacker also peeked his salt n pepper head up front
a couple of times to keep things honest. Good to see Mike McG back in
action, healed up from a busted shoulder blade.
Little T led the way up Mountain road
at first with Chris C taking over and splitting the field a bit. Gary
from Central wheel, Danbury Dom, MoMoney and Hacker were also there
and with Chris C and Hacker hammering they got a gap pretty quickly
with Central Wheel Gary stuck in between. Hunter P and Mike McG
closed that gap down over the next minute or 2 and it was all
together for the ride to the light, although Hacker would try to
sneak off again with Chris C. Hunter P was there sewing things up and
the red light was red anyway.
There wasn’t much shenanigans on Moss
Farms. Hacker, Hunter P, Gary, and MoMoney worked the front and kept
the pace high. Hacker and The Gilbertoni had a small gap pouring onto
the chicane and up the hill but Chris C charged up and the thru along
with Hunter P, keeping the pace high into the industrial park. The
speed stayed respectable, if not a bit a slow, thru Knotter Drive and
onto West Johnson. Little T got things on the small rise. There were
plenty of guys filling in the space behind although some were going
up some were going back. Once onto Reinhardt, Hacker was in good
position to jump and that's exactly what he did. He got a quick 40
meter gap on the first hill there and stayed on the hammer. By the
time the sprint hill started he had probably close to 100 meters and
was still going pretty good. That meant any sprinters just jumping on
the hill wouldnt have time to close the gap. Little T tried for a but
and Hunter P came around him to try a little longer but Hacker still
had a 30-40 meter cushion going thru the corner to take the final
prize.
Everyone came back together on the way
down. Hacker was back at it on Peck lane, striking out near the top
of the riser there along with Chris C. Hunter P and MoMoney were
there as well and those 4 had a gap that they took to Route 10 but
good tempo from Mike McG, CWGary, and Mountain Man brought them back
for the charge up Route 10.
Things wound up again for the run-in to
Stop n Shop. Hacker again snuck off a couple of minutes before
everyone else was thinking go and hit the base of the hill with that
same 40 meter gap. Back in the dwindling pack, Mike McG found himself
setting a good clip for a couple of guys behind. Little T wasn't
going to get snookered again. He had enough time to jump out, stay
ahead of Hunter P, and come around Hacker by the top.
From there the ride kind of went into
safety mode as it was starting to get dark. Monty B had a good effort
off the front once thru Cheshire but was swallowed up and spit off
the back as Mountain Man, Domination Dom, Mike McG, Hacker, Little T
and a couple of others were going full gas to the end. Hacker started
off the final 500 meters with Little T on his wheel and those 2
rolled off to the end.
No one went up the hill because there was pumpkin ale waiting at the bike shop.
No one went up the hill because there was pumpkin ale waiting at the bike shop.
So thus ends another year for the best
training ride this side of the Mississippi. Sunday morning rides are
on. 10 AM. Although this weekend may have a slim turn-out as most of
the conservative Stage-One crew will be tea-partying it up on a
corporate sponsored hiking trip.
See'yall in March!
Tuesday the 2nd
Rained out.
Chris C, Yelle!Snoop and MoMoney were the only ones out. We're betting the conversation took on a broad range of topics meaningful to residents from both sides of the Atlantic.
So it comes down to one last dark ride in seven days. Leaving at 5:30. Hopefully the weather is good.
We will do the beer and pizza thing at the shop regardless of weather next Tuesday.
Hopefully we don't drink all the beer till then.
Chris C, Yelle!Snoop and MoMoney were the only ones out. We're betting the conversation took on a broad range of topics meaningful to residents from both sides of the Atlantic.
So it comes down to one last dark ride in seven days. Leaving at 5:30. Hopefully the weather is good.
We will do the beer and pizza thing at the shop regardless of weather next Tuesday.
Hopefully we don't drink all the beer till then.
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