Tuesday the 24th

The 1 Percenter's power increases even on the SG Ride....    

      The tailwind got everyone going out of the parking lot. What goes around comes around though and the turnaround would be met with just as much or a response. Off route 10 there were a group of guys bent on making it fast early on. Hacker, Eric M, Jacinto, a couple of Yalies, Neumotion, Todd H, and probably Chris C as well. It stayed fast going thru the rough sections and up thru the next corner of two. Hacker doing most of the pacemaking... Good to see Larry Legend Merling up there as well. Bad to see an idiot driver try to pass 50 bike riders going over the speed limit.

      Gaps started to open up on the run-in to Mountain Rd. Couple of guys sat up and suddenly there was a good group up the road. Hacker, Special Ed, Todd H, Hunter P, YelleSnoop!, Chris C, DJ Dan,Todd H, Eric M, Larry M, and a CVC rider with square rim glasses ….(Jeremy Brazeal ??? ). The group went to work, hammering up the initial steps of Mountain road, pulling the gap up to a couple football fields or so. Back in the peleton, it was Condition-1 thruout the fleet as everyone realized the break was looking strong and the tailwind was only going to get the speed so high. In the panic, the front of the chase was anything but organized. The ponies that wanted to be up the road starting thinking only of themselves. Splintering ensued with Guido, Jacinto, Little T, Rondo and a couple of others all trying to bridge the gap at various points on Mountain Road but falling up short. Towards the end of Mountain Rd with the gap slowly coming down but still nearly 100 meters, Nuemotion and the Yalie with the “Team Handlebar”shorts ( Ian Forsyth ) bridged the gap. A red light at route 68 sealed the deal though and brought it all together. One of these weeks someone is going to hit the lottery and sneak thru that light.

     Onto Moss Farms where the IanForth and Hacker took off early on. Everyone was regrouping so they were given some slack. Shortly after, Dillon P, Nuemotion, and another Yalie rolled off to bridge. YelleSnoop also left the station, tho by then things were starting to get going again. The duo stayed off the front as Chris C and one other (?) also jumped up to make the gap but they couldn’t break free and by the hill up to Marion Ave, chase 1 was absorbed. The pace stayed high and Hacker and the Yalie were caught soon after. Coming up to the light on 322, Eric M and Mr Voss, Julio L stopped to fix a sliding seatpost. Mike McG also may have stopped. There was some debate on whether to wait and for a bit it seemed like the group was holding up. By the corner of Mount Vernon, that was distant memory though and it was game on again.

      Onto Mount Vernon where Todd H, CVC, Hacker, Special Ed, and Antonio D got things going. When Special Ed rolled off the front Chris C jumped up again to try to get off the front. He was joined by CVC, YelleSnoop, Hiunter P, DJ Dan and Nuemotion. The group didn’t get very far and it just served to speed things up nicely along with the tailwind. 28 mph average for the trip down Mount Vernon. As everyone set up for the false flat section a move was pretty much inevitable. Sure enough, Chris C, Special Ed, Jacinto, Guido, Hacker, and CVCJeremy went and quickly got a gap. Late to jump was Larry M but he would eventually get up there. With some teammates up the road and the peleton thinking now of the turnaround, the gap was allowed to go up. Jordan Lynn and Antonio D, teammates of NO ONE on Tuesday nights, started the chase soon after that and had MoMoney and DJ Dan up there for backup. That brought the gap down a bit. Close enough for YelleSnoop! and DJ Dan to try the jump across. Along for the ride was Hunter P. That brought the break to a stone's throw but by the corner for Welch the gap was going back up again. The chase had hit the group hard and gaps were everywhere, so once onto Welch there was no immediate push from the field.... Instead just a lot of re-grouping. The break, however, was going hard so it quickly became evident that the sprint would be up front. That didnt stop Chris Butler and on other (?) from trying to get across the gap. They were halfway there as Hacker jumped the group at the base of the hill. He hit the corner alone and was into the headwind. He went unchallenged to the line, scoring some “smart & strong” points and the 1^st long loop sprint of the season.

     Behind, the headwind smacked everyone like a veteran pimp. The rest of the break was mopped up and the speed dropped like a “Nibali”. On the backside, with Hacker's job done, it was gruppo compacto. Soon after, Little T would then have a dig, followed by another Crowle attack. Nonetheless, it stayed together all the way back over 322. Not too many guys wanted to get there hands dirty up front with the wind. Credit Guido, Special Ed, Dark Yalie Nick ( pure this week in his white kit ), Chris C, the re-joined Eric M, and Hacker with keeping the pace high into the wind heading to Peck Lane.

      More of the same once onto Route 10, solid pace but far from fast with the headwind... Things started to get interesting coming up to Stop n Shop when a couple of Yalies, Pescatore, and Jacinto started creeping off the front. Response was slow but no one was escaping completely off the front. That meant that anyone back 10 bikes was scrambling to close tiny gaps, not setting up for the sprint. DJ Dan was in a good spot and jumped with Eric M on his 6. DJ Dan gets this one on account of Eric M pulling a “Valverde”.

      There was traffic and red lights moving thru Cheshire. IanForth, CVC Jeremy, Rondo and a couple of others keeping the pace high. For the final kilo's, there was lots of shuffling and re-shuffling up front with most guys sitting in and not pulling (and the discrepancy between pulling and sitting in was huge). About a mile out DJ Dan got tired of it all and decided to drill it. He was joined by the German and Hacker. They created a brief (unintentional?) gap, but it served the purpose of thinning the front out a bit. Once the 3 of rotated off though the pace dramatically slowed and the 30 people sitting in all bunched at the front, making for another interesting finish. Props to Dillon P for a good save when he got bumped from the side in the final kilo. In the end it was Mike McG sneaking thru last minute and hitting the front with enough speed to hold it to the end. Up the hill John Gregory was first up the hill second week in row, beating out Hunter P and MoMoney... ( though not enough Money to buy a name-brand bike )

Good ride everyone!

Tuesday the 17th

SG Ride finally grows a pair

    Big crowd out tonight. Largest in a while. A few long lost faces reappeared and some new ones who keep coming back, so we all must be doing something right…..
    Starting things off was the usual suspects. Dillon P, A couple of Yalies. ( start wearing name tags guys  ), Hacker ( doesn’t need a name tag  ), Jacinto and a couple of others. It was apparent early on there were guys ready to get some teeth chipped tonight. When Joshy G, Little T and Guido hit the front a couple of streets later, it was vol-gas. The pace, dictated by Joshy G and a Target Training guy, was high enough to start splintering a lead group on Mount Sanford but that didn’t last long with DJ Dan and Hunter P giving chase and sewing things back up. The pace stayed high all the up to Mountain road as Yelle Snoop!, Todd H and TargetTraining got a brief gap. The first chance to recollect came on the opening sections of Mountain Rd, but still, no one was stopping to smell the daffodils. Joshy G tore off a gap soon after the corner along with the Target Training guy. The response from the field was slow due to everyone being red-lined up till that point so the gap the 2 quickly went up to 60 meters or so. Hunter P shot across the gap on the 2nd set of risers and the 3 went to work to try to keep any type of lead. It was short lived tho as Little T, Guido, Hacker, and a couple of others were working hard to bring it back before the light.
    Said light was red, allowing for a breather and the chance for everyone to touch Hacker’s tires for some healing power to be transferred. We kid cuz we care….. Big ol Congrats to the Professor for showing the middle-agers how it’s done in Battenkill. We’re all proud to share Tuesday nights with you Hacker! You and your sexy Scott Foil ( sold and built for him by Cheshire Cycle )
    Once onto Moss Farms, no one was really surprised to see Hacker still at it up front. Joining him was the Target Training guy, DJ Dan and in pursuit, the nameless young guy on a Trek with the Amity Bikes throwback jersey. Amity would be absorbed by the chase once it got going but the 3 leaders stayed out there as the other Yalies up front who were thinking of their potential futures in the Hacker Administration 2020 decided to not chase down the Professor. It came upon Mike McG to really ramp it up and joining him was Hunter P. Those 2 ripped a gap off the front in chase as the ride came up to the chicane. The field was a bit slowed down by traffic at the corner but started up the pursuit as the ride came up to the corner for Marion Ave. Mike mCg powered away from Hunter P with a big bridging effort and cleared the gap just in time for the corner. The field was bearing down but not fast enough and the four up front would stay away a little longer heading into the industrial park. Once into the park back together, Target Training smelled blood and kept the pace high. Other Safety-Green-Heads ( and the Nuemotion rider in red ) were there to help out and very quickly, there was a high speed gap established to the group of about 5. Joshy G and Hunter P then flew across the gap which got everyone’s attention. As the corner for West Johnson came up and the field reconnected, Joshy G pushed thru and off the front, chased by a lone Bulldog. Behind, there was no real effort to chase them down, just a solid pace on the front with guys settling in for a fast sprint. As the corner for Reinhard neared, with the 2 up front just 30 meters or so, Chris C and Chris B jumped out and across the gap pretty quickly. Little T, Hacker, Eric M, and others were not far behind, squaring up the target sights. Little T timed this one well, and got a great jump on the at-their-limit break and was not going to challenged all the way to the corner.
     Cue up uneventful descent on the backside toward Peck Ln. Once there, Joshy G once again pushed his bike off the front. That pulled things out single file all the up the false flat and over the old train tracks.  Once the ride got back onto Route 10, there was a bit of a slow down + a an issue with someones show or something. This let a small group get a gap ( Gregg F, Chris B and one other ). The tailwind soon got everyone going again though. There were a couple of guys that tried to get a gap ahead of Stop n Shop. Nick G the Yalie (?). Tall Dennis, Chris C, Todd H etc. It was looking like a fast run-in to the sprint but a red light at Maple Ave stopped that in a hurry and Master Chief Dillon P breathed a sigh of relief on behalf of his Strava KOM segment.
    Lots of guys were in place for the sprint. Eric M, Dillon P, DJ Dan, Matt Lang ( Twin Six ), a couple of yalies (both in their home jerseys and the away ones ). Little T was boxed in a bit, but busted out wide to take the lead ahead of Jacinto and DJ Dan. Despite the strong sprint, the officials there DQ’ed T for a yellow line violation so this goes to Jacinto.
     The ride back into Hamden was fast. The group caught a bunch of lights in Cheshire, allowing a group of 3 ( Eric M, and ??? ) to sneak thru and start the long ride back. The chase was real and the group was caught with less then a minute of riding left. It was a four horse finish  ( Hacker, Little T, Guido, DJ Dan ) but a near crash up front brought a mutual truce to the bunch and those 4 rolled in ahead of everyone else. Up the hill went the usual crew. Chris B, despite a last kilo push on route 10, still had enough to power over Hunter P and John Gregory to the top of the hill.

Great ride everyone! The way it should be...

Tuesday the 10th

2 Rapha jerseys on the ride tonight... S.G. ride continues to get soft.

      The ride started out fast tonight with Guido, Dillon P, Thomas B, Young Suto, Hacker and a few others leading the charge. Once everybody got settled in it was all together. Nice to see the road got patched up on North Brooksvale. Dillon P led everyone onto Mountain rd in pursuit of a slow moving car. Hacker jumped up along with Hunter P and the 2 were drafting their way way off the front. Up the road were a couple of guys who left a little early so all of a sudden there was a sizable group up the road. The chase was on in the field with Guido and a new guy in a white kit doing a lot of work. Good to see VQ Rob back out there again. The break was holding its ground all the way down mountain rd but a long red light at route 68 brought everything and everyone together.

       Once onto Moss Farms there were a few guys looking to go and few up front that were content to tempo. Tall John and Chris C followed by a good size group ( Dillon P, mtb Owen, Antonio D, and the new guy ) were looking to get a gap. They succeeded but lost some steam coming up to the Chicane. A motorcycle that was careening thru the intersection broke up the chase as guys ( and Girls ) dodged the motorbike. Everything came back together pretty quickly as the headwind hit hard going up to Marion. Chris C was channeling his inner kamikaze and took off before turning into the industrial park. That brought up the speed and it stayed pretty fast all the way to West Johnson. The uptempo didn’t dissuade Hacker from jumping out and bridging the gap to Chris C. Those 2 had a decent gap turning onto West Johnson. Behind them, it seemed like most were waiting for someone else to act. Chris B tried to jump off but didn’t get too far. Eric M, the new guy, Young Suto, and others were up front. Up the road, Chris C had taken the leash off Hacker ( or it was torn off ). Hacker was in little danger of being caught by the sprint from behind. On the backside, there were a couple of guys who tried to keep it going off the front but the messy wind kept the hero efforts to a minimum for the ride back to Route 10.

      Heading South, Chris C, once again, took off solo. That was followed up by surges from Brian Suto and Hunter P. Heading up to Stop n Shop, there was little organization up front, giving Jacinto a change to sneak up thru groups and start the sprint early. Little T was eyeballing this one and he took off soon after with Eric M, and Hacker in tow. It was a 3 way fight but Little T hung on to it all the way. After the sprint, Hacker kept on the gas and all accounts having him riding off into the sunset... Probably all the way to Battenkill for this weekend.... Give em hell professor.....

        Hacker's strong ride into Hamden was the only one worth commenting on.... Everyone else took over the road for most of the way into Hamden, no doubt pissing off way more people then usual for the SG ride. “but the wind was from the west.... It's hard not sucking wheel...the good draft was in the middle of the lane”.... :(
 Sorry, still no reason to take up almost all of the space usually allotted for cars.

Tip o the hat to all who are heading out to Cambridge NY for the big race this weekend. May no flats come to you.

Tuesday the 3rd

Another good ride tonight. Thanks for keeping it safe out there everyone.

    The ride was missing Joe K, who is out with a busted collarbone sustained in Sunday's sh%t show sprint finish in Bethel. Everyone wishes Joe a quick recovery. Thanks Joe for giving us some time to prepare for your next SG attack. The ride tonight started out slow. Once it went over North Brooksvale, it picked up a little. By the turn onto Mountain rd, it was full gas. Hunter P and Eric M starting things out. Guido stepped in after that and kept it fast. Mystery rider on an Orbea and the CCB boys were up front as well. Hunter P tried to sneak off before the light but was greeted by a red.
    Once onto Moss Farms, a group slowly started to ride off the front, Jacinto and Guido taking the lead. Riders kept on popping across the gap and it was all together by the chicane. Little T jumped on the hill followed up by Hunter P past the corner. That popped the trio of Hunter, Joshy G, and the Orbea off the front. They kept their gap into the industrial park. Guido and a couple of others doing the work of closing the gap. Onto West Johnson, were Mike McG a CCBer and Chris C stepped up the pace on the early risers. Chris C was the lone attacker after a minute or two and he had a decent gap to try to sneak off the sprint point win. Behind, a bunch of different guys were up front. CCB, Antonio, Eric M, Chris Butler, etc. Chris C hit Reinhard with maybe 40 meters of asphalt between him and the pack. Usually that's not nearly enough to make it to the corner, but we're talking about the new improved Chris C here folks. No more donuts for this guy. Crowle is on his way to "Most Improved 2012", as he has turned his back on the old Chris C.
     Behind, Eric M was the first to jump, followed by Little T and a couple of others. Eric M had the jump on everyone else and was able to get up to and by Chris C in just barely enough time. On the backside, Hunter P was the only one to stay on the gas, getting a gap that he hung onto till the old railroad tracks past Peck lane. Once back onto Route 10, the tailwind helped things along nicely. The Stop n Shop sprint looked all Zane's, with Rondo keeping the pace high for Eric M. Little T jumped in a better spot this time, and went up and thru, getting there first ahead of Eric M, Jacinto, Hunter P and the Orbea.
    Once thru the lights of Center Cheshire, new guy Gary from Central Wheel hit the front and wound it up for a while. Everyone stayed in formation and the speed stayed high into Hamden. CCB and then Zane's hit the front after that. A couple of close calls as red-lined-freds braked hard around guys sitting up from the front. ( Pull off to the right everyone! ). Dillon P was the last to give it a go up front and then it was the finishers who took over. Guido get this one as he went down to the line with a CVC rider. Up the hill went a nice big crowd. MoMoney leading things off and Hunter P finishing alone up top. Butler, Little T, Tall Dennis, C-dale Rick, Gregg F, Dillon P, MTB Owen and a couple of others.

Tuesday the 27th

Spring was fun while it lasted.

       The colder weather didn’t scare anyone away from the ride this week and the 6 PM start seemed to bring out a couple of new faces. Missing was Chris MaHoney, who got bumper-boinked by a senior citizen on the way to the ride. He is fine… His bike on the other hand….. Let’s hope the insurance gods smile down upon him.
       The ride started pretty sedate and it was Dillon P, TheFireFighter G, Antonio and Owen from CCR up front for the opening miles. Everyone made it thru the bombed out zone ok and without incident. Chris C , followed by MTB Owen were the first to get things going properly after the corner for Mountain Rd. From there it was steady with plenty of rotation up front all the way to the light.
       Moss Farms started out calm but soon into it Hunter P hit the front and rode a gap off the rest, taking along Jacinto and Sasha from CCB. Shortly after that, Chris C and the dark Yalie (?) bridged up. That got things going in the pack and by the corner for Marion, the break would be caught back.
Dillon P and John Gregory led everyone up and onto Marion and it stayed pretty fast till into in the industrial park. Mike McG blitzed the front as soon as the pack got onto West Johnson. He peeled off a gap and was chased by a new guy from Biker’s Edge and a CVC rider (name?). McG had a 40 meter gap crossing over Peck lane as then the Nick G the Yalie went across the gap for him. MTB Owen would also try to bridge, but neither could get there. Mike had Rondo and Eric M up front in the pack, not too eager to catch him. Joe K was up there too along with the CCB Toss-up. Chris C jumped hard with about 500 meters to the corner and he did get up to Mike. DJ Dan would then have a go as a group of nearly 12 hit the base of the sprint hill with speed and intention. The 2 off the front would come back as Eric M, Jacinto, Little T and Hunter P all fired up the jets. Eric M had the best starting spot and gave it the best go but the road was too long. Little T came by with about 25 meters to spare. The gap that the 4 sprinters had was pretty big but it all came back on Peck ln when no one wanted to capitalize on it.
        Joe K rolled thru the front once onto Peck and was out to take advantage of the tailwind. He peeled off an eager group including the Yalies, a CCBer, Jacinto, a Danbury Audi rider and a couple of others. 6 or 7 strong, motoring up the false flat on Peck. The gap was 50 meters as the ride approached Rt10 when Chris B and then Hunter P made it across. The juice ran out of the break going up past Cheshire Park and it all came back together when the light at the top of the hill was red. A couple of guys boldly went thru the red light and were promptly forgotten from the collective memory.
        The run into the Stop n Shop sprint was super fast this week. Plenty of guys up front, stringing it out single file. Jacinto and Chris C had great position on the front and punched it first. Little T, Eric M and a couple others who jumped were far back and no amount of sprinting was going to make up the gap. Jacinto held off Chris C to the top. The rest of the ride into Hamden was normal. For the final push, after long pulls by CCB and Dillon P, a group of 3 or 4 was left at the very front. Jacinto, A Yalie, and (??). Up the hill went the usual suspects with John Gregory almost sneaking off with one but coming up a bit short.

Tuesday the 20th

Week 2 !

Perfect weather for the 2nd week out. Everyone had the recent racing tragedy in mind, and the starthouse was a little less jovial cause of it. There were more helmets on then usual…. Let’s just leave it at that.

      The start of the ride was calm. Everyone rode together for the opening miles. Brooksvale Ave looks like its been thru a microwave and there are now many rim-destroying holes on the section leading up to Mount Sanford Rd. Sure enough, a couple of guys got hit with flats as everyone else broke formation to get thru it slow and safe. One would have to imagine that crews will be out to patch it up soon but till then, we’re going to have to use more caution.
    Shortly after that, MoMoney and BlackTie Sports ( name? ) rolled off the front. BlackTie was on a bender for the first half of the ride, throwing off attack after attack. Hunter P brought the bunch back and it was all together turning onto Mountain Rd.  BlackTie would hit it again on the initial part of Mountain, with Young Suto giving chase. A rider in Green (?) took off and made it up Black Tie, but by then it was all coming back together. For a brief moment, Hunter P, MoMoney and Black Tie had a gap, but that didn’t last long and it was all together to the light on 68.
     The trip down Moss Farms was un-exciting. Black Tie would hit it again after the chicane, heading up to Marion Ave. This time DJ Dan and a CVC rider would give chase.  It turned into a small group getting off the front. CCR Owen, Zierhoff from Stage 1 and CVC. Back in the pack, with Stage 1, Team New Haven and CCR represented up front, there was no hurry to reel them back.  Heading into the industrial park, MoMoney and the Dark Yalie would jump up to the group and that was enough to bring it all back together. Turning onto West Johnson, Hunter P hit the front. That lead to Little T, Young Suto, and the rider in Green off the front with a long ways to the corner for Reinhard. Little T, in an uncharacteristic move, rode away from the rest as the hill started to bit and was all in for the sprint. He had a good gap, but still had to ramp up a sprint to hold off Joe K and Eric M, who were closing but didn’t have enough road to overtake T as he took the first breakaway sprint of the year.
     On the backside, Joe K stayed on the gas and went solo off the front up to past Peck Lane. BlackTie, Rondo, and Huinter P doing the work on the front of the peleton. From there it was all together as the headwind took its toll and brought the speed way down. For the run in to the Stop N Shop sprint, Young Suto, Antonio D, the Dark Yalie Nick G, Jacinto and 1 or 2 others were in position to strike. Jacinto jumped first as Hunter P came from the group back and was able to go past Jacinto to get the sprint.
     The ride back into Hamden was normal. The most exciting thing being the return of Chris B, who flew up through the front in a last kilo bid. Apparently he was lurking in the shadows all ride long, watching like an Afghan revolutionist, spying out the forces' weakness. He came up short but it was good to see him out. He lives nearly an hour away now but has promised to be around more often to make the SG ride difficult for all.

For the finale, Jacinto and the CVC rider went toe to toe to the line. Up the hill went the usual suspects, but Hunter P got a head-start and got the top first.

Tuesday the 14th

Get out the GoPro's, 250 gram tubulars and your best socks... The Sleeping Giant Ride is back!

2012 kicked off last night with about 35-45 riders & in proper Tuesday Night World's fashion, the ride had a tail wind as it went North. Everyone was happy to be out, but the absence of Peter K's glistening, chiseled, embro soaked legs was definitely felt. Get well soon Pete...... We'll be looking out for you on the road soon.

     Right off route 10, the trouble makers for the night stood up. Chris C, Joe K started it off, which rolled into a good push off the front by MoMoney and Hunter P. After that, as the ride got close to Mountain road, Tall John, Jacinto, a rider from BlackTie Sports, DJ Dan, and a CVC rider hit the front. Joe K and Hunter P would keep it close as they negotiated the gap but after the initial sections of Mountain it was all coming back together. DJ Dan kept on the gas along with a Yalie in dark colors ( Nick G? ) and that shot off another group. Jacinto, Chris C, Little T and 2 others, making a strong group of 6 or so flying down Mountain. Rondo tried to get across but pulled back. Hunter P made the jump across and went to work in the group but it was all brought back by the red light on route 68. The group rolled the dice with the light but came up empty. Green light = gone for the night no doubt this time.
     On Moss Farms, everyone took a moment to recollect. Heading into the Chicane, DJ Dan started up again near the front, which got everyone's attention, including the 2 hot chicks that were on the ride (nice job ladies). That surge turned into Chris C, The dark Yalie, Hunter P and Jacinto off the front shortly after the corner for Marion . The foursome punched it toward the industrial park and was clear, rotating well and sharing the workload all the way to halfway up West Johnson. The peleton, led by Mike McG, Tall John, BlackTie, etc brought it back just before the hill started to bite. Antonio D and Black Tie got a dig in to clear the group as the ride turned onto Reinhard. Little T punched it for the sprint and was clear, despite a long chase by Joe K, who had the best look at the sprint besides T.
     On the backside, it all came back. The headwind took its toll on the group on Peck and onto Route 10. Speed stayed low all the way to the lead in to the Stop a Shop sprint, where there were a bunch of guys up front to drive it. DJ Dan, MoMoney, Tall John ( ? ) and others, causing Little T to push for the front. Mike McG was already there and punched it first, and nearly lead-out Little T to the line, In the last 20 meters Little T was able to come around for sprint point #2 on the season.
     The rest of the ride was pretty sedate, as the group had to deal with lots of red lights and the headwind. For the finale, after a killer kilometer leadout by Cheshire Cycle's newest future Cancellara, Owen Fowler, Jacinto, dark yalie, Mike McG, and Little T were in the best spot to finish it up. Mike McG gets a bit of revenge, as he out punches the Yalie to the final corner. There were a couple of guys to finish it off like men, up the hill. MoMoney, Dennis-head-up-Display and one or 2 others.
     Good ride everyone!