Tuesday the 22nd

Rain waves white flag.... For now...   

    The rain finally gave way for the ride tonight. Besides a little over spray off the back roads, everyone stayed dry tonight for the 35-45 guys and girls out. Good to see Peter K out on the bike, recovered from his fractured hip. Next, the ride waits for Joe K's return.
     Right off route 10 the speed ramped up as everyone was eager to get the HR up. YelleSnoop! was up there and inbetween saving his bike from disaster, was pushing the early pace. Also too was Hunter P, BlackTie\Aetna, MoMoney, Young Suto, Jacinto, and Hacker. Turning onto North Brooksvale saw Aidan and Hacker surge, bringing out BlackTie and Hutner P. The foursome got a gap right away and held that onto Mountain Rd. Behind Guido, Chris C, Mike McG, Jacinto and a couple of others were pulling weight to keep the gap close. Everyone was back together after the initial climbs on Mountain. Aidan kept up the pressure and took along Chris C, an FSU rider, and Gregg F. That group never made it more then 20 meters off the front as riders used the downhill sections to reconnect. From there to Route 68 was steady and fast as the ride snuck thru the light and kept the pace going onto Moss Farms.
    YelleSnoop and Thomaas B got an early jump on Moss Farms but were soon back in the bunch as Chris C, Rondo and Hunter P rode steady on the front, dragging the bunch up. There were no further attacks running into the chicane. Once onto Marion, turns of speed from Aidan, Chris C, Little T, and Hunter P sprung a break briefly but other strong guys were there to sew it up ( Guido, Hacker, Yelle, BlackTie ). No other attacks till going over route 322.
    Aidan, Hacker, Hunter P, and BlackTie continued being the protagonists and rolled off the front shortly after and hit Mount Vernon with a 40 meter gap. But too many guys, not wanting to be left out of the action, rode the gap shut and it was all together again. Things slowed down a bit after that as the ride reached the false flats. Good to see Craig Luekens out in his retro TargetTraining kit. Surely there are some New Haveners that can get that man a new kit... Anyway, things started to break up a bit on the false flat, but no one was delivering the crusher. A new guy from Central Wheel (?) shot off the front briefly, but didn't last long up there.
    Guido rolled off the front as everyone paused to recollect. Special Ed, The new Guy in Nalini, Gregg F and MoMoney rode up with him but it was all together a minute later as everyone got ready for the turnaround. SPeed stayed steady as the group turned onto Welch. A couple of new faces popped up to set tempo and get everyone's attention ( Rondo, Dillon P, Central Wheel ). Heading to the corner, Aidan, Jacinto, Hunter P and Hacker were in position. Hacker jumped first, taking Jacinto, Chris C and Hunter P along with him. Right after the corner, from his last-in-line position, Chris C jumped strongly and had a 30 meter gap. Jaconti and Hunter P rode the front to bring the gap down, then Hacker jumped to reconnect but came up short. Chris C gets a well deserved one here, as a late sprint from Hunter P wasn't enough to close the gap.
   On the backside, Aidan looked like he wanted to punch it. Little T joined him and the 2 looked to have a jump on the rest but a red light brought it all back together. No further attacks until Peck Lane, despite surges on the front from BlackTie, YelleSnoop!, Hunter P and Aidan.
    Onto Peck Lane where Chris C's early hard pacing rode a small group off the front. Chris C left first with Nalini and Aidan. Hacker and Hunter P bridged up and made it a break... Perhaps the most serious of the night. The group had 50 meters by the top of the false flat on Peck and were working well together. Behind, Guido, Jacinto, Mike McG, Little T and the other usuals didnt let the break go unnoticed. Also up there was John Gregory who was going over 100 miles on the day at that point. Props to the Mountain Man on keeping tempo for 140 miles.
   Onto Route 10, the break still had a healthy gap and were unfazed by the hill next to Cheshire Park. A red light before the Stop n Shop sprint finally brought it to an end and allowed the peleton to catch. Little T collected the Stop n Sprint ahead of a well timed Chris B and a Yalie ( DJ Dan? )
    The ride into Hamden was standard fare. Fast but could have been faster. For the finale, after final pulls from Craig L, Dillon P and Mike McG, it was Aidan, fighting it out with Nalini, Guido and Chris B. Nalini got in front of Aidan and was able to hold it. Up the hill went the usuals. Chris B attacked early but Hunter jumped mid way and took it.

Tuesday the 15th

Rained out for the second week in a row...

    

     Still, a few guys were out to ride. Chris C, Koski, John Gregory, Special Ed, Eric M, and Gary H from Cheshire Cycle. After waiting for a couple of minutes in the car park and after no one else showed up the stalwart group rolled out. They were sent off by a beer-toting Hunter P, standing in front of the shop. Hunter was unable to convince anyone to stop riding, even tho that beer looked waaaaay too good. Chris C, Eddy A and Eric kept a steady rotating pace up right through the back roads to RT-68. John, Koski and Gary were content to sit on and go for the ride. Status-quo out onto Moss Farms and Mt Vernon. At the turn-a-round Koski put in a blistering effort and rode everyone off his wheel to take the hill sprint on West street by at least 200 yards. Impressive attack! Soon after Special Ed peeled off at the West Street gas station and the rest of the guys rode back to Cheshire at a leisurely pace. Chris C took the S&S sprint and then checked out for the night... The visions of beer bottles still in his head and now too much to take. Eric, John G, Koski and Gary finished out the ride into Hamden.

All in all a fun night of riding in the rain.

Tuesday the 8th

     The rain derailed the ride tonight. There were still a few guys out to get in a good workout.
MoMoney, Chris C, Gary H, Dillon P, John Gregory, Timex Casey, Nuemotion, Builder Pete, Antonio D, Hunter P, Guido, & Rapha Ridley.
     Right from the start Crowle was looking to be the instigator. Guido got hit with a flat right off route 10 and Nuemotion waited with him. Chris would attack a bunch of times early on, fracturing the small group. John Gregory, MoMoney and Hunter P would sew things back up just to see Chris jump again. A couple of times Chris C and Hunter P would get a gap but Chris was the only one looking to get away most of the time. The ride lost a few guys by the turnaround. Chris and Hunter P shot off the front of the sprint. Guido rejoined on the backside and it was steady tempo the rest of the ride.

Time to go rinse off the shoes......

Tuesday the 1st

Another good ride in the books.

    Everyone was greeted by the big white van tonight and that means it was gonna be a good ride. Right off the bat, Aidan and Ben Wolfe were on the gas. Young Suto was up there as well. Little T took an early flyer which added to the pace early on. From there the pace stayed crisp... Nothing too back breaking though. Timothy Ratta was up front a lot, pulling the pace up. He had help from Chris C and Thomaas B, but a flat on North Brooksvale sidelined Crowle and left us all without the spice that comes from ol Krusty's kit on the ride.
      Moving onto Mountain Rd, Ratta was still at it with Little T. Things were stretched out nicely to the point of minor gaps opening up. Next up was efforts from Nuemotion, MoMoney, Hunter P, The Wolfester and Eric M and by the second set of risers, a trio of Guido, Hunter P and Larry M were getting some daylight. Yelle!Snoop and the white train kept it close and things were back together soon after. The rest of the ride down Mountain Rd was standard fare. Special Ed put in a monster pull toward to the end of the road, peeling off a gap with him and about 6 others but the light was red and it was all back together.
     Moss Farms was uneventful without Hacker and the Yalies. Instead it was the Wolfester causing a general ruckus up front along with Larry M. No one was getting away though. Ratta came back up to the front and led everyone thru the chicane with CCNS taking over after that. Todd H and Wolfester had a gap getting onto Marion and they were joined by Young Suto, Special Ed and Jeremy B. Young Suto rolled off the front brielfy but by the turn off for the short loop it was all together and moving along nicely.
      Heading up to the crossover for 322, the light went red a few seconds before the ride got to it. The front 6 went thru ( Aidan, Wolfe, Little T, Todd H, Danbury Audi, Yelle! ) and the rest of the ride held up to wait the 20 seconds or so. The riders up the road slotted in at tempo pace, confident that the field would bring them back soon. It took a little while for the peleton to get organized as initally there were a couple of brief solo efforts off the front. Once onto Mount Vernon proper tho things picked but there were not a lot of willing bodies to hit the wind. The workload fell upon Guido, Tall Dennis, Eric M, Larry M, Ratta, Nuemotion and a couple others. The pace picked up in the break as well but it was understood the ride would bunch back up. That finally happeded right after the false flat. As soon as contact was made, Wolfester took off again and the CCNS seminar on "How to spring a break with your guy in it" started.
      Immediate chase to Ben was given by Eric M, Yelle!Snoop, Young Suto, Hunter P and MoMoney. That was enough to draw everyone out and it was all together and fast for the next few hundred meters. As the front of the ride slowed just slightly, the next guy to attack was Aidan. He was joined quickly by a CVC rider and soon after Special Ed and Hunter P bridged up. That pulled another 4 or 5 riders out from the peleton and once the 4 up front saw the field bearing down, Wolfster took off again. Guido and Ratta were with him and the pack let them ride away at first. Little T, sensing something afoot, jumped across the gap and also Tall Dennis came across as peleton re-shuffled and got ready for Welch.
      The break hit Welch Rd with 15 seconds or so and it was evident that the sprint points would come from up the road. Once again, that didnt stop Chris johnnycomelately Butler from setting off across the gap. In impressive fashion He would just about make up the distance, but he got there just in time for the fireworks. Up in the break the group was starting to play some cat-n-mouse. Once a certain sprinter who shall remain nameless, missed a turn up front, The Wolfester jumped. As the rest of the break hit the base of the hill, Little T jumped up to leave. Ben had a good gap but maybe for lack of knowledge, didnt scream thru the corner. Little T was bearing down and went thru just a couple of seconds behind him. Those 2 would ride toward the sprint alone as the rest of the break got swallowed up. Little T was able to get the jump on Ben and took the sprint, although Ben would put his head down and hammer away solo right after that in continuance of the youngster's strong ride...
      The field stopped for a red light and The Wolfester was gone. The ride back into Cheshire was fast thanks to the tailwind. Chris C made it back to the ride and Joshy G also joined up. CCNS, Ratta, Eric M, Guido and a couple of others up front. Chris C had a flyer coming up to 322 but Aidan kept everyone close. Things got going on the uphill section to Peck. With the Wolfester in sight, Aidan, Chris C and Hunter P got a gap, Joshy G, and Nuemotion also got up to the group. A few guys sat up simultaneously right behind, mid chase, and that let the gap go up. The front group hit route 10 with maybe 10 seconds and despite the gap being slim all the way to Stop n Shop, that core group stayed off the front. One or 2 might have dropped off and one or 2 might have bridged up. The group hit the sprint with more then enough of a gap but no one took advantage. Little T took off from the front of the chase and sprinted the whole way up and thru the group ( Wolfester included ) to take #2 on the night.
     The ride back into Hamden was fast with CCNS, Guido, NickG, Joshy G and couple of others pitching in. For the finale, Guido went by the last of the CCNS efforts but had Little T on his 6. T was able to come by and despite a stubborn push from CVC Chris to the very end, stayed in front of all to make it 3 on the night. Up the hill, John Gregory, continued the impressive riding from the 50+ crowd and took another hill finish from Hunter P and the other Shepard Ave regulars.

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.