Race Results

I'm sorry for posting this so late (April 4 for a March 24 race).

1/2/3 Race Report:

The Remax team worked hard to defend their leader's jersey. Initially, with a relatively large break up the road, it looked a little iffy. Their riders, John Idone (Remax) and Anthony Allessio (Remax) started a chase. Other racers, realizing the GC pressure on Idone, marked the various groups away (break and chase). These racers included strongmen Chris Peck (Wheelworks), Keith Miller (Kissena), Andy Ruiz (GMBC), Morgan Stebbins (Bethel Cycle), and Stephen Gray (Bethel Cycle). The break eventually lapped the field, with the chase lingering just behind. On the bell lap, Allesio took a monster pull and actually brought the break/field back. He followed this incredible move with a strong sprint, actually placing in the race. Idone finished just ahead, strengthening his hold on the overall lead. Ruiz, sparking the race with his patented compact rocketing attacks, won the sprint after an extremely aggressive race. Miller, unable to overcome Ruiz's final kick, finished a very strong second. Stebbins, in his second race of the day, finished third, confirming his form after a strong Masters race. Idone and loyal teammate Allesio finished next. Gray, after attacking countless times, managed to finish in the points.

Cat 3/4 Race Report:

The 3/4 race seemed somewhat quiet at first, but when the primes started, the attacks followed. The chases seemed pretty consistent, but as the wind picked up the breaks seemed to hang just out of reach. After a few laps, they'd be brought back, but a counter would immediately go, setting up another leg draining chase. Towards the end, 3 racers, overall leader Brian Girard (Stage One), second overall Jorge Ortiz (Tarrytown CC), and Tyler Johnson (CT Yankee) managed to escape. Although their lead seemed tenuous at first, a few laps of field apathy let them solidify their lead. With Ortiz and Girard working to solidify their GC positions, Johnson finished freshest and won the race. Ortiz took second (like he did last week) and Girard followed in third. The field launched many chase groups, but even the strong riders, including Cat 4 standouts Ian Strever (Bethel Cycle) and Chris Pile (Tokeneke Road Club), faded after going clear of the field. Ultimately, three more racers, Cat 4 placer John Interland (Ridgefield Bank), last year's Cat 4 champion Sal Abbruzzese (Moneygram), and the savy Thomas Cromie (unattached), escaped and took the rest of the points.

Masters 40+ Race Report:

William Caligan (Berkshire Cycling) dominated the 50-strong Masters race, going clear with Junior racer Joshua Gerwitz. The two of them traded pulls and simply destroyed the chasing field. Although Gerwitz won the race, Caligan took the Masters win. Behind him, the defending leader Morgan Stebbins (Bethel Cycle) rallied his team to chase. Greg Pelican (Bethel Cycle) was most active, taking flyers in an attempt to provoke reactions. Brian Wolf (Bethel Cycle) was another. Together with a number of teammates (a la Cipollini-era Saeco), they led out Stebbins for the field sprint. Their leadout was strong enough to place two of their leadout men 3rd (Pelican) and 6th (Wolf). Regular Rich Foley (Laurel) managed to infiltrate the front with 4th, and Horacio Ahumada (Tarrytown CC) earned 5th, just like last week.

Women's Race Report:

The women's race ended with the Laura Summers (WebEvent.com) and teammate Penny Buchar (WebEvent.com) trading last week's finishing positions. This time Buchar took the victory, with Summers right behind. Pam Allessio (Verizon) earned a fine third place. Jennifer Magur (Test Pilot) finshed fourth, while Jennifer Cromie (Sleepy Hollow) crossed the line fifth. Cheryl Smith (Bethel Cycle) rounded out the points in sixth.

Junior Race Report:

The previous week, Junior standout Joshua Gerwitz (NECSA) was clearly away but flatted out of contention. This week, no mechanicals stopped him. He attacked decisively, joining up with eventual Masters winner Caligan. He worked super hard in the break and still managed to sprint to his first Bethel win this year. Matt Crane, Kyle Drennan, and Brian Hayes (Laurel) finished behind him in that order.

Cat 4 Race Report:

The 4 race seemed to develop just like a classic pro race (well, minus the helicopters, team cars, and motorcycles). Like those pros looking for early exposure, Andy Kelter (Ridgefield Bank) opened up the race with a solo flyer lasting a few laps. After the following spate of attacks, a two man break went clear, with Tom Bronson (Bethel Cycle) and a racer in purple (Jeff Murray?). After a couple laps, William Thompson (AMC) countered with Ian Strever (Bethel Cycle) tagging along. Chris Pile (Tokeneke Road Club), Kevin Haley (Jersey Rock), and Jeff Hansen (Bethel Cycle) latched onto the speeding train just as it left the station, and the 5 of them quickly bridged to the lead break of 2. As a group of seven, they worked smoothly together and immediately started opening the gap. In the field, their teammates discouraged the chase, with the Bethel Cycle team in prominence. As the laps wound down, the break was instructed to stay clear of the field and they eased up a bit, anxious for the finish. In the heat of action on the last lap, they ended up sprinting into (and around) the field. Bronson clearly won, with Murray and Strever close behind in second and third. Thompson wound up a strong fourth, and Haley and Hansen filled the rest of the points spots. Pile, caught out on the wrong side of the road during the sprint, ended up finishing out of the points in seventh.

Cat 5 Race Report:

The Cat 5 race, not quite as full as last week's closed field, still made for a difficult race. Ultimately it came down to a field sprint, with the fastest and most astute racers taking advantage of this. Ed Kowiczyk won, earning him the overall lead in the race. Ian Ray, in his first placing, crossed the line second, while John Loughery (Don's Cycle) finished third. Anthony Trojano took fourth and Matt Zavelich (Laurel) earned fifth.