Cazenovia, NY — Eleven chimps took the start line on a foggy, muddy and damp morning in Cazenovia. The starting field of 49 was treated to a relatively quiet first 10 miles before a flurry of attacks began from several different teams, all unsuccessful due to the seemingly endless stream of chimps covering each move, guided consistently towards safety by the savvy Ben Rabin.
As the peloton approached the first major climb of the day, positioning was key. Ben Rabin, recognizing that teammate Jon Cyganik was near the back of the group after a hair-raising descent, took it upon himself to deliver Jon to the front of the group – a key decision as the breakaway was formed shortly after.
A split happened shortly before the first climb up Chittenango Falls, with several representatives present from all of the major teams.
When the break happened right I was a bit worried I was going to be stuck in no mans land, but I put my head down and got on the tail end prior to the climb.
Rob Chimento
The front split initially contained three CNYC/NYCM team members and three Salty Chimps. Sensing the urgency of this move, David Tate put in a monster effort to bridge, giving the Chimps an advantage in the team classification.
“I knew I could sustain a big effort for a long time and I knew that my guys would be able to let the other teams chase after me and have the tactical advantage.”
David Tate
Tate crested the climb alone and continued to bridge, ultimately linking up with Ben Gaulin (Mello Velo Racing) and the pair dug deep to finally latch back onto the front split just before heading back into Cazenovia.
Back in the second group, Scott Stewart, Dan Deemer, and Tony Campagna were matched with two CNYC/NYCM riders and one member of Beer Tree Cycling. Fully aware that they had four teammates up the road they were in a position to let CNYC/NYCM chase.
Up at the head of the race were representatives from CNYC/NYCM (Phil Maynard), Beer Tree Cycling (Jamie Hoyt), and the Chimp’s own Jon Cyganik.
Coming around for the descent on the second lap, I ended up losing ground on the other two again that I wasn’t able to close when the road leveled out again. I wasn’t sure how much of a gap I had on the chase pack, so I ended up putting in a hard solo TT effort to keep the pace high until I hit the climb again. I didn’t lose any more ground on the other two, I just couldn’t make it back up. I
Jon Cyganik
Cyganik would go on to claim the third step on the overall podium showing that he’s got the legs to climb with the best on any day.
Some bad luck struck as Brian McManus and Dan Deemer both were plagued by punctures, cutting short their efforts though they would go on to finish the race. Fortunately the Chimps showed up with big numbers and were not critically impacted by bad fortune.
Back in the chase group Campagna and Stewart allowed CNYC/NYCM to set the pace on the final climb up Chittenango Falls. A two on two fight became two on one as Stewart put in a massive attack near the top of the climb, sealing the team classification for the Chimps.
The tactics, communication, and riding was some of the best I’ve seen the team execute.
Jon Cyganik
As the three remaining riders moved toward the finish line, Campagna made his final move, ensuring 7 Chimps comprised the first 15 slots on the day.
The team functioned incredibly well together. There was a more solid understanding of what we were trying to accomplish and major contributions from everyone from Rabin on lap one down to Kenny handing out bottles at the top of the climb. It shows how hard everyone’s been working this winter.
David Tate
