It was on TV yesterday, so I watched it, having never seen it before (except when watching Breaking Away, which I’ve probably seen 15 times)
It is a really cool race, cool enough that I kinda wish that I had considered going to IU when I was younger. Has anyone here participated or been to that event?
I watched it too, and it was so cool to see all those frat boys, spinning that 46/16 gearing. I really like the stragedy that is involved also, when to exchange, when to attack, ect. It was funny to hear the Wayne Steitna rule. I used to race with him, and for those that don’t remember him, he was a top pro, and now runs a division of Shimano I believe. SO if you are a Cat 2 or above, you are not allowed to race, unless you are an underclassman. How about the guy that went about 65 laps without exchanging?? That’s a lot of attacks to cover, especially with the gear limitations.
I think I have to go rent Breaking Away and see it again now…
I could’ve done without all the prerace coverage. It made it one loooong telecast (I fell asleep).
I loved watching the exchanges, really fun to see them sliding in with the coaster brake locked up like I used to do on my BMX when I was 7 years old. I went through so many rear tires as a kid!!
Stetina was a little before my time, but he (and his whole family, it seems like) is a true legend of the sport. I think he son is racing now?? Apparently Davis Phinney’s son is a pretty good cyclist now, too.
I was expecting to see a team try to take a flyer in the last couple of laps by piggybacking off of one of the guys sprinting in for an exchange. Maybe a little hard on the cinder track and that 46/16 gear. The rolling resistance on that thing must be a bitch.
I’m one of the coaches for the team that came in second yesterday - Phi Kappa Psi. Was standing by our pit yesterday helping with race strategy. (I rode in 3 races in the early 90s)
Was an awesome race day in Bloomington and our team was fighting tough the entire day. Thought our guy was going to catch the Cutters kid, just ran out of real estate.
If anyone ever finds themselves near Bloomington IN on the third weekend in April - go check out the race…truly a great event!
How does it work? Can I just show up and get a ticket? Or are the tickets reserved for students / alumni??
My sister and her husband are at IU (med school), so I suppose I could get tickets through them if I needed to.
Anyone can buy a ticket - $15
Great riding around Bloomington - I came down and rode with the team several times this spring.
You should make a visit to your sister for a few days - ride the beautiful rolling hills around B-town and take in the women’s (Friday) and men’s (Saturday) races.
And, while the atmosphere is a little more quiet than it was in my day - there is a reason it was (and maybe still is) called “The World’s Greatest College Weekend”!
Just for the heck of it…check my team’s website…
Cool thing:
Steve Tesich was a member of my fraternity - Phi Kappa Psi - and rode in the late 60s. I got to meet him a few times when he’d come back for the race, along with Dave Blase - who he based the Dave Stoller character on. Dave still comes back to the race every year.
I has Steve sign a Breaking Away movie poster for me my senior year - and have to say it is one of my prized possessions.
Oh, yeah, I forgot to congratulate you guys on a great race. I was kinda cheering for Major Taylor, only because I like cheering for someone during an event, I have a Major Taylor Cannondale, and I love his story.
Yes, it is very cool.
Years ago I was going to school at Illinois State (Bloomington, IL) and hitched a ride to visit a friend at Indiana U. (Bloomington, IN) the third weekend in April. After seeing the Little 500 in person I thought it was so cool I actually wanted to buy a bike in Indiana and ride it back to Illinois. I actually tried - the only thing that stopped me was that the bike shop was closed on Sunday (don’t remember which one - this was 20 years ago).
Considering I didn’t even own a bike at the time, I’m sure the reality of a double-century would have set in eventually, but I had time to kill, friends along the way, and sure wanted to try. 
Loved watching it back in the late 80’s. Great atmosphere. The after race festivities get kinda foggy though.
There were after race festivities? I don’t remember any.
I was there for the 3rd year in a row to watch both the womens and mens race this year. My daughter is a junior at IU and has raced the last 2 years for the Belle Veloce team. They finished 15th this year after a crash set them back a lap. Alex Bishop coached the Belle Veloce Team this year, and on Saturday he came through the finish line in a sprint finish to take 1st place for the Cutters. I’ve been a Cutters fan since watching the movie “Breaking Away” and it was really cool to see the Cutters take their 8th Little 500 victory. The group we go down with to watch the Little 500 gets bigger each year. We rode 72 miles on Saturday before the mens race, and on Sunday did a 52 mile / 4 mile run brick. There are so many great rides and hills in and around Bloomington. On Sunday we climbed Bear Hollow, Greasy Creek, The South Shore Lake Lemon climb, and Bolting House (top 100 climbs in the US) which is really tough.
If you ever get a chance to watch the Little 500 in person you will have a great time. Take your bike and make it a great weekend of riding and watching a great cycling event.
I went to IU back in the mid 90’s and could just kick myself for not getting involved more with this race and cycling in general. It is IU’s biggest party weekend and just a lot of fun. The whole campus (30,000 +) gets involved in one way or another and the weekend races cap off a solid week of partying. It really is quite an experience.
Bloomington also hosts another cycling event in the fall called the Hilly Hundred. Basically 2 days of hilly, hilly riding in the southern Indiana country side and state parks. Check that out sometime. My friends and I did that a couple of times on our mountain bikes that we rode to get to class and just tore ourselves apart. We usually got started late, ate a ton at the rest stops, and then barely made it home. A few beers later and we were pretty much decided on skipping the next day…
I was there for the men’s race yesterday. beautiful day, and the race is spectacular. this was my first, as it is my first year at IU (as a PhD student), but I plan on attending as often as possible - even after I’m done with school here.
I managed to get an infield pass, which was sweet. seeing the race from the middle is very impressive.
I was also cheering for Major Taylor since I know one of the coaches.
I knew a couple riders from Achtung and Theta Phi (i think), so I was pulling for them as well.
I’m thinking i may have to see about coaching one of the teams for next year - they don’t let grad students play.
let me know if you want to come down to bloomington to ride (open to anyone), it is a nice cycling area