Little 500 practice begins

Serene rides through campus and the streets of Bloomington seemed distant memories for many first-year Little 500 riders as Rookie Week started Monday at Bill Armstrong Stadium.\n"I was riding next to a girl who wasn't very vocal, and she actually touched the girl's bike in front of her and almost fell," said sophomore Alpha Delta Pi rider Lauren Moore. "Everybody kind of stopped to miss her. I was scared because I didn't know what way she might fall."\nRiders bumping into each other is a part of the race. Moore said she has seen the scrapes and bruises on her teammates. Rookie Week is designed to limit serious injuries to riders.\nSafety and communication are major Rookie Week themes. Riders' Council members, who are responsible for guiding rookies through the two weeks, gave instructions as the women concluded their track time riding in packs. \n"Coming in" and "coming out" were two common phrases yelled by members of the council during the pack-riding parts of the session. "Coming out" was yelled by riders leaving a pack, while "coming in" was yelled by rookies pedaling their way into a group.\nMonday was the first time many riders pedaled alongside cyclists from other teams. It was also the first time many rookies rode in packs, which sometimes included 50 riders.\n"Getting on the track was on my mind all day," Moore's teammate, junior Darcy Bishop, said. "I was very nervous. I was thinking about it during my psychology test."\nNot all the riders were as nervous as Bishop. Kappa Alpha Theta junior Jeanne Foote has been training with her team since fall and has participated in the IU Cycling Club, and wasn't nervous like some other riders. \n"I think I'm more relaxed than most of the rookies," Foote said.\nThe women were on the track from 2:30-4:45 p.m. The day ended with the women sitting on the bleachers as they absorbed the final advice of the day from the council. Council members stressed the importance of being vocal when riding in a pack.\n"This is our race," chairwoman Emily Derkasch, a senior, told about 75 rookies. "We have to be in it together." \nWhen the speech concluded, the men prepared for their 5-7:15 p.m. session. Just like most of the women, most of the men have spent the past few months conditioning for the race. \nRegion Crew senior Justin Fleming said his team spent the winter running the steps of Ballantine Hall, lifting weights and riding stationary bikes when it was too cold to ride outside. Similar training techniques are used by most teams.\n"Almost every team has one or two rookies, so we're probably all going to size each other up at this point," Fleming said. "We're all wondering if we're as prepared as the other teams." \nWhile Fleming said he was concerned with comparing himself to other rookie riders, Kappa Sigma sophomore Andrew Carter said he had "no clue" what to expect from Rookie Week.\n"I'm not really nervous because I know nobody has a clue," Carter said. "It should be weird riding on the track because I'm used to riding on smooth roads"