Cyclists prepare for time trials

Qualifications are finished and Little 500 weekend is 23 days away, but that doesn't mean the pre-race competition is on hold.\nMen's and women's individual time trials, one of the three spring series events, will be contested from 4 to 9:45 p.m. Wednesday at Bill Armstrong Stadium.\n"I think the series events are cool," Sigma Alpha Epsilon junior Dan Burns said. "They are something that gets people enthusiastic about the race and build spirit."\nITT consists of four riders on the track at the same time. The riders start in opposite corners and race against the clock. The man and the woman with the fastest times are the winners.\nThe other spring series events include Miss-N-Out (Saturday) and Team Pursuits (April 6). Miss-N-Out stresses pack riding and Team Pursuits test team strength and unity. ITT is the event that puts the most emphasis on sprinting.\nCutters rider Chris Wojtowich won the men's ITT last year with a time of 2 minutes, 24.28 seconds, and Kappa Alpha Theta rider Anne Holterhoff won the women's trial with a 2:39.18. Both riders have graduated. \nChi Phi graduate student John Emmetsberger finished third last year with a 2:26.63 and is the highest returning men's rider from the 2000 competition.\n"I remember looking up at the clock and being surprised by my time," Emmetsberger said of his performance in 2000.\nEmmetsberger said his solid finish in 2000 will give him confidence heading into this year's ITT.\n"I hope to finish in the top five, and it's good to know you have a chance to win," Emmetsburger said. \nITT is one indicator used when determining what riders are the top sprinters. But some riders warned that the trials should not be the sole factor in deciding the top riders. \n"By being one of the better riders in ITTs, by no means, means you're one of the best riders on the track," Emmetsberger said.\nDelta Chi senior Jason Sonneborn, who finished 14th last year, said the top riders are often determined during track practices.\n"If you come out to the track and watch guys do sets in the pack, that's where bragging rights are established," he said. "People at the track every day can see who is pulling them around and getting huge gaps."\nSeven of the top 15 men's finishers from last year's ITT are returning this year. The group includes Emmetsberger, Burns, Sonneborn, Phi Delta Theta senior Josh Beatty, Phi Delta Theta junior Matt Marketti, Sigma Phi Epsilon junior Mike Zycinski and Phi Gamma Delta senior Todd Cornelius. Four of the top riders -- Sonneborn, Cornelius, Beatty and Burns -- will race in the same heat at 7:20.\n"My goal is to finish in the top five this year," Sonneborn said. "Time slots kind of affect ITT's just like quals. The wind typically dies down when the sun goes down. Ideally, you would like to go at night"