Mini 500 opens

Let the races begin. \nMini 500 has officially kicked off the the "Greatest College Weekend" -- the Little 500. After 60 teams started the race, only three were left at the end of the night and were able to call themselves Mini 500 Champions.\nIt boiled down to three teams in each division. Charlie's Angels, members of Evans Scholars, repeated as champions in the women's race. El Caminos won a close race and were the champions of the co-ed race. Delta Sigma Pi won the men's race.\n"We got second last year and had to come back to win this year," Delta Sigma Pi junior Jason Melis said. "It was just crazy. It's not the same caliber of the Little 500, but I'm on a tricycle. How great is college if you can get into wars on a tricycle."\nAn electrical guitar version of the National Anthem started the night. The teams paraded into Assembly Hall to the cheers, applause and laughter of the few thousand fans who came to see the event. \nMany teams received laughs because of their unique costume themes. There were those painted head to toe in green. Others wore yellow and purple. Fraternity men were running around in diapers. Star Wars characters and even Spiderman made an appearance. With the IU Student Foundation All-Star band rocking the house with "R-O-C-K in the USA," the races were ready to begin.\nTeams raced as hard as they could to the cheers of their friends, and there were the occasional spills, at which the crowd laughed and applauded when the member got back up. All of the racers appeared to enjoy themselves.\n"This was outstanding. We made a good run," Phi Gamma Delta senior Jeff Arnold said. "We were in superhero outfits, which didn't help. The capes slowed us down. Otherwise we would have won."\nSome trikers were out just for the fun of the night but won a couple of heats and surprised themselves. Some competitors came just to display their costumes.\n"We wanted a funny theme and name. We wanted something that would stick out," said sophomore Dan Moore, member of the Small Pickles Among Large Cucumber team. "We wanted something that everyone would remember the next day."\nIn the middle of the night, seniors James Boyd and Regina Cross were named King and Queen of Little 500. Both were quite shocked at the honor.\n"I was kind of surprised," Boyd said. "I've been a rider and a coach. This is kind of a culmination of the whole thing."\nPhi Delta Theta took home first prize in the costume contest. The Phi Delts' theme was "The Mullets Ride Again," with each member dressed to the part. Delta Sigma Pi's fans were named Fans of the Night. Many people from the community came out as well.\n"The event sounded like fun," Bloomington resident Marg Winterfeld said. "I liked all the camaraderie, the costumes and all the other nonsense."\nIUSF Steering Committee members were very pleased with the turnout. Senior Maggie Broom felt the night was a total success.\n"It was one of the best Mini 500s I've ever been to," Broom said. "The crowd was huge. The live band was great. Everyone was into the race."\nSenior Brett Spitzer of the Steering Committee couldn't agree more. He said he was impressed with the large turnout and hopes it is a sign of things to come.\n"I'm very pleased with the way everything went tonight," Spitzer said. "Everything ran smoothly. There were no major problems. I'm glad so many people were here.\n"It shows that this event is growing in popularity. The most important thing is that everyone enjoyed themselves and had a good time"