Record-breaking year for Kovac, sights set for race win

In the last Little 500 series event, senior Bri Kovac took the track with a goal. As if her record-setting Individual Time Trial wasn't enough, Bri led her Teter team around the track in Team Pursuit at blazing speeds. \nSo fast, their final run resulted in a record-setting time. The team surpassed themselves in the record books after already setting the fastest time ever in its preliminary run.\nThose eight minutes and 3.86 seconds allowed everyone in attendance to see the riding strength Kovac brings. But what she brings to her team goes well beyond the race track.\n"Bri's biggest attribute is determination," Teter coach Chip Armburster said. "She's built this team from pretty much nothing into what it is now because she cares so much about everyone on this team."\nAthletic talent has never been a question when it comes to Kovac. After establishing herself as a dominant force on the women's side last year, she has done nothing but heighten her aura by capturing record after record this year. The difference, Kovac said, hasn't come from the legs but rather from the head.\n"Mentally, I am a lot more prepared this year," she said. "I think I improved athletically a little bit, but last year was really the first time that I have ever potentially been a contender, so this year I think I have a better grasp of what's going on."\nIt is that mental aspect to the race that often gets overlooked. To her teammates, that's where Kovac really excels.\n"Bri is a really dominant personality," senior Jessica Lindemann said. "She likes to be in charge, and she takes care of everything that needs to get done. That does nothing but help the team."\nGranted the many intangibles have bumped Kovac into the elite-rider status, but the sheer, athletic ability is what got her there in the first place. And for Kovac, that hasn't come without years of hard work and dedication to becoming the best rider possible. Not only working specifically for Little 500, but consistently training throughout the entire year.\n"It's really important on the women's side to gain experience outside of Little Five," Kovac said. "With the guys, about 80 percent race outside or have past experience. In the women's race the people that do are a lot better."\nKovac certainly lives up to the standards of those who consistently train throughout the year, getting her most intense training done over the summer when most riders are taking time off. This past summer, she rode twice a day with a group of riders even better than she is, Kovac said. \nBeing surrounded by great riders all summer allowed her to "suffer it out a bit" before team training even began for the actual race. \nThe intense training regiment allowed Kovac to rack up more miles than most commercial pilots. She rode roughly 40 to 45 miles each weekday over the summer in conjunction with another 60 to 80 on the weekends. Once fall came around and school started, she was forced to cut her miles back to a mere 30 to 40 per day. \n"Her work ethic is unquestioned," Armburster said. "Being the best girl on the track is not her goal, it's to beat the guys and that rubs off on her teammates."\nAll the training has come together here in the final days leading up to the Little 500. \nWinning Team Pursuit was the final feather in Teter's cap before the actual race itself. All that is left for the team now is to ride the race, and Armburster said she hopes the team can take the title and secure Kovac's place among some of the race's biggest superstars in history.\n"I think the team is mentally and physically miles above where we were last year," Kovac said. "Everyone's really come together and put in a lot of good work. We are really excited to ride out there."\nWhile a championship would certainly be a proper send off for a rider of Kovac's caliber and stature, the affect it has had on her life is already beyond all imaginations, she said. No matter what the result, Little 500 will forever hold the most sacred of places in her heart.\n"I cannot think of one thing that I have had, or will experience that will change my life more than this," Kovac said. "What it teaches you, in terms of teamwork, dedication, respect. A lot of it doesn't even have to do with being on a bike. It's truly an amazing event for everyone involved." \n-- Contact staff writer Brian Janosch at bjanosch@indiana.edu.