Team sends 14 to track nationals

As the summer slowly begins to cool down, the IU Cycling Club season is heating up.\nThe club will send a team of 14 members to the Collegiate Track Nationals Sept. 20 to 24 in Indianapolis at the Major Taylor Velodrome.\nLast year the team placed sixth overall and is looking to build on that this year. \n"We would like to place as best we can in the overall point standings," senior rider Sasha Land said. "Our best shot of winning nationals is by winning as a team. One on one, we might not be able to match up with some of the other riders, but overall, as a team, we have the potential to finish very strongly."\nThe Track Nationals consist of individual events as well as a series of team competitions, all adding points to the Team Omnium, the overall team competition. The Team Omnium is made up of several events, including sprints and pursuits. The pursuits are popular among riders because they force participants to complement their physical riding skills with elements of strategy, preparation and mental toughness.\nJunior member Pam Loebig will ride in the Italian Pursuit, which involves teams of six riders, usually four male and two female. Team members line up in a pace line and ride around the track, with the slowest team member dropping out at the end of each lap. The race continues in this fashion until only one rider is left to finish the race. \n"You have to have a deep team (for the Italian Pursuit)," Loebig said. "It still involves a lot of strategy, but once you get on the track, it's all about who's the strongest rider."\nSenior member Chris Chartier said he is eager to participate in another kind of pursuit. The Team Pursuit is a race against the clock for teams of four riders.\n"I love this event because it is a combination of strength, team understanding and bike handling skill," Chartier said. "When it is done well, it is a beautiful event to watch." \nRiders have been training hard individually throughout the summer, but going into a competition that will require a strong performance out of the entire team, the group is expanding its focus.\n"We've been getting to the (Major Taylor) Velodrome about twice a week lately," Chartier said. "The important thing for us now is to work on getting the team events to run smoothly." \nThe team is poised to translate its many hours of training into success on the track. As the event draws closer, the team has its eye on the prize.\n"The team goal is to come back to town wearing the stars and bars, the jersey that the national champions get." Chartier said.