40 races later, Schwoegler hasn’t slowed down a bit

It began in 1971.

It is a story of passion and conflict, of victory and failure.

It is the story of a man who has led both men’s and women’s teams in 40 Little 500s.

It is the story of a man whose passion for the Little 500 is surpassed only by his compassion for his riders.

This is the story of Tom Schwoegler.

Despite the efforts of his detractors, his name has become etched in the race’s history and, more importantly, on the hearts of most of those who have ridden for him and become a part of his life.

This is the story of a legend.

Schwoegler attended his first Little 500 in 1971 when he came to IU to see one of his high school friends race for Acacia.

In 1972, he returned to IU to help Acacia’s mechanic learn how to work on the race bikes. After transferring in 1973 from Purdue University, he was a mechanic for the team in 1973-74. He became a member of the IU Student Foundation Steering Committee for the Little 500’s 25th anniversary in 1975.

After graduating from IU, he worked with Acacia from 1976 to 1977. He returned to coach Acacia in 1982 and continued to coach the team until 2003. He coached Kappa Alpha Theta since the inception of the women’s race in 1988 and stayed with the team until 2006. He now coaches Wing It, featuring 2009s Individual Time Trials winner and Miss ’N Out champion Kristi Hewitt.

During his time as coach, he’s seen the full spectrum of racing.

In 1977 one of his riders was struck by a car and killed. He has won six championships since 1983 and coached eight Hall of Fame riders.

Schwoegler said he’s made mistakes in races. He said he knows he’s not perfect. It’s the coaches that don’t know that fact, he said, who do a poor job.

“I’d much rather take the bullet for a rider’s sake because I don’t want a rider to go through life thinking, ‘Wow, I failed. I failed my teammates,’” he said.

Schwoegler said he has developed strong connections and is willing to do anything for those he has coached.

“When my former riders call up and they go, ‘Listen, I need some help,’ I’m just like ‘Whatever it is, just let me know and I’ll be there.’ And when I need some help, I’ll pick up the phone and do the same,” Schwoegler said. “They’re a great source of strength for me.”

One of those riders, Tim Bochnowski, who rode for Acacia and won a Little 500 championship with the team in 1991, stays in touch with Schwoegler and is a “confidant” for him.

“There’s a lot to love about Tom,” Bochnowski said. “He’s a pretty passionate individual. I’ve never seen him put a half effort in ... It’s a way of life for the guy.”

Many of his former riders agree no one comes close to having the compassion Schwoegler has for his riders.

“Once he’s in your life and a friend, he is very loyal and will do anything to help you out,” Greta Hoetzer, a Theta rider from ’92-’95 and two-time champion, said.

When Jaime Boswell, a rider for Wing It, went down in a crash on April 2 before Miss ’N Out, Schwoegler came to Bloomington from Chicago that night to make sure she was okay and drove her back to her house that night.

“Even though he knew there wasn’t much that he could do while here, he was still adamant about being here to support me emotionally,” Boswell said. “It was really touching to know that Tom cared so much for me that he would sacrifice work and time to travel down here and be by my side.”

Schwoegler has not remained a friend and mentor to all of his riders. In 2004, the Monday before qualifications, he was fired by Acacia via phone.

“They expected me to remain with the team in a subservient role because the newly installed coach lived in Phoenix and could not be at the track until race weekend,” Schwoegler said. “As you might expect, I was not interested in doing that.”

In 2006, he resigned from Theta at a team meeting. Some Theta alumni recommended he do so because of a lack of respect for the Theta tradition and for Schwoegler from several members of the team.

“I think they took him for granted,” Hoetzer said. “I do not feel they respected him and what he had to offer for the team. The Thetas lost out on a rich tradition.”

Anne Holterhoff Leonard, a Theta rider and race champion in 2000, said the resignation was rough on Schwoegler.

“It was very hard for him,” she said. “He had coached this Theta team from the very beginning of the women’s race.”

Schwoegler said he did not want to leave Theta or Acacia, but moving on was the best option.

“In both cases, when I left, the programs had already lost something vital to a championship Little 500 program,” Schwoegler said.

Former riders said they would support Schwoegler when it came down to race day.

“I still hope the Thetas do well, but I think that most of his former riders are very supportive of whatever team Tom is coaching,” Hoetzer said.

Despite his success on the track, Schwoegler said his greatest accomplishment has been teaching his riders to have the motivation and drive to succeed outside of racing.
“If this was about 100 or 200 laps going around in a circle, I’d be sitting in the stands drunk,” he said. “It’s about testing your limitations.”

The Little 500 legend has always taught one thing that is as ingrained in his heart as the Little 500 is.

“You can do anything you want if you believe in yourself,” Schwoegler said. “That’s what I want them to believe.”