Every year on Dec. 25, Santa Claus bestows his presents across the world. On Easter Sunday, the Easter Bunny deposits eggs around the yard. And when Bill Armstrong Stadium is closed, CUTTERS practices at its secret track.
Or so people believe.
“I think it started out as a joke, a CUTTERS joke,” CUTTERS coach Jim Kirkham said April 7. “We probably created the legend and fantasized about building our own training facility, buying a piece of land and putting in our own track.”
CUTTERS debuted in 1984, five years after its depiction in the Academy Award-winning film “Breaking Away.” The movie features a group of Bloomington teenagers who join the Little 500 under the name CUTTERS, in honor of the stone-cutting industry in Southern Indiana. Since its inception, the team has won a record 15 Little 500 championships while never placing lower than 12th.
The origin of the secret track rumor is unidentifiable, and while Kirkham believes it stemmed from within the team, current CUTTERS sophomore Judah Thompson recounts a different story.
“Back in the day, CUTTERS would rarely train at Bill Armstrong,” Thompson said. “Most of the guys on the team would try to avoid people as much as possible because a lot of the teams would come out here to look at other teams, see what they’re doing.”
The reason for the secretive nature of the team was the instant success CUTTERS sustained. In the nine-year span from its first race in 1984 to 1992, the team won four Little 500 championships and finished top four every year.
Consequently, CUTTERS’ lack of appearances at the track led teams to speculate where it was practicing, and the conclusion was a secret track.
The secrecy has continued for CUTTERS in recent years. Judah's brother, Novus junior Kobe Thompson, admits he is often unaware of the team's whereabouts, even with a sibling on the team.
“They’re very secretive about everything,” Kobe said April 10. “One time it was raining out here, and they said, ‘Oh, we’ll be at our track instead.’ I’m like, ‘What is this? Where does this exist?’ I should know. I’m the big brother.”
Whether he ever discovers the truth of the track or not, Kobe appreciates the nature of the situation.
“It’s one of life’s biggest mysteries,” Kobe said. “It makes Little Five more fun.”
After many years, the truth of the CUTTERS secret track is still uncertain. And just like Santa Claus or the Easter Bunny, it’s up for people to decide what they believe.
“It’s what you make of it,” Judah said. “You can either buy in to there’s a secret track. You can either buy into it being fake.”
