The Superstar, the Breakthrough and the Dynamic Duo

Although Kappa Delta easily took the 2007 Little 500 crown, 2008 appears to be much different.

Here are a few riders to watch in this year’s race.

The Superstar
She would rather not have all of the attention. She would rather not have all eyes on her for race day. She would rather give all of the credit to her teammates.

But unfortunately for Teter senior Sarah Rieke, there is nothing she can do about it.

In the four years Rieke has competed in the Little 500, she has arguably accomplished more than any women’s rider in the history of the race: She rode for the winning team in 2005, won Individual Time Trials her junior year while setting the track record and earned two Miss-N-Out titles.

Rieke credits her motivation for her successful collegiate career.

“I never stop pushing myself,” Rieke said. “I always look at who is my best competition, and I try to figure out my best way to compete with them. Even though I knew this year I was one of the better riders on my team, I knew that I could never give up.”

Erin Hetzel, a senior Teter rider and rookie who took second place in Miss-N-Out, said Rieke’s leadership has been important on her development as a rider.

“She is just an excellent leader,” Hetzel said. “I get really nervous before events and she helps to calm me down. She is really good at explaining things and making sure I know what I need to be doing out there so that I can get a good result out of it. Sarah is also probably one of the nicest people I have ever met.”

But while Rieke will go down in history as one of the best to ever ride, she said the recognition has no effect on her.

“I see myself as just a stepping-stone to get other girls to push themselves harder and harder,” Rieke said. “I would be happy with my name disappearing as long as I know that the race is moving forward.”

The Breakthrough
Senior Kristi Hewitt knew it all along.

While a buzz rang throughout the stands after the Wing It rider won the top spot at Individual Time Trials, Hewitt knew it. Her time to shine had finally come.

Despite finishing 13th in last year’s ITTs, Hewitt’s victory came as a shock to many as she beat out last year’s top two riders: Sarah Rieke of Teter and Pam Loebig of Cycledelics.

“It means a lot because it shows that all of my hard training has paid off,” Hewitt said. “I think I have improved a lot because of my fall and off-season training. ... I am also preparing for a triathlon so I think that has given me some extra endurance.”
Hewitt also reached the semifinals in the Miss-N-Out competition.

Little 500 Race Director Matt Ewing said Hewitt’s leadership is what stands out the most.

“It’s always great to have new people coming on top and doing well,” Ewing said. “Building (Wing It) has really been on the shoulders of Kristi in terms of getting other girls involved with the program. She is a great ambassador for the race.”

While Hewitt is happy with all of the recent attention, she said the individual series events are not that important to her.

“You are going to need four solid riders to do well in the race,” Hewitt said. “We have been working really hard in the off-season. Hopefully we will have a good start to the race, avoid any crashes that might happen and be there on the final lap to win.”

The Dynamic Duo
Usually the impact first-year riders give their team, especially for the Little 500 defending champions, is minimal. Try telling that to Kappa Delta riders Jennifer Balbach and Jenna Cerone.

The sophomore riders will be the top rookie tandem competing in the race April 11. In Individual Time Trials, Balbach placed third while Cerone finished sixth. A week later in Miss-N-Out, Cerone made the finals with Balbach just behind her in the semifinals.

“It is really exciting to have the two of us doing so well,” Balbach said. “We are very competitive with each other, but in a good way. We both have a lot of fun with it.”

Senior Kappa Delta rider Lauren Reynolds said both Balbach and Cerone’s work ethic surprised her the most.

“They pick up on things really quickly ... faster than most first year riders I think,” Reynolds said. “Learning how to jump on the bike, exchanging – it could take you a few weeks to master what they picked up in only a few days. That says a lot to me.”

Cerone said both she and Balbach have a lot in common off the track as well, including favorite television shows.

“We are both really into sports and go out to dinner together,” Cerone said. “When we are doing rollers, we will watch ‘Friends’ episodes. It’s our favorite show.”

But there is only one problem with that. The popular show’s theme song includes the words, “It’s like you’re always stuck in second gear ...”

Second gear? Not with these two.