Delts edge out Sigma Chi for victory

Ken Nowakowski yelled splits at his Delta Tau Delta riders as they came out of turn four of their first heat. The Delts coach stood with his left foot forward as an IU emergency medical technician attempted to wrap Nowakowski’s back leg.

Though Nowakowski was injured, he was doing his job. These splits were important to his team, a squad that would later go on to win Team Pursuit, the final Spring Series event.

On the previous lap, Black Key Bulls’ rider Jack Rich had rubbed tires with his teammate, causing him to shoot off the track and directly at Nowakowski. The BKB rider and Delts coach collided, throwing Rich from his bike and leaving Nowakowski’s right foot bloodied.

As the heat continued, Nowakowski shook the EMT from his foot as he watched his team round turn four again.

“The team needed me,” Nowakowski said. “I’m not going to back away from the team. I was fine. I wasn’t hurt. Even if I couldn’t stand, I’d be laying on the ground calling their splits.”

At the end of the heat, Delts finished with a time of 9:10.19, good enough to send them to the finals where they would meet Sigma Chi, who had finished with a time of 9:08.21 prior to the final heat. It was a 10th of a second faster than the Cutters, who missed the final heat for the second year in a row.


Final Heat
Delta Tau Delta — 9:07.39
Sigma Chi — 9:09.91