Morrow twins win races on different tracks

Andrew Morrow of Sigma Chi Cycling said he believes everyone in the world would benefit from having a twin.

“As a twin, you have someone to be competitive in sports with in the backyard,” Morrow said.

For Andrew and his twin, Nate, competition has been a way of life.

While the two competed together as three-sport athletes in high school, both have found different sports at IU that have kept them on the fast track to success.

Andrew, who will be competing in his third Little 500 this year, has become one of the fastest riders in the men’s race. The junior placed ninth in this year’s Individual Time Trials and helped Sigma Chi qualify in third place.

Nate, a redshirt sophomore on the cross country and track teams, is a part of IU coach Ron Helmer’s team that placed seventh in this year’s NCAA cross country national championships, its best finish in 33 years.

While both of the Morrow boys said they are each other’s biggest fans, their competitive nature has been shared throughout their lives.

But who wins?

“I like to think I do, but if you ask him that question, he’s going to say he does because that’s our competitive spirit,” Nate said. “You look at him and he’s a little bigger than me, but you look at me and I’m a little quicker than him, so it goes back and forth.”

For Andrew, the answer was easy.

“We can run together in a race, but Nate would always beat me to the line in the end,” Andrew said. “If I could take a little bit of acceleration from him, I could definitely use it.”

While countless hours were spent in the back yard competing in various sports, Nate said he will never forget one instance when Andrew was practicing hitting a baseball by using a swing-away baseball on a string attached to a pole.

He ended up with a lump on his head.

“Somehow, his bat hit the pole, and it ricocheted the bat straight back into his forehead,” Nate said. “My mom sees this and is freaking out like, ‘We got to get you to the hospital,’ but (Andrew), who must have been stunned, was even laughing about it.”

Andrew, who claims that his bat did not hit the pole, said he could literally see the horn-like bump on his forehead that kept him out of football practice the next day because his helmet would not fit over it.

“I was embarrassed to tell my football coach that I was playing baseball during football season,” Andrew said. “He would have ripped me a new you-know-what.”

Although their athletic careers have gone in different directions since high school, Nate said the two are happy competing.

“For me, it worked out to be on the track and cross country team, which I love and wouldn’t change anything about it,” Nate said. “For Drew, it worked out to be riding for our fraternity and competing in a great event that has a lot of notoriety around the country.”

Andrew said the transition from running cross country in high school to competing in Little 500 was an easy one, but cited that one of the differences between running long distances and cycling is the amount of leg explosion and power that is needed.

“With cycling, you have to have big thighs,” Drew said. “You got to have powerful muscles to get started on the bike and to get a lot of explosion. In running, you don’t need those muscles to accelerate as much.”

Although Andrew’s focus is on leading Sigma Chi to a Little 500 title, he said he still enjoys going out and running with his brother.

“He will go out for an hour run, and I will go with him for a half hour or so,” Andrew said.
“I don’t see myself pursuing cycling after I graduate, but I love running, so I’ll definitely get back into the running scene.”

Naturally, being a twin may create a rivalry between siblings, but the Morrow boys admit they have nothing but respect for each other’s abilities.

“Drew is my role model, to be honest,” Nate said. “I look up to him because he is the hardest working kid that I’ve ever seen. There are kids that might have more talent on the bike than him, but I guarantee that he will be one of the hardest workers out there. That’s what gets him his success, and he deserves it.”

Andrew reflected that Nate’s grit is what has led him to become a collegiate athlete.

“He’s tough as nails,” Andrew said. “I’ve always admired that about him.”

Looking down the road, Andrew said he hopes that after college the two will continue to take on competitive challenges together.

While Andrew and Nate do not want to get too caught up with their legacies, both hope they will be remembered for their hard work and competitiveness.

“If we put our hard work in, it will allow us to maybe set some records or win some titles — that’s a lasting legacy,” Andrew said. “Then we can come back in 30 years, which we undoubtedly will, and look up to the scoreboard and see our names. That would be pretty cool.”