35 teams set record for quals

UPDATE: Since the time of publication, one of the teams has dropped from the field. 34 teams will attempt to qualify for a race of 33 for the second time in women's Little 500 history and the first time since 2010.

While college basketball’s version of March Madness is sweeping the nation by storm, IU has its own variety arriving Saturday.

The women’s cycling teams will duke it out at Bill Armstrong Stadium in the 2013 Little 500 Qualifications. The fastest 33 teams will advance to the Women’s Little 500 April 19.

For the first time in its 26-year history, two teams will be eliminated after qualifications as 35 teams registered for a race that has a 33-team field.

“We’re thrilled that we have 35 on the docket for Saturday,” Little 500 Race Director Jordan Bailey said at a practice round Thursday evening. “That just goes to show how far along the women’s race has come. It is, in some cases, more competitive than the men’s race.”

On qualifications day, riders will be thrown into worse weather conditions than those of a year ago, when temperatures were balmy, reaching nearly 70 degrees.

This spring, the women’s teams must deal with a wintry climate, as the high for Saturday’s qualifications is listed as 50 degrees, according to weather.com.

“For the riders, they’re making those last-minute adjustments, and this is their only opportunity to be out on the track solo, doing their own effort,” Bailey said. “It’s a little surprising because you don’t get to touch the track at all before your attempts Saturday. You just kind of get thrown into it.”

The elements often play a vital role in the condition of the track, as humidity often leads to a looser, more challenging track to navigate, while frigidity creates a more firm, compact track that is more easily ridden.

Alpha Chi Omega’s preference was no mystery.

“We are a team that is totally for a slower track and better weather, solely because the wind conditions are upwards of 25 mph, which really slows you down, especially on the backstretch,” Alpha Chi Omega rider Sara Waters said.

“I’d rather have a worse track with better weather so your muscles are warm and ready to go,” said Waters’ teammate, Sydney Schreiber.

Regardless of the elements, the perfection of the art of exchanges has been a point of emphasis for each competing team.

“For this past week, we’ve solely just focused on exchanges and narrowing those down and getting them every single time,” Waters said. “We’ve really focused on making up for that time on the backstretch and getting a really quick start and just slowing down for the exchange.”

However, Lauren Kohut of Kappa Delta said she believes the cold temperatures and firm track provide an advantage for her team, distinctly with exchanges.

“You bring in the exchanges a lot hotter, which is nice,” Kohut said. “The cold weather tends to kind of get your muscles a little tighter, but once those muscles get loose, the track is going to be in really good shape.”

A year ago, a record 33 women’s teams competed in qualifications, while this year’s 35 teams has set a new record.

Reigning Little 500 champion Delta Gamma is the team the field is gunning for, and with the vast amount of meticulous attention to detail within the ranks of the women’s field this season, qualifications should prove to be one of the best in their history.