Entering his senior year, Charlie Moffitt has one final chance to compete with Forest cycling in the largest collegiate bike race in the country.
This year will be just the second time Moffitt has competed in the race and his first time since the spring of 2019. Naturally, making an impact on his teammates and coaching staff as a freshman meant Moffitt was primed for improved results each year after his first and only Little 500.
But Covid robbed Bloomington of the Little 500 in 2020 and put an end to Moffitt’s year of training as a sophomore. After preparing for the race his junior year and first as Forest’s cycling captain, Moffitt broke his wrist just a week prior to the fan-less addition of the race and was forced to watch his fellow riders from the sideline. A crushing blow for a relentless competitor.
Now back for his senior year and second as team captain, Moffitt intends to savor every moment leading up to his final lap. The time away from the race has only fueled his competitive fire, adding to the anticipation for race day.
Charlie details the importance of what cycling has meant for him during his college experience. Along with his messages to rookie riders in the race and what race day will look like for the team.
Born and raised in Indianapolis Moffitt graduated from high school with a class of just around 50 students and was looking for a community to join once he stepped on IU’s campus. As an athlete, and given his dad’s extensive background in the sport, naturally he gravitated towards the unique and competitive community of cycling at IU. Cycling was a sport Moffitt had always been surrounded by since he was little. His father owned a bike shop in Fishers, but at the time Charlie was not as interested. Years later the two are on the same team with Charlie as the team captain and his dad as the team mechanic. A unique bond that extends throughout the entire team.
This year, five of Forests’ seven riders on race day will be rookies. Charlie has taken it upon himself to build relationships with his teammates through recruitment, training and all the way up to race day. One of the rookies, David Holloway, shared the story of how he met Charlie with us off-camera.
Holloway described a scene of him riding his bike down a street and was eventually stopped by someone waving him down, it was Charlie. He was so interested in David’s bike that he stopped him, talked about cycling, and within a few minutes was recruiting David to be a rider for Forest.
Throughout his time with Forest cycling Charlie has shown a propensity to be a naturally gifted leader and someone fully capable of galvanizing a team. A skill that will no doubt benefit him in his next chapter of life.
Neal Ward has been the cycling coach for Forest for over 11 years. In this interview he speaks on his favorite aspect of coaching riders for Little Five along with an inspiring story about the exact moment he knew Charlie would be the next team captain of Forest cycling.
Charlie maintains that cycling has done more than facilitate opportunities for him to compete in something. He feels without it, he would not have made as many relationships and memories with those he now considers close friends.
Throughout his tenure as member of Forest Cycling, Charlie persevered through injury and left his mark as a competitor and leader in one of Bloomington’s greatest traditions.
On April 23rd, he’ll compete in the Little 500 for the last time and have one last chance at creating those memories that last a lifetime.
