Tamika Catchings knows all about the hard work required to become a successful professional athlete.
Catchings used endless hours in the gym since childhood to become a basketball legend, becoming one of only 10 players to win a WBNA championship, NCAA championship, Olympic gold medal and FIBA World Championship gold medal. She is one of just five athletes ever to win four Olympic basketball gold medals and also won the WBNA MVP Award and the WNBA Finals MVP Award during her illustrious 16-year career with the Indiana Fever.
So Catchings always has supported other pro athletes who compete in Indianapolis by participating in a variety of civic and sporting events, including at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
But that support reached an entirely new level Aug. 1.
Catchings, 39, flew with two-time Red Bull Air Race World Champion Kirby Chambliss in his two-seat plane over the skies of Indianapolis, testing the limits of her stomach and learning more about the world of aerobatic racing. Chambliss, from Tucson, Arizona, and his fellow Red Bull Air Race competitors will race Oct. 6-7 at IMS for the third consecutive year in the world’s most prestigious aerobatic racing series.
The flight included a variety of quick rolls, spins, dives and other maneuvers familiar to Chambliss but a whole new world for Catchings.
“I think the biggest thing is enjoy the moment,” Catchings said. “It’s not a long ride. Going up there and being able to be out of your element for a little bit is a very cool thing. Having a professional that is riding with you helps, goes a long way. I enjoyed riding with him.”
Much like a coach on the sidelines, the affable Chambliss kept Catchings informed of his upcoming acrobatics through an intercom system in the cockpit. That helped Catchings brace herself for the sometimes stomach-flipping maneuvers.
“I was nervous when I got up this morning,” Catchings said. “But it was cool, being at the top speed.
“The cool thing is that Kirby talks all the time, so you always felt like somebody was with you. It’s not like you were just up there and all of the sudden, ‘WHOA!’ You kind of know something is coming, but you don’t know what it is.”
That information kept Catchings calm during the flight. But the same couldn’t be said for her mother, Wanda, who watched nervously from the ground along with Catchings’ nephews.
“They were scared,” Catchings said. “My Mom was like: ‘Oh, my God. This is life or death!’ I’m like, ‘Mom, trust me, (they’re) not going to put me into a situation where I’m going to die.’
“I wanted them to experience it. Especially for my nephews because I take them everywhere, being able to experience cool things. You never know: They might be like one day, ‘I want to do that.’ We have a contact with Kirby, and I’m sure he’s training other people to do this.”
The high-thrills flight was yet another connection between Catchings and IMS, a relationship that started when she still played for the Fever. In the last few years, Catchings has helped to raise the racing flags over the IMS Main Gate to celebrate the start of the Verizon IndyCar Series season, has driven an Indy 500 Festival car around town during May and most recently served as the honorary starter of the INDYCAR Grand Prix last May.
Catchings retired from basketball after the 2016 season as the leading rebounder in WNBA history and second all-time leading scorer. Since retiring, Catchings has been busier than ever, opening Tea’s Me Café in Indianapolis, continuing her influential work with the Catch the Stars Foundation and serving as Director of Player Programs and Franchise Development for Pacers Sports & Entertainment.
But she always finds time for new experiences that support fellow pro athletes in Indianapolis, whether basketball players, race drivers or aerobatic pilots.
“I’m intrigued, as a professional athlete,” Catchings said. “Drivers are professionals, too. We put in a lot of work to be the best at what we do. Being able to experience the Indy 500, being able to experience the Brickyard, being able to experience this flight, I think sometimes we take for granted, even people in our profession, we take it for granted at how much work we put into it to be the best of the best.
“I think a lot of it is just being able to support one another in our city. We have a lot of great professional teams, professional athletes, and everybody supports one another.”
Visit IMS.com to buy tickets or for more information about the Red Bull Air Race.
