Lee Bullen hailed Ayr for riding an emotional rollercoaster to make the promotion play-offs.
A grandstand finish in the Highlands saw United see-saw between second and fifth place during a dramatic late flurry.
But substitute Mark McKenzie's winner ensures The Honest Men can now look forward to facing either Queen's Park or Partick Thistle in the semi-finals of the shootout - after incredibly finishing as Championship runners up.
Bullen said: "Football never ceases to amaze. I've got a 34-year-old in our changing room in Chris Maguire who has played at the top level for massive football clubs down in England and he's telling the lads he's never gone through an emotional rollercoaster like that.
"For a club like Ayr United these things come along very few and far between. It's not like Rangers and Celtic for whom these nights are a regular occurrence.
"Our supporters maybe feel it more because of that reason but we want more of this now.
"When we went 2-1 up we had to figure out how to put a team together with seven strikers on the pitch. We'd taken a gamble at that stage to go for it - it was crazy.
"It would have been very painful not to get over the line tonight. We bossed the game in the first half and deserved our lead.
"Credit to Caley, they came at us after the break and we sat deeper and deeper - part of that was nerves, part of that was inexperience of the situation. But we dug ourselves through it.
"Finishing second was never part of my thinking. Being in the play-offs was the main thing. From a footballing perspective it is the best option as it gives us that break now.
"Obviously I have my board on my shoulders pointing out the financial benefits as well, especially on the back of going out the cup at Falkirk.
"We're still in an early stage of a new story for the football club and any extra finance in relation to building for next season is very welcome."
Ayr had taken a deserved interval lead after Josh Mullin converted a through ball from Maguire.
They entered the final ten minutes of the game sitting in second place until Nathan Shaw's leveller looked to be sending them out of the play-offs in heartbreaking style.
But Daire O'Connor emerged to tee up fellow sub McKenzie for a dramatic winner in front of the Ayr support and spark wild scenes of celebration.
