Editor’s note: This is a profile of the mens’ track team. For the profile of the womens’ track team, click here.

The ISU men’s track team starts its season at the ISU Open and it won’t be a walk in the park.

“It’ll be a stronger meet than it has been in the past,” said coach Steve Lynn.

This year’s ISU open will feature Northern Iowa, Drake and NJCAA powerhouse Barton County Community College, all of whom have competed already this season.

The first meet brings the challenge of competing in a different kind of environment from what the team is used to in practice, something Lynn hopes the team is ready for.

“You can run all the practices in the world, but until you run a race where other people have different colored uniforms on, and the pressure’s on, you don’t know how guys are going to react,” Lynn said.

“Some people step up and are better, some guys aren’t as good the first time they do it, so we want them to be better.”

Most athletes will compete in multiple events, a strategy which Lynn believes prepares the team for meets later in the season, including the Iowa State Classic and Big 12 Championships next month in Ames.

“You can’t be ready for those meets without doing this,” Lynn said.

“You’ve got to just get in there, so we run some different races in order to see where everybody is, and you use that as part of your training.”

One athlete who is interested to see how far he has come is junior Jared Lewis, who will be competing in his first meet for the Cyclones after transferring from Northern Colorado.

Lewis, who runs sprints and competes in jumping events, was forced to get in shape quickly for the meet after spending most of his holiday break stuck inside his Denver home because of snow.

“I don’t think it affects me on the long-term during the season, it was just a little tougher to get in to shape when I got here,” Lewis said.

Despite the setback, Lewis feels optimistic about his chances this weekend.

“I’m just looking to get some good marks to set off the season,” Lewis said.

“You always want to start off on the good foot, so whatever I do I just want to be able to improve on that.”