Students traveling to Cedar Falls today will be getting ready to rumble at the Main Event, an annual Christian college retreat held at the University of Northern Iowa for students to explore their faith.

About 80 Iowa State students will be making an appearance at the event, including members of Fellowship of Christian Athletes, The Navigators and The Salt Company.

Attendance is expected to reach 850 students, and about 25 colleges from surrounding states will be represented.

“It’s a neat combination of activities,” said Lori Adams, director of the ISU FCA group.

Some of those activities include keynote speaker John Hayfield of The Navigators and music directed by Peter Eide, Adams said.

She said the activities include mixers, dances and bands Friday night. On Saturday, there is a large group meeting, and then everyone splits into smaller groups.

“The uniqueness of this particular event is that 80 groups go out to host homes in Cedar Falls,” Adams said. “The families then show [the students] how they live out their faith.”

Adams said the host families come back with the groups on Saturday night, and everyone attends a large assembly.

Nate Funk, FCA member and sophomore in dairy science and pre-veterinary medicine, said he has never attended Main Event before, but he is excited about the upcoming trip.

“First, I want to get away from classes,” he said. “Second, I want to experience God in a close-up way.”

Adams said the purpose of the retreat is “to glorify God by providing the opportunity for college students to come face-to-face with Him.”

Adams said the event has been going on for about 10 years. It originated in Minnesota and moved to UNI when numbers grew from 125 students the first year to 850 students this year.