Track teams head to 2 different meets at Notre Dame, Wisconsin

The IU men’s and women’s track and field squads will be back in action this weekend, one week after participating in the Big Ten Indoor Championships.
 
The two squads will be split, with selected athletes traveling to the Alex Wilson Invitational at Notre Dame while others participate in the Wisconsin NCAA Qualifier at Wisconsin.

Both meets represent a final chance for individual athletes to qualify for the NCAA Indoor Championships on March 9 and 10 in Boise, Idaho.

After the men’s squad claimed the Big Ten Indoor title, IU Coach Ron Helmer said he believes the team’s mentality has not changed.

“Of all the championship efforts that I’ve been a part of, that one was, maybe, as genuine as they come,” Helmer said. “It was the product of a group of athletes becoming a team over the course of the season and willing some things to happen because of the pride that they had developed in themselves as a group.

“When you work hard, when you make those kinds of commitments and when you choose to go in that direction, you need to have good things happen. You need a reward somewhere so that people can look at it and say, ‘Wow, all this theoretical goody-goody stuff actually has a practical application, and it really, really does work.’”

Helmer is certainly cognizant of the fact that the NCAA Indoor Championships are looming, as is senior distance runner Ryan Hindes.

Hindes said having already qualified is a relief and will allow him to solely focus on his training leading up to the championships.

“It’s one of those things that’s actually kind of nice, racing this well this year and knowing that you’re going to that meet and keep racing because we’re still in peak training mode right now,” Hindes said. “The volume comes down a little bit on our workouts. The speed goes up a tad on certain reps.

“It’s nice to keep that rolling for two more weeks, whereas a lot of these guys will break back down and start re-training. We kind of ride down the mountain a little bit longer. It’s cool to be a part of that because your body feels really good right now.”

Hindes will be part of a 4x400 relay squad that will compete for a qualifying time at the Alex Wilson Invitational this weekend. The group hasn’t had a chance to do that so far this season.

“We think that group can qualify running fresh on a big track,” Helmer said.

Helmer’s also choosing to send another group of athletes to the Alex Wilson Invitational.

“We have a handful of other people who are going to go, not necessarily because we think they’re going to get a qualifier but because I think they have a chance to finish off their season with a really fast time,” he said.