As the track and field season approaches, students are conditioning for the season, which means warming up in the gym and running throughout the hallways. While running in the hallways is a rule break, it is allowed since they are given permission by coaches.

“Running in the hallways is sometimes very hard because of the sky bridge and the angle that it is in,” freshman Katie Jasso said. “But at the same time, it helps the speeds of our runs, especially when we are racing.” 

Conditioning for the upcoming track season took place Monday through Thursday every week. Every day, the students warmed up in the gym by doing different warm-ups like high knees, karaoke, power skips, strides, sprints and stairs. 

Mondays and Wednesdays were weights days, which is when athletes go to the weights room and did bench presses, squats, deadlifts, and clean lifts. Tuesdays and Thursdays were running days. When the students were done warming up, they made their way to the hallway and jogged, sprinted and raced around the school so that their bodies can get used to racing one another.

“This year’s group so far has been working very hard and seems competitive,” head coach Randy Kuhn said. “We have a lot of new kids, and they seem to push each other. I think the majority really care about what they are doing. I’m pretty happy with the kids that have been showing up.”

The number of people joining and participating in track and field this year is higher than in the last few years. Last year, there weren’t even enough people to run races in track events, but this year alone more, than 120 students have signed up to participate in track. Even though some students might not participate in track when the season starts, the number of people who signed up and participated in conditioning has increased.

“Last year, we didn’t have enough girls to really compete with other good teams,” Kuhn said. “The boy’s team will be a little better this year because of more distance kids. We had to forfeit some races last year because we didn’t have kids to fill the races. But this year, there is a change in numbers and that will be a benefit to the team.”

In track, students can participate in events like sprints, relays, long distance, hurdles, long jump, high jump and shot put. The team is still lacking some people in some events like hurdles, shot put, long jump, and high jump. Some students are willing to switch their roles.

“I feel that this season will be a good one for track,” freshman Melissa Buenrostro said. “Everyone is very dedicated and hard-working. All of the people on the team push through while giving one another advice to keep going. So, I feel that the team will be very good this year and go a long way.”

This season is going to be exciting for track and field knowing all the people that have signed up and are willing to participate.

“I am really excited about track this year because it is my favorite sport, and there are so many promising people on our team,” freshman Audrey Graham said. “Conditioning just ended, and lots of people on the team are showing so much progress, and as winter sports students start, we are just going to get better as we get more into the season.”

As the start of the 2023 track season starts, Coach Kuhn has great expectations for the team. Members of the team hope to have a successful season and improve on the team’s accomplishments. 

“I am pretty excited for this season of track,” junior Vasan Nomany said. “This is my third year doing track for the high school, and I can say it’s progressively improved for me. For the team, I hope that both boys and girls can have a successful year this year. The boys didn’t have a great season last year, but I’m hoping that this year will be a different story.”