FOREST LAKE ACADEMY STUDENT IS A WINNER IN HALF-MARATHON

by Marvin Lowman
When Forest Lake Academy junior Austin Rodgers crossed the finished line at the Space Coast Half-Marathon in Cocoa, Fla., on Sunday, November 30, his 1:38:35 time put him in first place with an average pace of 7:31 for his age group. He was 63rd overall in a field of nearly 3,500 runners.
Austin has run in the Space Coast Half-Marathon for three years and twice in the Daytona Beach Half-Marathon. For him, the feeling of accomplishment at the end of a race is worth the discipline and perseverance of training 4-5 days a week. He prefers the half-marathon distance and, at this point, does not see himself running longer races. “My goal is to do a 1:30:00 half-marathon,” he says. In eighth grade, influenced by a friend, Austin decided to eliminate processed sugar from his diet—a practice he continues to follow. He calls himself a pescetarian, since the only meat he eats is fish.
Besides obvious health benefits, running is a stress reliever for Austin. He takes his schoolwork seriously. “If I have a lot of homework, I go for a run to clear my head and come back more focused than I would be otherwise,” he says. “If I go a few days without doing something active, I can tell the difference. If I want to reach my goal, I have to do it.”
This same determination carries over into his schoolwork and his job.