The Athletes Honor Roll 2018

Brace Jennings finished senior season of soccer with a 3rd place finish at the National Home School Soccer Championships. While his soccer career might be finished his interest in health and fitness has continued along with tremendous strength gains.

Cameron Shortridge played varsity, jv and freshman football for GRC High School this past fall. To prepare for such a load he worked very hard in the off-season on conditioning, speed, agility and strength. Most notably he set eye-popping PRs of 195 and 335 on the bench press and deadlift at the end of his 8th grade year.

Diann Reschke has accomplished so much since I last wrote about her in January, but most notably she built her plank to an outstanding 5 minutes and 10 seconds. She has also taken up powerlifting and in her first meet deadlifted 175 pounds, easily. Expect her to set several age group records in 2019.

Gina Lang probably wouldn't expect to find herself on a list of athletes but the past year has shown her she is well capable. She and her family summited Ben Nevis, the highest mountain in Great Britain over the summer. Then in October she and her husband Larry rode their bikes for 50 miles in Amelia, Florida to support the Ride to Cure Diabetes.

Joslyn Stanfield completed one of the nastiest Boston Marathons in history in which much of the field dropped out or declined to even take the line. The time of 3:46 doesn't even come close to reflecting the guts, grit and fitness that race required. Later, Joslyn went on to qualify for the 2019 Boston Marathon and set PRs at 5k (21:58) and the mile (6:15). She also matched a couple of lifting PRs of 95 lbs for the seated over-head press and 140 lbs bench press.

Lee Ann York took up sporting clays last year. Inspite of her beginning status she managed to win a silver medal at the Division E State Championships. Later in the year she defeated several Master level shooters to finish 5th over-all at a tournament. While our training is focused on general fitness and health, she does credit her superior fitness with easier handling of the shot gun. The improvement has also been very evident on long hikes.

Richard Kirby underwent surgery less than a year ago to repair a severely herniated disc in his lumbar region. Despite becoming a father, changing jobs, and moving across the country, Richard has worked hard to rehabilitate his back and return to the bike. The journey has not been without set-backs, like the bicycle wreck he endured over the summer, but he is now as strong or stronger than ever and expects to return to racing in February. The improved strength should help prevent future problems.

Sharona Nelson competed in the Kentucky Senior Games in September where she qualified for the National Senior Games in track & field. She didn't just qualify, she did so in all 11 events she attempted, setting several personal bests along the way. She appears in the photo above.

Steve Reschke is the most recent honoree as he only began training in August. In that short amount of time he has already dramatically improved his flexibility and mobility and greatly reduced the tenderness caused by an ancient shoulder injury. While we still had golfing weather he had already upped his 3 wood by 10 yards. However his current focus is powerlifting and I fully expect to see some age group records from him as well in 2019.

Jamie Ness hosted the Throwers' Free For All with his wife Jessica. The meet went smooth as silk with 14 competitors of various ages. Jamie had his best all-around meet ever there throwing 11.02 shot put, 34.88 discus and 27.37 hammer. Jamie also set PRs of 11.40 meters for the 16 lb shot put and 360 lbs for a front squat within the year.