2017
AYF Athletes of the Month
Austin Youth Fitness Athlete of the Month is a showcase of the talented young men and women in our community. The power and spirit of our youth is limitless, and AYF thinks it's important to let other young athletes know what their peers are doing in the fitness community. Congratulations to the following AYF Athletes of the Month!
December Athlete of the Month
Dillon Harper participates in Austin Youth Fitness Running Group @ Magellan and is currently in the 4th grade. Dillon was nominated for Athlete of the Month because she has a great attitude when coming to running club, she always listens, and she will literally go the extra mile! Aside from AYF, Dillon runs cross country at Magellan. Her fastest mile time is about 8:30, and this time keeps improving! Aside from running, Dillon is also on the Texas Speed Team, an inline skating group. Dillon also participates in dance and trains with Danzversity.
Dillon's favorite thing about Austin Youth Fitness is getting to run with her friends. She also enjoys that running is a great workout!
Congratulations to Dillon for being AYF's December Athlete of the Month!
November Athlete of the Month
Luke Pitre participates in Austin Youth Fitness Biking Group @ Westenfield Park as well as AYF's Obstacle Course Racing Group and is currently in the 4th grade. Luke has been biking with AYF since he was in 1st grade, and this year he join the OCR group and has really enjoyed learning some new physical activity skills. Luke's coaches nominated him because Luke always comes to biking group with a smile on his face, ready to ride and have some fun. His actions speak louder than words and he is a reliable rider you can use to be an example for other riders. Luke has loved riding his bike since he first started on a balance bike at age two. He has been racing in local cyclocross bike races since he was five, and has recently moved up to the U15 group. Luke is often the youngest racer in his new level, but he improves with each race and is learning the importance of good bike handling skills and perseverance. He thinks the races are challenging fun!
In addition to biking, Luke loves to read, swim, travel, and especially to play with friends. Luke's favorite thing about Austin Youth Fitness is getting to bike and do all of the physical activities with friends.
Congratulations to Luke for being AYF's November Athlete of the Month!
October Athlete of the Month
Georgia Fink participates in Austin Youth Fitness Running Group @ Doss Elementary and she's in the 4th grade. Her coaches nominated her because she's an excellent leader, a hard worker, a great example for others, and a joy to have in the group. She is always respectful and has a great attitude!
Georgia ran in the Pure Austin Splash and Dash, the Collins Hope Triathlon, and the Spartan Kids Obstacle Race. Aside from running, Georgia is involved in swimming and soccer.
Georgia's favorite thing about AYF is getting to run, but also playing fun games with friends.
Congratulations to Georgia for being AYF's October Athlete of the Month!
September Athlete of the Month
Finn Pardee has been running @ Casis with AYF since he was four years old! Finn is currently in the 2nd grade and his coaches nominated him because he always works hard to improve his running. Aside from running club, Finn plays soccer, flag football, and basketball. Finn also is part of the parkour group.
Some other things that Finn loves are whales, playing chess, and like his sister, he also volunteers at the Austin Diaper Bank and enjoys spending time with friends!
Finns's favorite thing about AYF Running Club @ Casis is running the 15 minute challenge.
Congratulations to Finn for being AYF's September Athlete of the Month!
August Athlete of the Month
Audrey Pardee is part of the running group @ Casis Elementary, and she is currently in 4th grade. Audrey started running with AYF when she was in kindergarten, and her coaches nominated her because she always comes to running club with a great attitude! Aside from running, Audrey plays on volleyball and basketball teams. She also enjoys playing the guitar!
In addition to these physical activities, Audrey enjoys reading graphic novels, she regularly volunteers at the Austin Diaper Bank, and enjoys spending time with her friends.
Audrey's favorite thing about AYF Running Club @ Casis is playing games at the end of a workout.
Congratulations to Audrey for being AYF's August Athlete of the Month!
July Athlete of the Month
Austin Davis has been a volunteer coach for Austin Youth Fitness Summer Camps for the past two summers and spends weeks helping our coaches make camp fun for all! Austin always came to camp excited to be there, jumped right in and started playing games with the campers, and was a great role model for all campers. Austin will be a senior this coming year and is on the Westlake High School cross country and track teams. His personal records are 18:23 in a 5K, 53 seconds in the 400 meter, and 2:04 in the 800 meter. Austin also participates in the relay races and has the following personal records: 4x400 time of 3:35 and the 4x800 time of 8:33.
Aside from running, Austin is also part of the Westlake Chaparral Choir as well as a member of Madrigals, a high-intensity ensemble designed to supplement the choral experience for students. Austin also leads the music for Westlake Hills Presbyterian Youth High School Choir.
Austin's favorite thing about AYF's Fit N' Fun Summer Camp is being able to see the campers grow in their running self-confidence day after day.
Congratulations to Austin for being AYF's July Athlete of the Month!
June Athlete of the Month
Jack and Evey Flynn from AYF's Cycle the City Camp are our athletes of the month for the month of June! Jack and Evey were nominated by their coaches because they are strong cyclists who came to biking camp ready to ride all over Austin. They were also great teammates and leaders to the other cyclists of the camp. Jack and Evey participated in several track meets throughout the year, running the 800 meter and mile races. Jack's fastest mile time is 7:39 and Evey's is 7:52! As a family, the Flynn's have a tradition of running the Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving and this fall will be their first time to run the full five mile run! They are also avid year-round bikers. They enjoy the pumps tracks, riding around town, and mountain biking at Walnut Creek.
Aside from AYF cycling groups, Jack loves fishing and lacrosse and Evey has a passion for soccer and art. Jack also is involved in Boy Scouts and Evey is involved in Girl Scouts. Both Evey and Jack have been involved with helping build a new community and school at Good Shepard Episcopal Church.
Jack and Evey's favorite thing about AYF's Cycle the City Summer Camp is getting the freedom to ride around Austin, discover new places, jump in Barton Springs, and cool off with a sno-cone! It's a camp they look forward to every summer!
Congratulations to Jack and Evey for being AYF's June Athletes of the Month!
May Athlete of the Month
Jaxon Moore from AYF's Running Group @ Forest Trail is our May Athlete of the Month! His coaches nominated Jaxon because he loves to join in as many AYF events as possible, he tries his best, he is encouraging of others, and focuses on improving his running.Currently Jaxon's fastest mile is 7:42, but he is continually working to improve this time. Aside from being part of the running group @ FT, Jaxon enjoys playing soccer and is also on the gymnastics team. Jaxon is also very adventurous and loves being outdoors either hiking the greenbelt, climbing trees, or swimming in the creek. Jaxon also loves music and is part of the school's percussion band.
Jaxon's favorite things about AYF Running Group is the fun games we play at the end of a running group like sharks and minnows.
Congratulations to Jaxon for being AYF's May Athlete of the Month!
April Athlete of the Month
Mallory Yates from AYF's Running Group @ Bridge Point is our April Athlete of the Month! Her coaches nominated her because she is one of the most diligent, hard working runners in their group. She also has been respectful to coaches, and they love having her at practice! AYF is Mallory's first running experience, and she has now completed a 5K run for St. Jude's Children's Hospital. Aside from running, Mallory loves springboard diving and synchronized swimming. Mallory is especially talented in building and design, and she helps with many home building projects.
Mallory's favorite things about AYF Running Group is her coaches and the new shirts! She loves her coaches and the shirts are her fave!
Congratulations to Mallory for being AYF's April Athlete of the Month!
March Athlete of the Month
Milo Stangland is in 4th grade and participates in Austin Youth Fitness Running Group at NYOS Elementary. Milo's coaches nominated him for Athlete of the Month because he is such a leader with the group, always works hard, and has a great attitude! Milo has participated in several 5k races and even placed in last year's the NYOS 5k Fun Run. Milo's parent's attribute his love of running to starting Young Guns (now Austin Youth Fitness) in kindergarten at Casis. Aside from running, Milo is an avid trick scooter and bike rider. He pulls his ramps out every day after school and learns new tricks and jumps. If he had it his way, he'd be at the skate park every weekend! Milo is a great student and loves to read.
Milo's favorite things about AYF Running Group is the games we play at the end of the group, but the timed distance runs really bring out his competitive nature. He is also a great mentor to the younger runners.
Congratulations to Milo for being AYF's March Athlete of the Month!
February Athlete of the Month
Kaylee Breecker is in 1st grade and participates in Austin Youth Fitness Running Group at Gullett Elementary. Kaylee's coaches nominated her for Athlete of the Month because she is a strong runner, she works really hard, and always comes to running group with a smile on her face and ready to run! Kaylee takes time when she can to practice her running on the Lamar Middle School track.
Aside from running, Kaylee plays soccer and has been practicing Aikido for the past three years.
Kaylee's favorite things about AYF Running Group is the fun running games we play at the end of each group.
Congratulations to Kaylee for being AYF's February Athlete of the Month!
January Athlete of the Month
Theo Cutter is in 2nd grade and has been participating in Young Guns Biking Group since the summer before his 1st grade year. This past fall, Theo participated in both Running & Biking Groups at Cedar Creek Elementary. Theo's coaches nominated him for Athlete of the Month because he ALWAYS comes to Young Guns with a smile and excited about our ride. He also has improved as a rider since he first started with our summer camp. Theo likes trying new sports and has played on soccer, flag football, basketball, and baseball teams, and this spring he will be trying lacrosse for the 1st time. He also has a goal this summer to learn to water ski.
Aside from being active, Theo loves a good adventure, being outdoors, camping, and traveling. Theo had a blast last summer snorkeling and cliff diving. Theo is always ready for his next adventure!
Theo's favorite things about Young Guns is riding his bike around Austin and he loves playing games at our running group, especially capture the flag!
Congratulations to Theo for being Young Guns January Athlete of the Month!