The New America

August 8, 2012

Hilary Achauer

Marcus Hendren grew up American playing football and farming. Then he discovered a new sport and new ways to farm. Hilary Achauer reports.

It doesn’t get more all-American than Marcus Hendren.

Hendren grew up on a dairy farm in Johnston, Ohio. His grandfather started the farm in 1956, and Hendren spent his childhood working on the farm alongside his father and brothers. When other kids were off at the pool or playing summer baseball, Hendren and his brothers were busy feeding baby calves.

In high school, Hendren was a star football player. He was the top rusher and scorer in the state of Ohio his senior year and earned state player-of-the-year honors in Division V. Hendren served as team co-captain for the football, basketball and baseball teams his senior year and also earned varsity letters in track and field and lacrosse. His athletic accomplishments and academic excellence earned him admission to Cornell University in New York. Hendren had a successful football career at Cornell and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in business in 2011. After graduation, he did what was expected of him: he returned to Ohio to work on the family farm.

However, Hendren was not the same person he was when he left Ohio. While in college, Hendren found CrossFit. The discovery had a profound effect not only on his body, but also on the way he viewed the world—more specifically, his opinions about food and the way it is produced in our country.

Click here to read the full article at the CrossFit Journal.