There’s a new fastest man in Page, USA – at least in the 13.1-mile category.

Pageite Jerod Viers won the Lake Powell Half Marathon On Oct. 8 with a time of 1 hour, 22 minutes and 43 seconds.

This was Viers’ first time running in the Lake Powell Half Marathon. It’s something he’s wanted to do for a while, but in previous years he’s been out of town the weekend it was held.  

Viers is a long-time runner and racer. He got into running while in high school after a knee injury prevented him from playing baseball. He took up running to have another athletic outlet. He increased his running in college after making friends with another runner, Lucas Ness. The two became good friends and would go out on 15-20 mile runs on a regular basis.

“People thought we were nuts going out to run 15-20 miles while they partied,” Viers said.

He has been running consistently for about 12 years. 

The third race Viers ran was the Oklahoma City Marathon.

“That really got me motivated to run even more,” he said. 

Since then, Viers has competed in 60-70 races, ranging from 5Ks to 55Ks. He won the Antelope Canyon Ultra, a 55K, in 2020.

Viers can be seen running the trails around Page most mornings before he goes to work. He runs anywhere from 3 to 10 miles a day, depending on how he’s feeling. His dog Roo tags along with him for the first few miles but gets tired, or bored, and goes home.

Viers runs because he enjoys running, not necessarily to maintain race time conditioning. But for two to three months before a race, he tailors his workouts to prepare for the event.

“I do workouts at the pace I want to run the race at, and also do workouts at paces much faster than my goal,” said Viers. “This makes running faster feel ‘easier.’ For the half marathon, it’s really important to practice running fast on tired legs, otherwise the later miles in the race will break you.”

Unlike a lot of other runners, Viers doesn’t have an eating regimen.

“I eat what I want, within reason, of course,” he said. “I love to run but I am not a health nut. Favorite foods are burgers, ice cream, peanut butter and wings. I tolerate vegetables but don't particularly enjoy them. I also enjoy beer.”

Viers is the director of operations at Wahweap Boats Rentals. His wife Lauren is a teacher at Lake View Elementary. They have a young son named Wesley.