Modesto High student sets record for 'lunge mile'

Jamasen Rodriguez, a senior at Modesto High School, completed a "lunge mile" around the Modesto Junior College track on Saturday in 25 minutes, 21 seconds. He is believed to have set a Guinness world record in the unorthodox and obscure event.

A lunge racer goes down to one knee on each step, a brutal routine that Jamasen - a member of the Modesto High track team - discovered on YouTube and started practicing in his back yard in the spring.

Jamasen kept a steady pace around the track, stopping only for a moment about the halfway mark to fling off his shirt.

It took him 1,370 lunges complete the mile.

"That’s a lot of lunges!" Jamasen said.

On his fourth and final lap, his friends, family, and track coaches walked alongside him, chanting his name and shouting encouragement.

After he crossed the finish line, he smiled, quickly gulped down a sports drink and held on to a friend, saying, "I can't stand."

Rebecca Mears is a member of The Bee's Teens in the Newsroom program. A fuller story on the lunge run is planned for the Buzzz section on Thursday.