Overcoming Adversity Scholarship
Supporting SAU Student-Athletes with Disabilities
The Farm Road Challenge is an annual race that raises money for The Overcoming Adversity Scholarship. The scholarship supports SAU student-athletes with disabilities.
Founders, Briston and Carley Rains both ran cross country and track and field at SAU (Briston 2020-2023, Carley 2017-2021). They started this scholarship in 2022 based on Carley's true testimony of being a student-athlete with a disability (Narcolepsy with Cataplexy).
Narcolepsy w/ Cataplexy is a neurological disorder that prevents the brain from regulating sleep-wake cycles properly. This causes much difficulty in staying awake during the day and falling asleep at night.
Carley was diagnosed with the condition during her senior year of high school, and experienced much adversity adjusting to medications, a strict eating and sleeping schedule, and then college six months later.
But college athletics provided the consistency she needed and was the perfect outlet for her to manage the condition while in school.
"When I first was diagnosed, my doctor expressed the importance of exercising daily. I never would have thought athletics would have been the solution."
Practices ran two times a day (morning and evening) and six days a week. On average she ran 30-40 miles per week. Athletics provided the exercise she needed, but it also gave her a support group to lean on when times were difficult.
"I couldn't have done it without my close friends. They are the back bone to all of my successes. They helped me stay awake to study, woke me up when I needed to warm up, and so much more."
Despite battling with the neurological condition, Carley won many accolades during her time at SAU, which inspired her and Briston to name the scholarship Overcoming Adversity.
"Everyone experiences adversity. We wanted to give the scholarship a title that didn't limit these athletes based on their condition but spoke to them the potential they have to succeed and overcome their present circumstances."
- Carley Rains
SAU Alumni Center
Hosted by
Race Info
Friday, March 6th
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7:30 PM - Packet Pickup Starts
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8:30 PM - Kids' 1-mile race starts
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8:45 PM - Glow for the Gold Relay starts (4-mile relay; 4-person relay, each person runs 1 mile)
Kids 1/2 Mile Run receive a medal and a drawstring backpack
Glow for the Gold 4-Mile Relay: Each participant receives a medal and a shirt
Awards for the Glow for the Gold 4-Mile Relay:
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1st Place Relay
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2nd Place Relay
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Most Spirited Team
Saturday, March 7th
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7:30 AM - Packet Pickup Starts
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8:30 AM - 5K /10K Race Starts
Participants Receive:
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Shirt
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Medal
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Age Group Awards
2023 Race Recap Video
Become a Sponsor
Support the Cause
"Our aim is to bring awareness to the obstacles that athletes can face behind closed doors. This scholarship is designed to reach individuals that sometimes do not feel seen or heard. Through my own experience I understand the struggles of disabilities impacting one's experience as a student- athlete and want to use this to give back to generations to come."
-Carley Rains, Founder of the Overcoming Adversity Scholarship