Steeplechaser Mason Ferlic shoots for the stars on the track and in his field as aerospace engineer

Steeplechase runner Mason Ferlic is taking aim at the stars both on the track and in his field. He will try to earn a spot for the Paris Games with a top-three performance at Olympic Trials in Eugene, Oregon. Down the road, the 30-year-old with a master’s degree in aerospace engineering has his sights set on possibly becoming an astronaut. Ferlic’s immediate focus is strictly on those 28 unforgiving jumps and seven leaps over a water pit that stand in his way in the steeplechase. Because falling happens. Each time, though, he’s picked himself up and gotten better. Steeplechase runner Mason Ferlic is taking aim at the stars both on the track and in his field. He will try to earn a spot for the Paris Games with a top-three performance at Olympic Trials in Eugene, Oregon. Down the road, the 30-year-old with a master’s degree in aerospace engineering has his sights set on possibly becoming an astronaut. Ferlic’s immediate focus is strictly on those 28 unforgiving jumps and seven leaps over a water pit that stand in his way in the steeplechase. Because falling happens. Each time, though, he’s picked himself up and gotten better.  AP Technology and Science