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Executive: Rod Hershberger, 55
Fitness passion: Surfing
Career: President and CEO, PGT Inc., Venice
Get Wet: When Hershberger's two sons were young boys, about 25 years ago, they came home from a swimming outing with some friends with a surfboard. The three Hershbergers thought it seemed like fun, so they decided to figure out how to surf. “We had no idea what to do,” Hershberger says. “But we loved it.”
Go global: Hershberger has since traveled to multiple surfing hotspots worldwide, with his sons whenever he can. “It's an addiction,” he says. He's been to Hawaii for surfing six times and he's surfed at Witch's Rock and Ollie's Point, two famous spots in Costa Rica, where there is world-renowned surfing. He even took each son on a high school graduation trip to Costa Rica. On one trip, recalls Hershberger, they surfed three times a day and the entire party, including 10 kids, went everywhere in one van. “It was hilarious,” says Hershberger. “It was great fun.”
Stay local: While globetrotting for surfing is certainly thrilling, Hershberger says he also likes to catch some waves in his home state. In Florida, though, the East Coast tends to have significantly better surf conditions than the Gulf Coast. Hershberger will sometimes check the weather on the East Coast at night, and, if it's ripe, start driving across the state before dawn. Closer to home, Hershberger and his sons have surfed at Siesta Key Beach on Christmas morning — before presents.
Relax, dude: Time on the water, especially paddling and waiting for waves, is when Hershberger often comes up with his best ideas for work. He says after surfing he will frequently come back to his car and grab his cell phone to send himself an email, so he doesn't forget the thought. Surfing, says Hershberger, “is one of the few times you can totally unplug. It's an opportunity to not be interrupted by anybody else.”
Little fear: Hershberger says the excitement of going to a new surfing locale motivates him, however he still has limits to what he will try. “It's scary,” he says, “when you look back and see a high sea wall.” He hasn't surfed North Point in Hawaii, for example, where the waves break hard. “I don't know if I'd be capable of it,” says Hershberger, “or have the guts.”
Work it out: Hershberger keeps in shape in other ways, in addition to surfing. Last year, for instance, he completed the 60-day Insanity workout with his wife. This past June, moreover, he swam in the Escape from Alcatraz race in San Francisco Bay. Hershberger likes to exercise in the morning, before work whenever possible, but he will also go for a lunchtime workout occasionally.
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