Cross-Country, Track
Favorite athlete: Joel Embiid
Favorite team: Philadelphia 76ers
Favorite memory competing in sports: Finishing Second at indoor states in the 4x800 my Junior year
Most embarrassing/funniest thing that has happened while competing in sports: I threw up after a race and missed our picture.
Music on iPod: Classic Rock
Future plans: Major in Business in College
Words to live by: “Bet on yourself”
One goal before turning 30: Go on a trip to Europe
One thing people don’t know about me: I overcame an iron deficiency to make varsity the next year.
By GORDON GLANTZ
When one thinks of “team” sports, the likes of football and basketball and soccer come readily to mind.
And while there are team aspects to cross country and track and field, they don’t quite hold up to the average observer.
But that might change if they spent some time in the orbit of Central Bucks West senior Alec Hofer, who manages to be as much of a “team player” in a generally individualized sport as possible.
“Alec Hofer is a team-first young man,” confirmed his year-round coach, Greg Wetzel. “It’s funny, because he has never been the star of the show, and I admire that he doesn’t need to be the star to be his best.”
Through his sophomore to senior campaigns, Hofer – the Univest Male Featured Athlete – played a key role in the West cross country team winning the league title and placing in the top three in the district and top nine in the state. Meanwhile, he has been a key link in a chain for nationally ranked relay teams during the indoor winter season.
“Alec always finds a way to be involved in the top five scorers in cross country or the top relay within his event group at a given meet,” Wetzel continued. “And these are truths - but saying only that he always successfully directly contributes to something special still isn’t enough.
“It’s more like - these successes that he always successfully directly contributes to might not happen without his countless indirect contributions along the very long way.”
That is where his leadership comes into the picture.
“It’s a different kind of leadership,” said Hofer, comparing and contrasting running to other sports that are more team-oriented. “It’s more like making sure everyone is doing the right thing on any given day.”
That role was made more vital this year when the Class of 2016 graduation ceremonies left a void he needed to help fill.
“Coming into this season, I was more of a leader by example,” he said. “This year, I tried to be more vocal.
“I’m not the most motivational speaker, but I try to tell everybody that running is a process. There will be good days and there will be bad days, but if you keep on working, you will get there.”
Part of this wisdom beyond his years may come from life experience, as Hofer has battled back from an iron deficiency early in his career and then a stress fracture that led him to take it easier than he would have preferred during the break between his junior and senior seasons.
It would have been easy to get down and feel sorry for himself, but that is not his way.
“I try not to look badly upon anything,” he said. “I don’t really give up.”
Overcoming Obstacles
Hofer began running in seventh grade at Lenape Middle School and, by his own admission, “wasn’t very good.”
That began to change in eighth grade, and he zeroed in on running – as opposed to baseball – at the high school level. After a promising freshman year, he was clearly not himself as a sophomore.
“I wasn’t running well at all,” he said. “I couldn’t figure it out. It was a difficult time.”
After a blood test confirmed an iron deficiency, he went about conquering it with diet and supplements.
“I ended up making varsity the next year,” he said. “We had a strong team my junior year, so I really had to earn my spot. It was a really good experience.”
That positivity came into play last season when he had the stress fracture, originally diagnosed as a less severe stress reaction. Although he was not in the equation for the relays, which he understood, he battled back from the stress fracture to the point he almost made districts in an individual event – the 800.
“I still didn’t give up on the season,” he said. “I was trying to make districts in the 800. I ran the time I needed one time, but I wasn’t able to do it a second time.”
From Wetzel’s point of view, Hofer’s efforts - as a runner and a leader - are much appreciated.
“At practice, daily, Alec is a leader,” said Wetzel. “He is always doing what is expected without us needing to ask – and he is actively asking it of his teammates. Alec is relentlessly positive- this cross country season he missed half of the summer healing from a stress fracture that held him off the 4x800 that he was an important piece of in the winter.”
The Next Level
While he may not be superstar, Hofer’s resume as a runner – along with strong academic achievements with a course load of AP and honors classes – have positioned him to run at the next level.
“I’d love to run in college,” said Hofer, a pending business major, adding that his choices have been narrowed to a final four of Ithaca, Dickinson, Susquehanna and Ursinus.
“I am delighted to see Alec continue to run in college,” said Wetzel. “He is someone who has put his entire self into being the best student-athlete he can be and has gotten quite a lot out of all of the giving he has done.”
Heading into the spring outdoor season, Hofer’s top career accomplishments are:
-2017 All-State as the third leg of the 4x800 relay this winter (third in the US).
-2016 All-State as the third leg of our 4x800 relay last winter (third in the US).
-Anchor of the Distance Medley Relay this winter (fourth in the state).
-Anchor of a school-record Sprint Medley Relay (second in the state), which he accomplished after being a part of what was at the time a second-best national time in 4x800 earlier in the afternoon.
As for what lay ahead in the immediate future, Hofer is looking to write an ideal final chapter.
In typical fashion, his individual goals sit behind those for the team, which includes his twin brother, Lance, as a hurdler.
“I’m really excited for the spring season,” he said. “I think we have a shot to win the league. Last year, we knew Pennridge was going to run away with it. This year, though, we should win it. I think we have a good shot.”
As for himself?
“I’d like to make districts in the mile,” he said. “And I’m hoping for the 4X800 to win states. We were third last year and we won the district.”
Family -- and Extended Family
When it comes to having his brother on the team, Hofer stressed that it is not awkward.
“It’s nice,” said Hofer, whose older sister, Rae, is a junior at Quinnipiac University. “We have different friends on the team, but we are friends with each other’s friends. Having him on the team is nice because it gives me someone else to talk to about it.”
Speaking of his family, Hofer calls his mother, Lynn, his “rock” and praised her for coming to all the races and taking an interest in the team as a whole and “not just how I did.”
Meanwhile, his dad, Barry, has become a track expert, despite no personal experience (he started his own landscaping business in ninth grade).
“My dad is really interested in the sport,” said Hofer, who also thanked his coaches, Wetzel and Jim Mahoney for being “tremendously helpful throughout my whole career.”
But, again, that gratitude is more about the program as a whole.
“They really made this a good culture for the team,” said Hofer. “We had successful individuals in the freshman class before us, and my freshman class was talented, too. They were just focused on us working hard and making a good culture.”
