Water Polo, Swimming
Favorite athlete: Michael Phelps
Favorite team: Philadelphia Flyers
Favorite memory competing in sports: Getting to swim with my relay at states with huge crowds watching us.
Most embarrassing/funniest thing that has happened while competing in sports: Forgetting a relay was four laps instead of two and stopping early.
Music on iPod: Electronic and Alternative
Future plans: College at Shippensburg, Major in computer science
Words to live by: “Commitment means staying loyal to what you said you were going to do, long after the mood you said it in has left you.”
One goal before turning 30: Be working in the computer science field
One thing people don’t know about me: I’m usually quiet but can be outgoing when I get to know people.
By GORDON GLANTZ
The Wissahickon swim program without a child of John and Sharon Beyer making waves would be like KFC not selling fried chicken.
First came Kirsten. Then Greg. And now, capping the lineage, is senior – and Univest Featured Male Athlete of the Week, Jeff Beyer.
“Jeff is the youngest of three children,” said John High, the head coach of the boys’ team. “All three of them attended Wissahickon and went through the swimming program. This is a great family, and I want to tell you about how Jeff stands out on our team.
“Jeff has always been the quiet, younger brother. As a freshman, his older brother, Greg, was a good swimmer. I can remember watching Jeff swim and thinking, ‘man, he is going to beat his brother’s times.’”
He wasn’t just thinking it, either. He was saying it – aloud – a lot.
“I think (High) always used that as motivation to push me – saying that if I work hard, it’s going to get me past him,” said Beyer.
Ironically, with Greg – who is taking a year off from swimming at Bloomsburg - helping girls’ coach Laurie Hug, older brother has been helping Jeff work to achieve all his goals before moving on to swim on the collegiate level at Shippensburg University.
“He has been able to help me out and is the reason I have hit some of my best times,” said Jeff, who has been pleased with how his tapering schedule has worked out thus far.
If it all follows the script, he will be able to erase the disappointment of narrowly missing out on qualifying for states in the 500 freestyle.
“Last year, Jeff just missed making the cut into States,” High said. “When you see that fractions of a second stopped you from reaching your goal, you start to think about what you could have done differently. I can attest that Jeff did everything he could of. He didn’t miss a practice, didn’t dog a set.”
While he still got to compete in a relay event at states, placing two spots away from the top 32 in the state that qualify in his main event was a bitter pill for a fierce competitor like Beyer to swallow.
The top five in the district automatically qualify. He placed sixth and missed the cut by fractions of a second.
“That definitely added fuel to the fire,” he said. “It’s always on my mind. If I ever want to take a break or take a day off, I think to myself about all the kids I’m competing against who aren’t taking a break or day off.”
Growing up in a family where the only non-swimmer is mom, Beyer had no time for getting his feet wet. He drove into the deep end.
He started swimming as a toddler and was ready to start competing for Whitpain Greens Swim Club shortly thereafter.
“I wanted to get in,” he recalled. “For me, part of growing up, was getting into the pool.”
He continued competing at the aquatic club level but entered a brave new world when he followed his siblings into the Wissahickon program.
He admittedly stepped up training in high school, where the grind adds up to districts and states.
And he does it with words of wisdom of the girls coach, Hug, in his head.
“She always says that a day missed sets you back three days in your training,” said Beyer. “It’s always important to be putting in your best effort. Otherwise, it’s pointless.”
Bart Schneider, an assistant coach, steered Beyer toward the distance events and has stayed in his corner.
“He is the first one who introduced me to distance swimming, and worked me on technique,” said Beyer. “I really appreciate him for that.”
Beyer explains that training for distance swimming is more than just doing laps and building endurance. The training in rigorous.
“You have to swim a lot of yards as fast as you can; just hammering away at it as fast as you can,” said Beyer, a tri-captain who prides himself on setting the pace in dry land training and circuit exercises.
“I like to encourage everyone to keep going,” he said. “I don’t like to take the shortcut. I like to see everyone working hard.”
Beyer describes the Trojans’ team as a tight-knit group that has pulled together to fill the void of losing standout Danny Knott to graduation.
“We’re doing pretty well,” he said. “We lost a senior who finished third in states, but we have all come together to fill his gap.”
Beyer played water polo in the fall, and plans to coach the sport to younger kids in the spring.
In the meantime, the focus is on swimming and academics for Beyer, who says computer science is his “biggest interest” and adds that he gets “nerded-out” about “planning and researching” the building of his own computer.
He carries a weighted GPA of 4.2, and the college search had to be more than just a fit for his swimming skills.
“It was the best combination,” he said of Shippensburg. “I did an overnight (visit) and I liked the team and the coaches. I liked all the professors I met.”
High has zero doubts that Beyer will excel in the future – just as he has in the past and continues to do in the present.
“Every day Jeff trains with a level of intensity that is hard to find amongst high school swimming,” he said. “With a full course load throughout the academic day, he continues to push himself throughout practice. He is one of the guys that gets it. What I mean by that is that Jeff knows that there are shortcuts that he could take or days that he wants to take off, but he is in it for the long-term reward.
“Jeff comes and he works day in and day out. Whether it is in the pool, the classroom, or gaming with friends, he is in it to win it. He is a natural born leader, who as the youngest, learned from some of the best that sometimes what you want to do and what you should do are two different things. In the end, he chose to do what he needs to do, plus some to help secure a spot in the postseason. In doing so, he has done it with humbleness, pride and a leadership that any coach would kill to have. He leads by example and is committed to his team.”
