#geoff meyer

Geoff Meyer Donald Frederick Rawling

Pendaftaran Cabaran Korporat TIME ditutup pada 23 Mac ini.

21 March 2014 @ First United Methodist Church, Montclair, NJ w/ Gifts, Yabadum, Great Plains, OPEN MIC

Talk about your relationship with Fran Crippen. Did you two stay in touch throughout college?  I went to JMU and Fran went to UVA. Those schools are 45 minutes apart in Virginia. I’ve been to UVA a dozen times throughout my college career, and he came a dozen times to visit my friends and me. We were always staying in contact, whether at school or at home. During the summers, we’d swim together and be at practice all day. But he’d go to doubles and I’d only go to one practice (laughs). Fran had to go through a lot more yards than me. We kept in contact all the time. I’m actually really good friends with four or five of his best friends from UVA. And likewise from JMU. It’s been cool to have those friends from UVA, because when Fran passed away, we meet up. Every time there’s a Fran Crippen Elevation event, or on Fran’s birthday, we get together. It’s been nice to spend time with those guys.  Do they know you’re making a comeback to qualify for the Olympic Trials?  His best friends know I’m trying to make Trials. A couple of them have thrown the idea around, but none of them committed to it. The guys at UVA could make the Trials cut if they trained for 3 months because they were good swimmers. But they haven’t been able to motivate themselves to go to practice. They know I’m trying. Whenever I get to see them, they ask me how I’m doing, what meet I’m going to next. Staying in touch.  Is your journey a combination of both wanting to qualify in Fran’s honor, as well as self-fulfillment?  I definitely think it’s a combination. The idea of trying to make the Olympic Trials came from Fran’s passing, because before that happened, [qualifying] wasn’t in my radar at all. I was just going to swim Masters meets, have fun, see my dad, and be in shape. I definitely think it’s a self-fulfillment thing as well. Who wouldn’t want to make the Olympic Trials?  When I was in college, I never dreamed of being good enough to make the Olympic Trials. Until my senior year in college, I only had a few junior cuts. It’s also self-motivating to be able to try to make it for myself as well. That’s why when I was talking about when Matt Barany, my college coach, Matt always told me my fastest swimming years were still ahead of me. I wasn’t fully-grown. I got better and better each year. Matt was still trying to motivate me to get back into swimming and see how good I could do. Swimming, you have to be very dedicated. Right after college, I was working. I had a normal job. I wasn’t thinking of extending any kind of swimming career. Now that [the dream has] come back, and being a sprinter, it’s been more of a realistic goal.  What’s your goal meet to shave down and taper and do this?  I’m going to a meet at Rutgers in the middle of January with the Germantown Academy team. After that, I don’t have a meet planned. I want to have two more opportunities. One at the end of March, then one close to the Olympic Trials. I’ve sat down and talked to Coach Shoulberg about potential meets, and the meets he has his kids going to – a couple Grand Prixs – I can’t go to, because I can’t take off work for a whole week, flying to a destination, staying in a hotel, paying for it myself, and missing work. He said in a couple months he’ll know more about local meets where I’ll be able to swim and can drive there. I haven’t ironed all that out.  You’re really close – how close are you?  I’m .5 in the 50, and .57 in the 100.  How are you going to feel if you do make the cut?  I think I’ll be excited, first and foremost. I’ll probably be the happiest I’ve ever been about any swim I’ve ever had in my life. Just because I know Fran would be happy for me. I know that I’m gonna get to go to Nationals and represent Germantown Academy, which I didn’t think that would ever happen. I know Shoulberg would be happy with that as well.  I think it would be relief as well, because I feel like a lot of people – not “a lot” of people, but the people who know about this – they’re hoping I will make it. They want me to succeed in something I’ve put so much time and effort. But mostly, I’ll be excited and happy to make it to the meet. I’m excited just to go to the meet, let alone to swim. Obviously I’m going for the experience and going to have fun and watch the best swimmers in the world and race and make the Olympic team, and I’m really looking forward to that.