RedHawks' Vehr an artist in water

File photo Miami swimmer Kelsey Vehr.

Miami junior swimmer  set to make her second straight appearance at NCAA Championships.

By Pete Conrad, Staff Writer Updated 7:45 AM Tuesday, March 16, 2010

OXFORD — Not too long ago Kelsey Vehr filled out a Miami University media relations form. One question asked for the three words which best describe her.

The junior from Cincinnati wrote “goofy, creative, outgoing.”

Another question: What (other) sport would you have pursued for a college scholarship?

Her answer: Football.

“That’s just me being a goofball. My dad played football,” Vehr said. Nick Vehr played at Notre Dame.

If Vehr has her quirky moments, you can understand. She is an artist, and artists are supposed to march to the beat of a different drummer.

As an artist, her two best mediums are oil and water.

“When I was deciding in what to major, painting is the only thing I can see myself doing for the rest of my life,” Vehr said. “Lately I’ve been working mostly in oil paints.

“I’ve always been involved in the arts since I was little,” she said. “My mom (Laura Vehr) and grandmother (Pat Lindeman) are painters as well. They both have a studio at the Pendleton Art Center in downtown Cincinnati.”

Right now, however, Vehr is concentrating on her artistry with water.

She is preparing for her second straight trip to the NCAA Women’s Swimming & Diving Championships later this week at Purdue University.

Vehr has qualified for the 100 and 200 breaststroke races and the 400 individual medley, but plans to compete only in her specialty — the breaststroke.

“Going to the NCAA meet is a lot different than it was last year,” said Vehr, who placed 26th in the 100 breast and 37th in the 200 breast. “Last year it was a bonus, out of the blue. This year it’s been my goal all year long.”

“What I’d like to do is make it back at night (in the finals) and score some points, to finish in the top eight, but even the top 16 would be nice, to get Miami’s name up on the scoreboard,” she said.

If you think Vehr leaves her goofy side behind when she approaches the pool, think again.

“With swimming, it’s so much easier to make everything fun and not get caught up in splits, in having an agenda,” she said.

Vehr remembered that at a recent meet she and teammate Megan Brunn “were dancing behind the blocks. Everyone else was in the zone and being serious, and we were just having a good time ... Swimming is the kind of sport that if you take it too seriously, you get burned out early.”

Vehr said she gets nervous when she concentrates too much during competition.

“It’s funny, in my race it’s almost like I black out and I don’t remember what’s happened,” she said. “The trick is just letting it happen.”

Contact this reporter at (513) 820-2197 or pconrad@coxohio.com.

Kelsey Vehr

Miami swimmer

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