Sing’s dad lets him know javelin throw is golden
CALN — The javelin beats golf and fishing in the realm of father-and-son recreation for the Sings.
It was obvious Saturday when Penncrest High senior Evan Sing launched a postcard-perfect throw of 194-8 to vaporize the field in the Class AAA PIAA Track and Field championships at Coatesville High and earn his third straight trip to states.
The moment the javelin left Sing’s hand, his father, long-time Delaware Country resident Dr. Robert Sing, let his fourth child know it was a winner. They talk between every throw. They watch video of throws. They review fundamentals from the Doc’s book, “The Dynamics of the Javelin Throw.’ Robert Sing qualified in the javelin for the 1980 Olympics. That’s the year the U.S. boycotted the games.
“This whole quest, if you will, he’s really been my guy in the corner,’ Evan Sing said. “He’s been there when I’ve been at my best and at my worst. He’s told what I need to do, when I’m doing well and what needs to be worked on.’
The way Sing competes, the more throws he takes the better he seems to get. Even his warmups are fun to watch. Think of long, graceful throws with the javelin sticking the landing.
“It felt kind of slow, not just for me but for everybody who competed today, and I think it was because of the weather,’ Sing said referencing the 81-degree temperature and humidity. “It was nasty hot and dead out here. As far as getting stronger as the competition goes on, that tends to be the case. Even my 200-footer (at the Kellerman Relays) was my last throw at that meet. I wasn’t even in relatively the same ballpark until that throw. I just think it’s because near the end of the meet I get that feeling like I’m losing … and I’m not going to lose. I get a real adrenaline rush on that last throw.’
Sing set the Lions school record with the 202-4 throw. His final throw in the districts followed efforts of 179-2 and 182-11. The second-place finisher, Bryan Leacraft of Spring Ford, threw 181-1. Leacraft’s brother Brandon was the only other competitor to throw the javelin at least 180 feet.
Evan Sing laughed when asked if his father, who holds instructional javelin clinics on weekends at Penncrest, might be living vicariously through him.
“Maybe a little bit,’ Sing said. “It’s hard to tell sometimes. But I’m doing it for me, not for him. But maybe a little bit.’
Dr. Sing, by the way, says “no’ to the vicarious question, and that he’s just being the teacher he’s been for 30 years.
“My whole house is a javelin training program,’ Dr. Sing said. “I’m just grateful that one of my four kids decided they wanted to do this. I would have been really disappointed. He’s obviously into this. But he’s still just 17. He’s relatively weak. He’s still growing.’
Evan Sing is certain of one thing; he’s going to get more javelin throws in states.
“I’m ranked third in the state so it’s kind of like I know I’m there, that I’m up there with them,’ Sing said. “So I’m pretty confident going in. There’s just a few things that need to be tweaked as far as timing issues.’
Sing’s father suspects there will be a few more chapters to his son’s biography after the states.
“I think I might be able to get him to the Olympic trials next year,’ Dr. Sing said. “The qualifying will be 230 feet. We’re not making the team but 2020, you know, God willing, we’ll be knocking on the door at 2020.’
Vicariously or not, the father-son bond can’t get much deeper for the Sings.
