Q&A with David Wren

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Third-year David Wren and the Virginia men’s swimming team is back in action Jan. 8 at Tennessee. Until then, Wren, a native of Richmond, Va., caught up with VirginiaSports.com to talk about the season, his family history at UVa, the upcoming holiday break and his band, Flirtatious Monty.

Question: How would you describe the season up to this point in time?
Wren: It’s been a lot of fun and very successful so far. This team came together really quickly, from the moment we all arrived on Grounds. We have been training really well and looking good every week.

Question: Were you happy with the performances put forth at the Georgia Invitational?
Wren: We were very, very pleased with how well we swam down there considering what little rest we had. We were very excited about a lot of the swims – (Matt) McLean swam very fast, it was great to see Brady (Fox) have a great meet, everybody across the board was much faster than was expected.

Question: What does the team plan to accomplish over the holiday break?
Wren: The goal is to train harder than we have been so far this year – to take the training up a notch. We are here for a month basically with nothing else to do but swim. It becomes a lot easier to train, even though the practices get more intense, because you only have one focus. It’s a lot of fun and I look forward to it every year.

Question: What has swimming at UVa meant to you, given the fact that two of your uncles and older brother Garrett were also on the team?
Wren: It’s pretty cool and I have enjoyed going home to talk to my uncles who both swam for Coach (Mark) Bernardino. We definitely share stories about stuff we are doing and the stuff they did back in the 80s. They have told a lot of stories about the training trips they took back then. And some of the stuff Mark did back then and is still doing now. It is special to have that family connection.

Question: Were there another things that attracted you to UVa while you were looking at colleges?
Wren: I have always wanted to come to Virginia, since I was probably 10 years old. What originally got me thinking about it was just that I had always been a UVa fan over a Virginia Tech fan. Everyone in the state picks a side, and I was on the UVa side. You hear about how great the swimming program is here. Then when I was in the eighth grade my club team came here and helped time for the 2004 ACC Championships. That was cool to be here and see that meet. I didn’t understand quite everything that was going on then. But that’s when I really knew I wanted to be at UVa.

Question: How would you say you have improved from your first year until now?
Wren: I have a better understanding of the sport and what is supposed to be done in training. When I was in high school I just thought I could show up to practice and some days really give it my all and other days not really care. It depended on the motivation I had that day. When I showed up here, I kind of had the same feeling. I was excited to train here but I didn’t really know how. The upperclassmen always push you and make sure you are pushing yourself every single set, every single day. I see myself it some of our first years now.

Question: What is your major?
Wren: I am an economics major with a history minor. I have always liked econ and history a lot. I wanted to be able to take a variety of classes.

Question: What is your favorite event to swim?
Wren: Probably the 100 butterfly; it’s a lot of fun. I like sprinting even though I am not really good at it. It’s something I’ve been working on. But I like the 100 butterfly because I like kicking underwater – with the backstroke, I die on the last couple of turns. But with the fly, I hit the wall and get a breath and then just stay underwater.

Question: What do you like to do for fun?
Wren: I play a lot of guitar. I live across the hall from Matt McLean and down the street from Monty (Nick Montes de Oca). The three of us jam a lot and I am sure during the break we will be doing a lot of that. Monty and I actually have a band together called Flirtatious Monty. We are still writing a few songs. We make up lyrics as we go.