jd peiffer, king of the road
There’s something invigorating about going fast on a bike, pedaling so hard your heart feels like it’s beating out of your chest and the wind slapping you in the face. Parkway South sophomore JD Peiffer knows the feeling well; he’s been racing since he was a little kid. “I started riding with my dad when I was 6,” he says. “As far back as I can remember, he’s always been on a bike and has always wanted me to ride. It’s a fun thing to do together.”
The main series for riding, the UFD Series, has various divisions based on age and skill level for mountain biking and road racing, and Peiffer participates in both. He started with “little kid races” as he calls them, quick 100-meter dash courses, when he was 6 and gradually moved into the easy adult races in the C division when he was 10. “Whenever I beat an adult, it was the best feeling,” he recalls. “I won the state championship for juniors in mountain biking and road racing,” he says.
Now, as part of the A division, his racing season starts in the spring and runs through early fall. Races are every weekend, sometimes twice a week during the summer. “It’s a very individual sport, but we do group rides about once a week to train, which are around 20 miles,” he says. “Otherwise, I ride at least every other day during the racing season.” You can spot Peiffer on the roads of West County or at Castlewood State Park, where he likes to train for mountain biking. In the off season, he stays active with different activities. “I do ski races at Hidden Valley in the winter,” he says. “As part of that league, we travel to Iowa, Illinois and Wisconsin. I’m always doing something.” He runs cross country at school, which he might continue in college, but biking is his true passion. “My favorite thing to do is ride.” (Pictured, above)
madeleine huber, airborne
In the words of Madeleine Huber, gymnastics is the closest thing to flying. The sensation of flipping, twisting and jumping through the air is what got the senior hooked on the sport at a very young age. Her mom enrolled her in a Mommy and Me gymnastics class at the local rec center after she fell off her bike and broke her arm in two places. “She thought my bones needed to be stronger and that gymnastics could help,” Huber says. When she was 6, she switched to Team Central Gymnastics Academy in Maryland Heights to learn the basics of the sport and have more opportunities to compete. “It’s kind of in my blood,” she says. “My aunts were gymnasts, and my dad was a gymnast in high school. He would teach my brothers and me how to do back flips on our trampoline when we were little.”
Huber, who is homeschooled in West County, started competing when she was 8 and has accomplished a lot through her dedication to the sport. “Meets start in January and end in May with Nationals,” she explains. “They are usually every other weekend. We compete categorized by age group and skill level.” She recently switched to the St. Louis Gymnastics Center in Webster Groves and competes at the highest level now. She works in all four categories: bar, vault, floor and beam. “It depends on the day, but most of the time my favorite events are bar and vault because those are my best ones,” she says. In fact, last year she finished first all-around and in bar and vault at Regionals, which qualified her for the national tournament.
“I placed fourth in vault there because of a three-way tie for second place,” she explains. Huber says that was one of her proudest moments, and she hopes to make it onto the podium at Nationals this year. Her commitment to gymnastics is undeniable (she practices five days a week for 20 hours total) and has landed her a spot on the University of Missouri gymnastics team, where she hopes to continue receiving accolades for her version of flying.
talk to… [danny sheehan]
Sometimes you are lucky enough to find something you’re passionate about at an early age. Such is the case with Chaminade eighth-grader Danny Sheehan, who started playing hockey even before he started school. He currently plays defense for the St. Louis Rockets Youth Hockey Club.
How old were you when you started playing?
I took skating lessons when I was 4, and then moved into playing the game. My family was living in Canada at the time, so all my friends were playing.
How many teams have you played for?
After we lived in Canada for two years, we moved to South Bend, Ind., and I played on a team there. I’ve played for the Rockets since we moved to St. Louis.
What do you like most about hockey?
Probably the competitive attitude that is such a big part of the sport.
What does a typical season look like?
Our season starts in October and lasts until the end of February. Our home rink is in Webster Groves, but we play wherever we can get ice. We practice a couple times a week. We usually play local teams, but we travel a couple times a year; so far, we’ve already had a tournament in Chicago. I also play in a summer league with kids from different local clubs.
Do you ever get to just play for fun?
My friends and I like to go to Shaw Park and shoot the puck around.
Do you play other sports?
I play football and baseball and would love to play those in high school.