SACRAMENTO — Whenever steeplechaser Aric Van Halen tells someone his name, he waits for the inevitable question: Are you related to the Van Halen rock family?

Why, yes, he is.

His father is the drummer Alex Van Halen, the co-founder of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame band Van Halen. Aric Van Halen happened to find his rhythm on the track, and with a sleeve of tattoos on his left arm, he brings a rock-star look to the sport.

“He’s proud that I found something I’m good at and I love to do,” Van Halen said of his father. Van Halen was to compete in the first round of the steeplechase on Friday night at the United States track and field championships. “It didn’t matter what it was. Making it to the Olympic trials last year was a huge accomplishment for me, and for him to say, ‘My son went to the Olympic trials.’”

Van Halen tried to follow a similar path as his father. He learned the violin, the piano, the drums, the saxophone and the guitar.