"Go Pre!"
"He was the kid from Coos Bay, Oregon, who wanted to run faster than any other human being in the world...The man who caused people to stop and say, ' I've never seen anyone run like that before.' "
"He was the kid from Coos Bay, Oregon, who wanted to run faster than any other human being in the world. A kid that was too small and not fast enough. A kid everyone kept telling to give up the foolish dream. They called him 'Pre.' The man who ran like fire every day, every race, wire to wire. The man who caused people to stop and say, ' I've never seen anyone run like that before.' A runner who never paced himself, slowed down or quit. But Pre wasn't a runner. He was a rebel who happened to run." -- Nike ad commemorating Steve Prefontaine.
A news clip reminded me that today is the 50th anniversary of the untimely death of an iconic American distance runner, Steve Prefontaine, in a late night, single-car accident on the winding roads in the hills above Eugene, Oregon.
My daily walk/run today will have to be a bit harder than usual…A little burning in the legs and lungs would be an appropriate remembrance of one of my youthful inspirations.
On the night of his death Pre had just won a huge race, defeating 1972 Olympic 5,000 and 10,000 meter champion Lasse Viren and other luminaries, at Eugene's Hayward Field track. It was an event Pre had worked hard to organize, to bring world class racers to his home track.
His satisfaction with his successful event organizing, let alone his breathtaking victory, must have been huge. The famous photo of him breaking the tape, looking over his shoulder, with no one else in the world class field in sight, is classic Pre.
His death came later that evening, minutes after he left a party at the home of Nike rep Geoff Hollister. Pre was just 24 years old. At the time he died he held every American record between 2,000 and 10,000 meters.
But it was perhaps a race he didn't win that etched him in our minds. In the finals of the Munich Olympics 5000 meter race Pre boldly seized the lead with four laps to go when the pack -- laden with older, more experienced and physically mature runners -- dawdled along, a tactic that played into the hands of the best "kickers," i.e., runners who relied on a strong finishing kick. Pre's style was different; run honest, run hard, wire to wire. Pre once said: " I run to see who has the most guts, who can punish himself into exhausting pace, and then at the end, punish himself even more. Nobody is going to win a 5,000 meter race after running an easy 2 miles. Not with me. If I lose forcing the pace all the way, well, at least I can live with myself."
And that's just what he did at Munich, grabbing the lead, pushing the pace. He dueled with Viren through the final 400. Then, his gutsy move took its toll. Exhausted by the pace he had forced, he faltered down the stretch and was passed by two runners. He finished fourth, one spot out of the medals. But he had tried mightily.
It wasn't just his running, though. Pre oozed charisma and was popular for his non-conformity and his outspoken, rebellious streak. These qualities inevitably put him at the forefront of a movement to improve the plight of amateur athletes, who were exploited in those days by race promoters who made lots of money on them, while the athletes traveled economy class, ate cheaply and slept four to a room. Things have changed, and "track and field's James Dean" had a lot to do with that.
To my readers who won't identify with Pre, or running, here is something he said about his gift that anyone can understand, and take to heart: "To give anything less than your best is to sacrifice the Gift."
Want more Pre?
https://www.si.com/olympics/2012/06/29/29classic-photos-of-prefontaine
https://vault.si.com/vault/2004/06/21/heaven-sent-nearly-30-years-after-steve-prefontaines-death-his-gritty-spirit-still-inspires-runners-especially-at-the-pre-classic-in-eugene
https://www.runnersworld.com/runners-stories/a21728090/that-pre-thing/
https://pavementbound.com/2015/04/steve-prefontaine/
Kevin McDonald ran on the track at Eugene's Hayward Field in the 1976 Olympic Trials.