“I JUST DON’T WANT TO BE LAST TOMORROW”

...it seems like forty-eight years went by in a flash

On May 21, 1976 I went to bed in a dormitory room at the University of Oregon with that on my mind.

Because the next day – 48 years ago today – I’d be running in the US Olympic Trials Marathon, alongside 76 others who had met the qualifying standard by running another certified marathon in at least 2 hours and 23 minutes during the preceding year.

Didn’t keep many running souvenirs, but I socked this one away.

As I lay there I realized that “it would be real easy to be last tomorrow” because I knew that virtually every other runner had been a high school or college track star. Compared to them I was a rank amateur. I’d come very late to the sport after washing out as a sore-armed college pitcher and club hockey player. At 25 years old I’d been a runner for only about five years and had “raced” for the first time just four years earlier. 

Yet somehow there I was, on the storied Hayward Field track at the U of Oregon in Eugene.

We started with a lap on the track before heading out on a bike path running along the Willamette River, and eventually onto roads traversing the countryside, before returning to the track 26 miles later.

The 77 runners sorted into a series of packs, with some runners advancing to join and others dropping back. I had hit the 5 mile mark in 25:10, a time that would have been great for me just two years prior in a FIVE MILE RACE – not the first 5 of 26.2! At that point I was 23rd. At 10 miles I had slowed a bit, reaching that marker at 51:02 – again, a time I would have been very pleased with in a ten mile race!

Now I was 19^th, and – as I review the results in hindsight, actually ten seconds and 7 places ahead of the eventual third place finisher, and thus Olympian, Don Kardong.

A lot of great names on this list from the greatest years of the post-Shorter-winning-at-Munich inspired running boom. Didn’t know them at the time, but # 18 Lee Fidler and #19 Russ Pate became friends and frequent rivals when I moved to the Southeast.

We rolled on, and despite losing about 5 places when forced into an unfortunate pit stop at 18 miles, likely due to too much lentil casserole the night before, I completed the course in 2:21:24 for 20^th place.

A long stretch ahead of last.

P.S. - one of my early blog subscribers sent me a “good luck” telegram before the event…wonder if he’ll remember that….

Cool as a cucumber after the race, with cousin Marybeth, who was a U of O student when I ran this race.