Coos Bay, Oregon
July 8, 2017
by Mark Cullen
Photos by
Jordan Geller, Thomas McDaniel,
Linda Prefontaine
“Excuse
me, are you a big fan of Pre?”
“Yes,
yes!” Marti Menz replied emphatically.
“This
is his sister, Linda Prefontaine.”
I
thought I was going to have to catch Marti.
Marti
and Thomas McDaniel had spent the previous evening in Coos Bay, OR, looking for
the statue of Steve Prefontaine, but it took until noon the following day to
find it.
I
was privileged to be in the company of Linda Prefontaine, Steve’s sister, and
Jordan Geller, the famous shoe collector and founder of the Shoezeum.
Jordy
and I were part of the second iteration of Linda Prefontaine’s Tour de Pre, and it was Jordy who
introduced Marti to Linda.
Marti,
it turns out, is exactly why Linda began this business.
“Steve
is my inspiration,” she said. “I started running in 1975 because of him.”
Marti
is a veteran distance runner who worked at The Athletic Department in Berkeley,
CA, from 1978-80. She made her pilgrimage to Coos Bay to find the history and landmarks
of the legendary US distance runner, but she, like so many before her, had
difficulty finding them presented in an organized and unified way.
Linda
to the rescue.
Linda
is moving home to Coos Bay after many years in Eugene. She is launching a new
business designed to bring together the highlights of the life and running
career of her brother in an engaging day-long tour.
“This
is a really good idea,” Marti said. “I’m a classic example of who this is for.
I was all over town late last night looking for the statue. People want to come
here and do their pilgrimage.”
The
Tour de Pre includes stops at:
- - the History Museum and its Prefontaine display case
- - the memorial statue downtown
- - the Prefontaine Memorial Gallery at the Coos Bay Art Museum
- - Prefontaine Track at Marshfield High School
- - Heritage Hall at Marshfield High School
- - opportunities to run: on the 10th Avenue hill, the
beaches, the high school track
- - the Prefontaine home
- - and a seafood lunch that can’t be beat at the Portside Restaurant in
Charleston, OR.
The Tour can be tailored to the individual interests and preferences of each tour group.
Runners will want to go on the runs, historians might spend more time in the
extensive library display, and if you wish to pay your respects to Pre, that is
optional and Linda will guide you to the cemetery at the end of the Tour.
Linda
said that the Tour is about “…telling
my brother’s story and teaching people that he was more than a great runner. He
was a fierce competitor on the track and a friend moments later. I want to
teach people about the whole person he was. There are so many facets to him;
there’s not a better example of what it takes to be successful.”
The
Tour began at the Coos County Museum
where there is a display case featuring the achievements of Steve Prefontaine.
From there, we took a beautiful walk along the waterfront to the Prefontaine
statue, where we had our memorable encounter with Marti and Thomas.
The Tour became more personal at the
Prefontaine home, which is viewed from the outside. The house was built by
Steve and Linda’s father, Ray, and it gives a strong sense of the modest, middle
class economic background of the family. Neighbors greeted us warmly, and the
small-town nature of Coos Bay (population 16,000) was evident in their openness
and their delight in seeing the Tour
underway.
When
we arrived at the Marshfield High School track named in Linda's brother’s honor,
Jordy did what one does on a track: he ran. While he claims to have set the
world record for the slowest 400m, his record lasted only until I jumped in and
took even longer.
Marti
and Thomas, to whom we had bid farewell at the statue, reappeared and, as Jordy
said, it was like the scene from Forrest
Gump when more and more people fall in behind the Gumpster
as he’s running.
Being
at the track was an emotional experience for me as this was the first time I
had been there since the day of Steve Prefontaine’s funeral 42 years before.
Linda
read us the speech she gave at the dedication of the resurfaced track, a
stirring piece called “Who Would Have Known?” Then she surprised me mightily by
asking me to read the story that brought us together, a story I wrote of what
happened between her brother and me on the day he won the Olympic Trials 5,000m
in 1972. And so I read “Steve” to Linda, Jordy, Marti, and Thomas in the
stands of the Marshfield High School stadium.
This
unplanned experience still gives me pause when I realize where I read the story
and to whom. Later, Thomas wrote, “I cannot tell you how much our encounter of
you three meant to Marti and me. She is still very emotional and teary-eyed
talking about her very special pilgrimage to Coos Bay… (a)n encounter that will
forever be etched vividly in our memories.”
The
memorial exhibit at the Art Museum is the most extensive of all the
Prefontaine displays, and the collection of photographs on the walls is a
reminder of how many iconic races just happen to include Pre. Charmingly, the museum
director opened a closet door in the gallery to deal with cleaning equipment.
No pretension at this museum, and that seemed somehow fitting for an exhibition
space dedicated to Pre.
At
lunch we were welcomed with open arms by Rosella Freeman at the Portside
Restaurant in neighboring Charleston, OR. A public sign of welcome noted our
anticipated arrival, and later we were joined by restaurant owner Joe Tang.
After
we placed our orders, Linda asked Jordy to close his eyes and hold out his
hands. In them she placed a beautiful pair of Pre’s shoes – 1972 blue Nike Finlands.
Time
for me to catch someone else.
“I
got up from the table and went on a date with the shoes!” said Jordy. He placed
them on an adjacent table and began photographing them.
A customer
complained to management that a pair of dirty old shoes was on the table and
that the table needed to be cleaned.
Perspective
is everything.
As I
interviewed Linda about why she started the Tour, a young man approached Jordy
and asked, “Are you the Shoezeum guy?”
When
Jordy replied, “Yes,” the George Fox student's response matched that of Marti at the statue. He
dashed to his car and came back with two pairs of Nike Air Jordans and asked
Jordy to autograph them.
If
only Nike had named them Air Jordys, perhaps they would have sold better.
The
young man’s name?
Steven.
Heritage
Hall at Marshfield High School was our final stop of the day. As a former
longtime athletic director, I have been in more schools than I can count. It’s
not hyperbole to say I have never seen one take such visible pride in its
athletic heritage or display it more meaningfully. In a large room are exhibits
of every sport as well as of the honored teams and individuals. They even took care to preserve the indoor pole vault box in the floor.
That
Coos Bay cares deeply about its history was evident at every stop. I imagined
myself as a freshman in Heritage Hall, new to Marshfield High School. I would
know I’m part of a heritage that goes far beyond its most famous icon.
Fran
Auer Sichting (now Worthen) twice set the national high school long jump record
and won the 1973 220 yard senior AAU outdoor title. How many high schools have
had both male and female national record holders? Mel Counts was a two-time NBA
champion with the Boston Celtics. Linda Prefontaine came within one point of
winning the US amateur racquetball championship in 1978.
Prominent,
too, are Walt McClure, Prefontaine’s high school coach, as well as Pete Susick,
the legendary football coach after whom the stadium is named.
We
were greeted by Superintendent Brian Trendell and Mary Paczesniak, curator of
Heritage Hall. Kind of them to leave home to join us late on a Saturday
afternoon, another symbol of the deep community support the Tour already enjoys. That Coos Bay is enthusiastically
behind Linda and the Tour de Pre and
is invested in having it succeed can only be good for those who make the trek to Coos Bay.
“I
can't tell you how happy I am to come back to the community I was born and
raised in and see the residents come together and embrace what I'm doing to
help make it successful. It means everything to me,” said Linda.
“To
see Jordan speechless when he got to hold a pair of Steve's shoes was worth a
million bucks. To watch both of them running around Prefontaine Track (slow but
it's the effort that counts!) made me smile, and to share so much history
between us was pure joy.”
Each
tour has its own identity. On each one differing nuggets emerge.
Who
knew that Pre liked tomato juice but disliked tomatoes?
Or
that when he started running in the mornings, he got stopped by the police because
they thought he must be running away from a crime scene?
Or
that a possible explanation for Steve and Linda’s closeness would emerge: Linda
liked the frosting and Steve liked the cake. A sibling match made in heaven.
I
found my own hero on this tour. I salute our server, Gabe, at the Portside
Restaurant. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen anyone work with more grace under more challenging
circumstances. After all, he delivered mounds of delicious seafood without
getting any of it on Steve Prefontaine’s 1972 Nike Finland blues.
Talk
about pressure.
* * *
The
first of Pre’s pilgrims to take the Tour de Pre - on May 23 of this year - were
Blake Preece and his mothers, Tina Preece and Carrie Fleming, of Ohio. Blake
and his family share a painful point of connection with the Prefontaine family.
Blake’s twin brother, Brandon, died in a car accident a year and a half ago. I
share the same, as my older sister, Laura, died in a single car accident when
she was 30, six years after Pre’s passing.
Rather
remarkably, on each of the first two tours, four of the five initial guests had
suffered the loss of a family member in an automobile accident.
“It was a healing experience to connect with another
person who has had the same experience,” said Blake. “It made the Tour even deeper.”
With
Blake’s gracious permission, I am reproducing here his Facebook post after he completed
the tour. As you read this, I’ll let you guess how old he is.
“When my moms, Carrie Fleming and Tina Preece, first told me that they had scheduled for us to take a tour through Coos Bay with Steve Prefontaine's sister, Linda Prefontaine, I was in a state of disbelief. It was unfathomable that I was going to have the opportunity to visit the place where my idol was molded into the legend that he became. Taking a tour with his sister? Get outta here!
“The Tour de Pre was without a doubt, one of the best experiences of my entire life. Linda is such a wonderful person that is filled with charisma and love. Her passion to share her brother's TRUE story and show off the town that her family grew up in was more than admirable. I can never thank her enough for opening up her heart to share personal stories and provide a human element to the dynamic track star that everyone knows. It was an absolute pleasure to spend time with her and make new memories. Thanks Pre! 😊
“I had the opportunity to literally run all over the Coos Bay region. When Linda Prefontaine tells you to run, you run. From running laps at the Marshfield High School, to running along an ocean beach, and to sprinting up a hill that puts all others to shame. I was able to run the paths of my idol, not just the record setting athlete, but the loving brother and son.
“Smiles were shared, laughs were had, and tears were shed. It was an amazing day filled with healing and growth. In life, we often are faced with unbelievably challenging trials that test our limits. It is so easy to let ourselves crumble underneath these difficulties. This is not the way. Life is a beautiful thing. Every moment that we are able to share with those around us should never be taken for granted. Live without limits; I know that Steve did.”
Blake
is 20.
As
Blake and Marti’s experience shows, we most certainly need our heroes,
perhaps now more than ever. Coos Bay and the Tour de Pre are outposts of hope in these deeply cynical times. The
Tour reminds us not only of who and
what inspires us, but of our better selves and
of who
and what we aspire to be.
The
Tour de Pre earns an enthusiastic
recommendation from trackerati. Kudos
to Linda Prefontaine for creating an experience that inspires and changes.
Kudos to Linda for creating the newest must-do experience for track and field
fans from home and abroad. It is, in the truest sense, a service to the
international track and field community.
Coos
Bay is a small town with a huge heart. Come to Coos Bay for a welcome dose of
small town reality - for a day of re-centering - and see if you don’t emerge the better
for it. See if you don’t find Linda Prefontaine, a certified life coach, to be
one of the most focused, encouraging, and inspiring people you’ve met. The
memory of Steve Prefontaine will draw you here; when you leave, it’s Linda you
will hold in your heart.
Blake’s mothers report that their trip, which included the Prefontaine Classic, was deeply comforting for their son. “Linda
went out of her way to make sure we were having a good time,” said Tina Preece.
“The Tour was more than I ever could have imagined. The joy she brought to my
family that day will never be forgotten.”
Said Carrie Fleming, “I know this
trip has changed me personally. So many laughs and tears were shared from us
all that day. Best part was I made a new friend... Thank you Linda
Prefontaine.”
I’ll
leave the last word to Blake. “The Tour is a testament to what kind of person
Linda Prefontaine is,” he said. “She is what made the Tour de Pre the Tour de Pre.”
Links:
Linda
Prefontaine’s Prefontaine Productions; make your tour arrangements here:
Coos
History Museum
Coos
Bay/North Bend Visitor Center
Heritage
Hall at Marshfield High School
Portside
Restaurant
Jordan
Geller’s Shoezeum
Steve
– 1972 US Olympic Trials Story
Thanks
Heartfelt
thanks to ever-gracious Linda Prefontaine for entrusting me with this story.
Linda was helpful at every turn before, during, and after the
Tour. To Jordan Geller - team
photographer, professor of social media, and shoe maven to the world. To
Superintendent Bryan Trendell and Mary Paczesniak at Marshfield High School and
Heritage Hall; Rosella Freeman, Joe Tang, and Gabe at the Portside Restaurant;
Barbara at the Visitor Center and Suzy at the Gallery; all at the Coos History
Museum. To Marti Menz, Thomas McDaniel, Blake Preece, Tina Preece, and Carrie Fleming for letting me tell your very personal stories here. Note that it's only 15 years before we can vote for Blake for President. It took a village. Heartfelt thanks to you all.
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| Linda Prefontaine inducting brother Steve into the National High School Track and Field Hall of Fame. |
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| Honoring Two |
