Pre's crash from car racers perspective

Having visited the crash site last week my first thought was that the wall he hit was the worst possible place to hit on that entire road. I was thinking that a head on collision with another car would have been much more forgiving. About 15 more feet toward the intersection and he probably would have been ok. It is a wicked hard blind curve that I was nervous to drive down during the day sober with modern steering but it's easy to see how it could have happened.

I just wonder why an adult male couldn't lift a car that small??

because he was KILLED BY ALIOENS

I don't think it really matters much what people think of Pre. The fact of the matter is that he was a very young man who inspired millions--maybe more and continues to do so.

Even if there was alcohol in his system--show me the percentage of 24 year olds or younger who hasn't jumped behind the wheel. Not saying that it is right, but it was a mistake. It shouldn't have been a death sentence.

I took a friend to the trials with me who isn't a runner. We visited the rock and I was pretty much lost for words. He asked me what it meant to me and why I felt the way that I did during our visit. It was hard for me to explain--other than what a tragedy.

Pre deserves all the respect in the world.

So many people on here talk about the lack of interest in the sport of Running--yet almost everyone knows who Steve Prefontaine is--ask them who Halie Geb. is and they would guess a taxi driver.

Good analysis.

I never believed in the second car theory or the conspiracy theory that the police lied (eg, fabricated the blood-alcohol level).

I think it was a single car accident on a small, dangerous curve ... Pre had a few to drink that night ... and he was distracted by good thoughts and maybe a cassette tape.

Regardless the actual reasons, it was a tragedy of a life ended too soon.

The real tragedy is that Nike has found a way to profit off of his memory. Nike is slime.

judgment*

Here is what officially happened ...

Prefontaine ran a 5000m race on 5/29/75. He invited the Finns to Oregon ... mainly Lasse Viren so Pre could beat him at Hayward Field ... but Viren didn't show. Pre invited Frank Shorter to run instead, to fill the stands (to recover costs) and Frank showed. The stands were filled, the race was great, the Finns were a hit, but no American record.

Kenny Moore was there to cover the AR record attempt. It turned out to be the coverage of Pre's last hours.

Pre went to Geoff Hollister's house after the race for a party with the Finns. Pre was dehydrated from the race and excited by the success of the meet. Pre drank himself over the legal limit for alcohol.

Pre drove Frank Shorter up to Kenny Moore's house after midnight. Legally drunk.

Pre was never a great driver. Always distracted. It didn't help that it was late at night, a narrow road, dark, downhill, excited about the events ... and did I say legally drunk?

If there was a car coming up the hill then it would have been almost impossible not to have a head on collision. There was no other car. Maybe an echo that sounded like another MGB.

The police report said a single car accident, legally drunk, and choked on his own vomit (how many famous people die that way).

I prefer a more glamorous way to die. The fact is that he died young with huge unfulfilled potential.

Many people try to construct a more pleasant story. Even some create a conspiracy (eg, the Finns orchestrated the death so Viren wouldn't have to run against Pre in 1975).

But facts are facts.

Oops ...

I meant to type that the Finns orchestrated Pre's death so Viren wouldn't have to run against Pre in the 1976 Montreal Olympics.

Which of course meant that the Finns would have had to paid off the Eugene Police Department to lie about the blood-alcohol content.

To me that is all nonsense.

Why is it that when famous, talented people die young that people have to make up these far-fetched stories.

Why can't the lesson be that Pre was stupid that night and it cost him ... and all of us.

Young people do stupid things all the time thinking that they can cheat death. There is a lesson in Pre's story to be smart.

[quote]SpainDuck wrote:

Here is what officially happened ...

Prefontaine ran a 5000m race on 5/29/75. He invited the Finns to Oregon ... mainly Lasse Viren so Pre could beat him at Hayward Field ... but Viren didn't show. Pre invited Frank Shorter to run instead, to fill the stands (to recover costs) and Frank showed. The stands were filled, the race was great, the Finns were a hit, but no American record.

Kenny Moore was there to cover the AR record attempt. It turned out to be the coverage of Pre's last hours.

Pre went to Geoff Hollister's house after the race for a party with the Finns. Pre was dehydrated from the race and excited by the success of the meet. Pre drank himself over the legal limit for alcohol.

Pre drove Frank Shorter up to Kenny Moore's house after midnight. Legally drunk.

Pre was never a great driver. Always distracted. It didn't help that it was late at night, a narrow road, dark, downhill, excited about the events ... and did I say legally drunk?

If there was a car coming up the hill then it would have been almost impossible not to have a head on collision. There was no other car. Maybe an echo that sounded like another MGB.

The police report said a single car accident, legally drunk, and choked on his own vomit (how many famous people die that way).

you had it right until you checked into 'koo koo ville' by saying that there was not another car when all reports say there was and he died from his car crushing his chest. Read Kenny Moore's book if you want to get detailed information on the other car, the kid's name and the whole story; you DILWEED!

I'm surprised the article took it for granted Pre had 1 beer the night he died.

Yes a lot of things might have contributed to Pre's death but it seems like such an article should include alcohol in the list as possibility. If you're going to speculate a tape deck might have distracted him, how about the possibility he was buzzed as well?

Does that make Pre a drunk? No. Does that mean he deserved to die? Far from it.

I just am amazed at the lengths stories and articles about him go to gloss over the fact it likely contributed to his death.

Dauby wrote:

I took a friend to the trials with me who isn't a runner. We visited the rock and I was pretty much lost for words. He asked me what it meant to me and why I felt the way that I did during our visit. It was hard for me to explain--other than what a tragedy.

Jeez dude, you got broken up visiting Pre's rock? I can't imagine what you'd be like visiting somewhere where an actual tragedy occured.

wejo wrote:

I'm surprised the article took it for granted Pre had 1 beer the night he died.

"If so, did the beer he drank earlier in the evening have any bearing on this deadly mistake?"

I don't know that this is saying he drank one beer or that he drank a lot of beer.

Shame on Geoff Hollister, Kenny Moore, and Frank Shorter for continuing their history revisionism by insisting all these years that a small animal or another car was the cause of Pre's accident. Pre was drunk. What part of that don't you guys get?

gorney wrote:

Shame on Geoff Hollister, Kenny Moore, and Frank Shorter for continuing their history revisionism by insisting all these years that a small animal or another car was the cause of Pre's accident. Pre was drunk. What part of that don't you guys get?

So you were there? How was the party?

This is as close to what was reported as happening as you're going to get.

I remember there being a real question about whether or not he was drunk. Mostly, it was assumed he was drinking. In the early-mid 70's drinking went with running. Road Races usually offered beer. Walker and Dixon had as much written about their drinking as their running. Dave Bedford and the British runner's escapades were well chronicled.

DWI was/is always bad, but there was a whole different mind set back then. It did not carry the stigma it now carries. People weren't embarrassed when caught. They didn't have to go to classes to learn the evils of drinking. Often, the police would just tell you to go home and sleep it off.

He was no more a drunk than any college/post college young person. He may or may not have been drunk when he died.

The truth is, he did inspire a lot of young runners to achieve their personal potential even back then.

I was 15 when he died and I remember well the mood at track practice that day. The decision to continue with practice because he was such a great runner.

Maybe this sounds corny to some of you too young to remember, those of you who are way too quick to critisize, those of you simply jealous that he had something you don't-talent, charisma, whatever.

I agree that the hype may be going too far, but, to be honest, I love it. It brings back a time when running was different than it is now. And, when I was young and still had the opportunity to improve.

When an American succeeded there were no internet dweebs to make accusations of drug use, no one to pass judgement after an article on the post race parties where great runners got drunk and had a good time.

Stop judging and get out there and run more miles to get your juvenile frustrations out of your system.

I apologize from those of us who aren't perfect (because apparently some of you out there are).

He was drunk. Go to the Armory in New York and it has the report in real small newspaper print that states that his blood alcohol level was .16. It was a stupid mistake that many of us made back in the 70's and thank god most of us didn't receive a life sentence. But to ignore the fact that he was drunk is ignorant.

Come on now it was 1975, everybody did drugs and drank... It sucks he died but if you think he was sober than you are an idiot

Dauby wrote:

ask them who Halie Geb. is and they would guess a taxi driver.

I don't know who Halie Geb is, either. I'm pretty sure no one here has heard of someone with that name.

so I was driving home one evening and a deer jumped out in front of me and I couldn't stop. wrecked my car, killed the deer etc. I had nothing to drink, I was actually driving home from a workout.

my buddy was driving down the same road months later after a softball game where they went for pizza and beer afterwards. he had 3 (small) cups of beer over a couple ours (with food). in the same stretch a deer jumped out and he nailed it. his car went off the road and another car saw it and called the police. the deer wasn't immediately dead so when the police arrived he was pretty shaken up. because he looked a bit strange (after having to watch a deer die in agony) they assumed there was drinking involved and did a breathalizer. he blew .11 and was arrested.

deer have been hit there since.

the point is, if only one deer had been hit and it had been my friend and he died, everyone would be saying it was because he was drunk.

that level of alcohol, while it may be prohibited by law, does not necessarily = inability to drive (or even anywhere near it)

every week if you are driving in the evening on a thursday or friday there are people driving along side you that are over the legal limit because they had 2 or 3 drinks after work, wine at a nice dinner, pizza and beer after a run or game, or at the local baseball game. the fact is you never even notice it and they get home perfectly fine.

any of you ever had several drinks and done the "ethical, honest, safe, MADD" thing and crashed at a friends to sober up for 5 hours and then driven home in the morning? well in a lot of cases, despite the fact that you do feel more focused and functional your BAC has actually climbed up since you went to bed. if you got pulled over and tested you would still be legally drunk.

am I saying to get wasted and drive, obviously not. what I am saying is that pre's reported alcohol level doesn't prove to me that the drinks he had that night were the reason he hit the wall. pre and nearly all of his fellow runners in that day were accustomed to drinking pretty hard and this would have been a VERY MILD evening of a few drinks for him.

I've never heard of anyone at that party come forward and say something like "I was worried that Steve was going to drive". Everything I've heard was more shock that he got into an accident. Isn't it fair to consider that?