10K RUBY RINGS

Poster for the May 9, 1975 Finnish Tour meet in Coos Bay, Oregon.

The comments below are largely derived from articles by John Conrad of the Register-Guard, April 30 and May 10, 1975.

Before 2,000 spectators, Pre set a new American record on his high school track in the 2000m event with 5:01.4, besting Marty Liquori's 5:02.2. This placed him 4th fastest ever with Michel Jazy of France leading with 4:46.2, 2nd Emiel Puttemans of Belgium in 4:59.8, and 3rd Del Buona of Italy with 5:00.0.

Pre had groused before hand that "You've got to have competition and perfect conditions to go for records. I've been working too hard and been under too much strain (planning the Finnish tour) to do anything like that."

After the race, he paid tribute to Jazy's time: "If somebody had been pushing me I could have gone 2-3 seconds faster. I knew after the first three-quarters of a mile I could have the American record if I wanted it. But Jazy's time is a pretty outstanding record."

Pre followed Oregon's Lars Kaupang through 60 and 62-second laps, then struck out on his own through laps of 60 and 60 before coming home in 59.4 on a final lap of some 12 yards short of 440 yards.

"I wasn't unhappy with the final speed because I haven't done any speed work. I ran the way I felt, and right now I feel very strong and powerful. I feel like I'm ready for a pretty good three-mile."

Pre said he'd run against Lasse Viren in the May 24 California Relays 3-mile since Viren would not be at the cancelled Seattle meet slated for May 15 [later, Lasse Viren dropped out of the tour due to an injury]. "The time might not be as fast in Eugene now," Pre admitted. "But I guess nobody in Seattle wanted to put up $2000 on the chance people would want to see Lasse and me run. Now Modesto is too good to pass up."

The race results:

1. Pre (OTC), 5:01.4
2. Rune Holmen (Finland), 5:14.3
Oregon runners Peter Spir and Larry Hurst dropped out after a mile, clocking 4:03.1 and 4:06.9, respectively, to qualify for the Pac-8 championships a week later.

The Finn Antii Kalliomaki, complaining of stomach pains and the pit, failed to make the pole vault opening height of 17-3 after making 17-9 1/2 in Madras the week prior. He had no competition.

Finn Pentii Kahma won the discus throw with 210-4, in a field of four competitors.

Finn Pirkko Helenius won the women's 100 in 11.6 against two high school runners with 12.3 and 12.8.

Finn Jorma Jaakola won the javelin throe with 241-3, with Jeff Carter of Oregon 2nd with 227-9.

The Finns arrived in Eugene Tuesday, April 29, 1975, after a 21-hour flight. Pre brought them to his home for pizza and cold beer before sending them off to sleep. When a couple who volunteered to house some of the Finns did not show, Pre bedded down the guests, threatening to send his roommates packing. The six athletes were slated to be joined three weeks later by Lasse Viren for races on May 21 and 29.

The meets set up for the Finns were slated as follows:

May 4: Finnish Tour Meet, Madras OR
May 9: Finnish Tour Meet, Coos Bay OR
May 15: Finnish Tour Meet, Burnaby BC, Canada
May 21: Finnish Tour Meet, Seattle WA (this planned meet never happened, instead Pre and the Finns competed in the California Relays in Modesto, CA, May 24)
May 29: NCAA Prep meet, Eugene OR

Pre was the originator and main promoter for this tour. He planned the tour as a cultural exchange as well as high-level track meets. He recruited talent from the U. of Oregon, Oregon State, the Oregon Track Club, and Club Northwest. Pre's close friend and confidant, Frank Shorter from the Florida Track Club, also agreed to participate.

The Finn's track season begins in June, so this tour was important for them in that it afforded their first outdoor track practice and competition of the year. Pre said that possibly more Finns would have come had the trip been firmed up earlier. Tuominen also said that many Finnish distance runners were reluctant to travel because their cross-country season was in progress with national championships in about a month.

Prefontaine and Tuominen had forged a relationship during Pre's travels to Europe, with Touminen helping Pre navigate the hazards of European racing. Jaako got Pre into the European circuit and made sure Pre was paid for his appearances. In return, Pre set two American records running in Helsinki. Jaakko was Finnish team leader and promoter, but not the coach since each athlete had their own coach to plan their programs.

Jaako also introduced Pre to the sauna, leading Pre to personally build his own sauna at the home he purchased--a matter of great pride.

Pre invited the athletes from Finland to compete in the five meets in May 1975. Pre was very fond of the Finns and raced in Finland more often than any other country outside the US. These were Pre's last meets as he died tragically the night after the final race in the series at Hayward Field, Eugene OR.

Pre wanted

ring on the satin belt.

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This photo is part of the (color version) set of pre-wedding preparations. With Ana, in her hotel room.

JW Marriott Starpass hotel,
Tucson AZ.
late afternoon, Saturday, August 30, 2008.