Talk:Steve Prefontaine

message: I added what kind of car Pre was driving when he died. I have a source for the info (which I included) but I'm pretty sure I didn't cite it right. Sorry about that.Worldtravller 23:33, 12 February 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: I found the style guide for citing sources so I think I've fixed my citation correctly. Worldtravller 23:49, 12 February 2006 (UTC)
thread_title: MGB

message: The article says that Luke Williams was identified as the driver of the car that a witness saw close to the accident that killed Pre. The article says "No charges were made against Williams because he passed a lie detector test (Eugene Register-Guard, May 26, 1985, p.5B)." 
I'm just confused because "lie detector tests" (actually called a polygraph) are inadmissible in court cases because they don't actually tell if a person is lying, they can tell if you are nervous, bu they aren't really "lie detectors," that's a nickname. There is a lot of controversy surrounding the use of polygraphs (I would never take one, because they are misleading and inaccurate, if you answer a question honestly but exhibit nervousness it could be regarded as a "lie" by the conductor)
So how is a possible vehicular manslaughter let off because of a polygraph? There is a citation for a Eugene, OR newspaper, but I still think this guy Williams got off because of other, more legit reasons. I can't believe that a polygraph alone would clear someone. Although, it was the '70's so maybe people put more stock in polygraph test results. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 199.2.242.61 (talk • contribs) 07:20, April 11, 2006
: Luke Williams' name is nowhere to be found in the article. That's bad writing. Also, it appears the accident was a hit-and-run. Yes, the car didn't actually HIT Prefountaine's car, but lets face it, the other driver WOULD have known Steve had been in a wreck. Period. --Ragemanchoo (talk) 07:56, 5 May 2008 (UTC)
thread_title: Pre's Death, second car (polygraph)

message: Can someone add to the article how his nickname "Pre" came to origin, how he got it and who gave it to him? —Preceding unsigned comment added by 67.122.208.157 (talk • contribs) 17:12, May 7, 2006
:I'd imagine it's not very unusual. How does someone named Jonathan get the nickname "John"? It's just an abbreviation. --Liface 01:33, 8 May 2006 (UTC)
thread_title:  Pre 

message: Did Pre really say this?
"How does a kid from Coos Bay, with one leg longer than the other win races? All my life people have been telling me, 'You're too small Pre', 'You're not fast enough Pre', 'Give up your foolish dream Steve'. But they forgot something, I HAVE TO WIN."
Isn't that only from the movie? I don't recall ever reading him actually saying that. sharpdust 22:55, 10 June 2006 (UTC)
replies: text: He said it. I can't offer an actual citation, but I read one of the many articles in Runner's World about him, and they talked about that quote. Maybe someone else can find it, but he for sure said it. 63.113.61.138 02:01, 1 April 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  Prefontaine Quote 

message: "He is known for his extremely aggressive racing style, disliking the tactic of sitting and kicking, and always believing in giving a full effort. Prefontaine was killed on May 30, 1975 at the age of 24 in a car accident."  What is "the tactic of sitting and kicking"?  —Preceding unsigned comment added by 69.181.157.208 (talk • contribs) 16:53, August 4, 2006
: Keeping a slow pace throughout the race and then giving it all in the last 10% of the race. Pre preferred to lead from the front and keep the same splits for each mile. --Liface 01:11, 5 August 2006 (UTC)
thread_title:  sitting and kicking 

message: This is my opinion, but this point of view is missing from all articles about Steve Prefontaine, Bill Bowerman, Avery Brundage, Nike, the AAU and the Olympic Games.  Like it or not, Steve's winning case against the AAU set a precedent for the Olympics that inevitably led to several things, among which:
*The inclusion of professional basketball players as US team members
*The fierce competition for titles as a means to make large sums of money
*The sponsorship of players by corporations (notably Nike),
*The attack on Nancy Kerrigan by Tanya Harding, spurred on by lust for fame and money
The last item is admittedly a controversial statement.  I believe Harding wouldn't have gotten as far if there were no financial rewards at the end of the journey.
The sad part is, Americans under the Avery Brundage rules were 'pure athletes', and we constantly complained about having to compete against athletes from nations that sponsored their athletes in a manner we weren't allowed to.  In spite of that, we had a lot of winners.
The other sad part about it is Brundage's stand for amateurism was tainted by his support of the Nazi regime before WWII, and for his lack of recognition of the felled Israeli athletes in Munich.   In this way Brundage's taint and Prefontaine's court case against the AAU destroyed the spirit of the Olympics.  I would appreciate someone with knowledge adding this footnote to the above articles. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 66.82.9.83 (talk • contribs) 14:39, September 2, 2006
:I am interested in figuring out why an athlete whose training is sponsored by a corporation (in consideration for later commercial endorsements) is considered less of an athlete.  Musicians on major record labels and authors with major publishers effectively have the same sort of deal.  All three get their dream in exchange for money, fame, and commercial obligation.  Is it that they have become less of an underdog?  Why aren't Isaac Asimov or Michael Crichton treated as sellouts?  (Or are they?) --205.201.141.146 21:51, 11 April 2007 (UTC)
thread_title:  How the AAU dispute ruined the Olympics 

message: "Prefontaine ran a personal best time of 5:01 in the mile his freshman year." That is hardly spectacular is it? He would have nearly been lapped at the recent world standard under 17's meets, let alone the under 20's. Should this not read 4:01? Its been there so long I'm loath to change it without a source. --LiamE 10:53, 2 April 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: Definitely not 4:01. Although I don’t know for sure that his freshman time was 5:01, it might have been. The point of bringing this unspectacular time up is that he did not start out as a naturally gifted star athlete; he worked very hard to get to where he did.--Fizbin 16:09, 2 April 2007 (UTC)
replies: text: Sorry I think I've misread it as his freshman year being the start of his university career, whereas the article is clearly talking about his high school years. My mistake. --LiamE 20:28, 2 April 2007 (UTC)
thread_title: Fact check

message: This article needs a major overhaul.  It's important enough because Prefontaine is an American track legend.  I tried to clean this up a bit, but it's lacking in encyclopedic quality and is/was written biased.  No need for bias either, Prefontaine's records speak for themselves.  Also, the article needs several citations at some obvious pointsLindsayLindsay  —Preceding signed but undated comment was added at 01:55, 30 September 2007 (UTC)
thread_title: Overhaul

message: http://www.europa.com/~bence/pre/pd.htm
On this website appears a color photo of Pre standing next to a reddish colored MGB bearing the same license plate number as the car that appears in the accident photos. A roll bar is visible through the rear window, which would lead me to believe that this is likely the same auto referred to in the article, but it is most assuredly not blue.  —Preceding unsigned comment added by Xlr8tor64 (talk • contribs) 18:44, 9 May 2008 (UTC)
thread_title:  Discussion on color of Pre's MGB 

message: How did such a great athlete, finisihing high school in the very peak draft years of the Vietnam War, manage not to be conscripted?   This infor would add valuable historical context.  — Preceding unsigned comment added by 216.49.27.38 (talk) 01:53, 30 October 2021 (UTC)
replies: text: Why don't you try rewriting the section yourself? There are plenty of external links and I'm sure the references used can help too. Just a simple google search for "Steve Prefontaine biography" might turn up some more sources. Here are a few other articles to help you along the way.Sports IllustratedNew York TimesESPN I'm pretty sure that the article can be easily improved. I hope you decide to do it as track athletes aren't covered very well on Wikipedia. I'm busy finishing Tyson Gay at the moment but I can help you with any problems you have. Good luck! Sillyfolkboy (talk) 04:44, 16 February 2009 (UTC)
thread_title:  High School 

message: Anyone know the coordinates of the actual memorial rock? --208.65.188.31 (talk) 20:11, 8 April 2009 (UTC)
thread_title: Memorial coordinates

message: A lot of this article is unsourced so folks think they can also add the part about Prefontaine's blood alcohol level (or, more crudely, say he was "driving drunk") without citations. Since this is a controversial subject, the references to alcohol get removed, since they aren't cited. Because we should make sure we aren't whitewashing the facts, I did a quick Google News search for reliable sources regarding alcohol as a factor in the accident (took me about 5 minutes). I've listed them below in no particular order. Note that several of these are reviews of one or both of the movies. Some sources definitively state that his BAC was .16 others hedge. Here's a quote from a website not listed below, which I haven't checked to see if it was reliable: "Whether his death was an alcohol-related fatality remains controversial. His blood was tested posthumously by a mortician rather than by a medical examiner. Because the process of decomposition can create alcohol, Pre's blood-alcohol content may have been compromised." Other sources (see below) say that the man liked his beer, but friends who saw him before the crash said he couldn't have been that intoxicated. In any case, if we want something in the article about his drinking, we need to use citations. A well-written sentence without weasel wording that states the nature of the controversy needs to be included.
*http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1142700/index.htm
*http://www.thefreelibrary.com/%60PRE,+PRE,+PRE!'+:+PREFONTAINE+WAS+AHEAD+OF+HIS+TIME.-a083853992
*1975 news story by UPI--ran in several newspapers
*New York Times story
*Seattle Times
*Bend Bulletin
Likely more like these can be found. Books would be good too, if anyone reads books anymore. ;) Katr67 (talk) 00:22, 12 December 2009 (UTC)
thread_title:  Sources for alcohol as a factor in car accident 

message: Because Prefontaine was not only a cult hero, but also one of the best distance runners of his era, I think we need a section for his personal bests. They seem quite common on articles about athletes or ex-athletes. I've heard that he got pretty damn close to the then WR in the 10 000m. His personal bests can be found here: http://www.goducks.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=500&ATCLID=30594  I'd do it myself if I wasn't afraid of effing it up.  I'm no good at editing pages. ~Kilu~  —Preceding unsigned comment added by 91.145.79.221 (talk) 08:52, 15 August 2010 (UTC)
thread_title:  Records 

message: Prefontaine didn't hold the lead until the final 150. Viren took the lead just before 4200m, then slowed just enough for another runner to pass him, and for Prefontaine to make a bid for the lead on the backstretch of the 2nd-to-last lap. Prefontaine couldn't complete the pass before the turn and had to settle into second through the turn, wasting energy on the pass attempt. He surged again on the bell lap but didn't have enough kick left to maintain it.  —Preceding unsigned comment added by 75.170.64.187 (talk) 07:12, 27 October 2010 (UTC)
thread_title:  Olympic 5000 description 

message: I just edited the memorials section.  Let me explain my edits.
First, I broke out "Pre's Rock" and "Other memorials."  I believe this was justified because the information on Pre's Rock is equal in length and substance to all others combined.  Further, I plan on uploading a picutre showing the memorabilia that spectators at the Olympic Trials have left at the rock.  Having a seperate Pre's-Rock section will facilitate that picture.
Second, I re-arranged the information, moving important information to the top (description, practices), moving less-important information toward the bottom (maintenance, etc.).
Piratejosh85 (talk) 13:25, 30 June 2012 (UTC)
thread_title: Memorials

message: Uesr MIdown removed the reference to BAC and DWI with these summaries:
"It turned out that police had deviated from standard procedure when they had taken blood sample...The normal practice was for the county medical examiner to do a blood alcohol test...Wilson had never done it..." P. 332 Bowerman and the Men of Oregon)"
"The toxicology report that was done during the autopsy would naturally show a spike in blood alcohol level after death. This is a point of contention and should be left off page."
So, if there is a credible source who discuss this incident including expert analysis the aforementioned points, we should remove it, but such analysis is not something to be made by a wiki editor. Cantaloupe2 (talk) 05:24, 10 January 2013 (UTC)
replies: text: The editor removing it did provide a source, a book by Kenny Moore published by Rodale Books. Gimmetoo (talk) 14:38, 10 January 2013 (UTC)
replies: text: This seems to be an ongoing point of contention and both sides seem to have sources to corroborate their side. My vote is to remove references to the DWI from the intro paragraph (just mentioning his death there is sufficient in my opinion) and to have both arguments presented down in the "Death" section. If we leave both points off the page (or just one and not the other), this point of contention will just continue in perpetuity. Cluskillz (talk) 17:55, 11 January 2013 (UTC)
thread_title: Removal of alcohol level and DWI

message: Hello fellow Wikipedians,
I have just modified  on Steve Prefontaine. Please take a moment to review my edit. If you have any questions, or need the bot to ignore the links, or the page altogether, please visit this simple FaQ for additional information. I made the following changes:
*Added archive http://web.archive.org/web/20130212060451/http://gorun.me:80/wordpress/running/running-hero-steve-prefontaine to http://gorun.me/wordpress/running/running-hero-steve-prefontaine/
When you have finished reviewing my changes, please set the checked parameter below to true or failed to let others know (documentation at ).
Cheers.—InternetArchiveBot (Report bug) 07:54, 21 July 2016 (UTC)
thread_title:  External links modified 

message: Hello fellow Wikipedians,
I have just modified one external link on Steve Prefontaine. Please take a moment to review my edit. If you have any questions, or need the bot to ignore the links, or the page altogether, please visit this simple FaQ for additional information. I made the following changes:
*Added archive https://web.archive.org/web/20110204021207/http://www.distancerunning.com/inductees/2000/pre.html to http://www.distancerunning.com/inductees/2000/pre.html
When you have finished reviewing my changes, you may follow the instructions on the template below to fix any issues with the URLs.
Cheers.—InternetArchiveBot (Report bug) 00:50, 15 December 2017 (UTC)
thread_title:  External links modified 

message: Get the name right. It wasn’t “Steven.” 2600:100F:B12C:93:4F8:E2FA:C681:C510 (talk) 05:06, 31 July 2022 (UTC)
thread_title:  Incorrect first name 

message: c 64.98.80.71 (talk) 20:27, 20 April 2024 (UTC)
thread_title:  awards or honors