A lot of people run a race to see who is fastest. I run to see who has the most guts, who can punish himself into exhausting pace, and then at the end, punish himself even more. Nobody is going to win a 5,000 meter race after running an easy 2 miles. Not with me. If I lose forcing the pace all the way, well, at least I can live with myself.

Steve Prefontaine

Steve Roland Prefontaine (January 25, 1951 - May 30, 1975) (nicknamed Pre) was an American middle and long-distance runner. Prefontaine helped inspire the "running boom" in the 1970's along with contemporaries Frank Shorter and Bill Rodgers. Born and raised in Coos Bay, Oregon, Prefontaine was primarily a long-distance runner who once held the American record in the five distance track events from the 2000 meters to the 10,000 meters. He is known for his extremely aggressive "front-running" racing style. Prefontaine died at the age of 24 in a car accident

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