As many as 3,000 people visited "Pre's Rock" during the Olympic Trials last summer, according to Professor Daniel Wojcik, director of the UO Folklore Studies Program.
The rock, which commemorates the location where track legend Steve Prefontaine died in a car accident in 1975 in the hills above Eugene, is of special importance to runners as well as the local community, says Wojcik, who has published a book chapter titled, "Pre's Rock: Pilgrimage, Ritual, and Runners' Traditions at the Roadside Shrine for Steve Prefontaine."
Wojcik is researching how the legacy and lore of Prefontaine shapes local, national and even international running traditions, crossing borders and cultures.
Armed with video cameras and notepads, Wojcik and a group of his graduate students viewed the return of the Olympic Trials to Eugene as an opportunity to document a surge in visits to the rock. Wojcik and his students observed hundreds of people each day making the pilgrimage to the site during the ten days of the Trials.
"One young woman drove from Texas with her parents, two days straight, didn't brush her teeth, didn't shower, straight to the rock," Wojcik said. "She came to the Trials, but the first place to go was to the rock."
Wojcik and his team captured more than ten hours of oral histories on film and have completed a preliminary documentary that presents the emotional narratives and memories of people visiting the place where Prefontaine died.
They witnessed a religious ceremony, when a man with a prayer scarf and an osprey feather performed a Native American ritual in honor of Prefontaine.
An Olympic marathoner from Philadelphia showed up wearing a black suit and running shoes, brought out his harmonica, and played a blues song and recited a poem for Pre.
A group of youngsters even came to the rock with their mom to sell lemonade to the crowds, which they were marketing as "Pre-monade."
"Some people were deeply moved, some were weeping, others were sharing inspirational stories or humorous ones," Wojcik said.
With future support, Wojick hopes to expand the preliminary documentary into a film that could be shown at film festivals and on public television. Click here to see VIDEO interviews.
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