We came. We saw. We did. We ate. We drank. We ran. We talked. And we stood in somber silence looking at a rock.

Eugene, Oregon. Gathering the Deads from across the land, the Eugene Deads put on a wonderful show. I am really glad I went! The M@Deads were represented by Scott Larcher, Linda Wack, Paulien Adamse, Debbie Margraff and myself.

The conference was great fun. Attaching faces to the names and email personalities was interesting. Any gathering of DRS brings new surprises and friends. The lore of the event was only enhanced by the location, Eugene.

Eugene had a special place for me, as a track nut and former high school coach. Much of the big American track history has happened at Eugene's Hayward Field. The opportunity to race on that track made the conference for me. A wiffleball game in Yankee Stadium would never be possible, but I raced at Hayward Field! (The less said about the actual races of mine, the better.)

All the M@Deads ran the Butte-to-Butte 10k. The course could be described as a hilly downhill course. Starting with a killer uphill, followed by a pounding 2 miles downhill, and then flat to the end. The race would have been more fun without the heat and humidity that rolled in that day.

Seeing the Puckett-Larcher showdown develop was great. Despite Scott's training with the Tanzanians, he was out kicked by a slim 1:40. I jogged, being my first real run in almost a week.

The track meet/picnic was wonderful, even though someone ate my brownie! Seeing a whole stadium, devoted exclusively to track put things into the proper perspective. IMHO, that is how it should be.

Another highlight was the run on Sunday. Heading up to the higher sections of Eugene, we found ourselves at Hendricks Park. Grouping up there for the run back to the Hilton, we followed a twisty road. The road clung to the sides of the hillside, cutting sharply into the hill.

The first sign of what was to come was some graffiti carved into the concrete road surface long ago, "Steve Prefontaine Lives". Rounding the sharp turn, the rock that flipped Prefontaine's car burst into view. The run stopped and we gathered around the rock.

The rock has become a memorial, complete with a very small bronze sculpture, race numbers, and a single shoe left by fellow distance runners. When the next Pre movie comes out in the fall, it will be a much more personal movie for me after having visited the rock.

I have other stories, dirt, photos, and other stuff. It was a very interesting time out there in Eugene. Some new friends and experiences made for a wonderful trip. Next year, the M@Deads storm St. Louis!