Forget how this came about. Seems a few years ago, somebody wanted just a few minutes wouldn’t take much time. Ten questions, that’s all. Ten questions? I can do that. – JDW
1. How did you get involved in RUNNING magazine?
In 1974, thereabouts, Dr. E.C. Frederick and I were both in Flagstaff, attending Northern Arizona University.
We trained together almost daily, logging some serious mileage at high altitude.
Ned was studying for his Ph.D. He was then, and is now, a scientist, a student of the biomechanics of running.
RUNNING, the Journal of the Scientific Study of Distance Running, was his idea.
Vol.1 No.1 was printed on a mimeograph machine in the NAU biology department.
The next year, I moved on to Oregon, dropped out of law school and became a “running bum.” The World’s Slowest Professional Runner.
Ned suggested I take over the magazine and see what I could make of it.
What Ned & I – with important help from my then-wife Pat – could make of it was an intelligent, readable, unique publication which appealed to a small niche of distance runners. The cognoscenti, if you will.
We were different. We didn’t publish race results or race reports or interviews with running stars. We used words like cognoscenti.
We should have done more with the training regimens of the greats, as I look back. My bad.
But we were known to a select few and eventually Nike purchased RUNNING in 1980.
In 1974, thereabouts, Dr. E.C. Frederick and I were both in Flagstaff, attending Northern Arizona University.
We trained together almost daily, logging some serious mileage at high altitude.
Ned was studying for his Ph.D. He was then, and is now, a scientist, a student of the biomechanics of running.
RUNNING, the Journal of the Scientific Study of Distance Running, was his idea.
Vol.1 No.1 was printed on a mimeograph machine in the NAU biology department.
The next year, I moved on to Oregon, dropped out of law school and became a “running bum.” The World’s Slowest Professional Runner.
Ned suggested I take over the magazine and see what I could make of it.
What Ned & I – with important help from my then-wife Pat – could make of it was an intelligent, readable, unique publication which appealed to a small niche of distance runners. The cognoscenti, if you will.
We were different. We didn’t publish race results or race reports or interviews with running stars. We used words like cognoscenti.
We should have done more with the training regimens of the greats, as I look back. My bad.
But we were known to a select few and eventually Nike purchased RUNNING in 1980.
2. How did you decide to work with Hunter S. Thompson?
I had always admired his talents, his energy, his oeuvre, so that decision was essentially a no-brainer. “No-brainer” turned out to be more accurate when we tried to work with the good doctor or when we received his expense account requests. But if you were of that generation and if you were a fan of writing/journalism, Thompson was one of the first authors you would think of.
I had always admired his talents, his energy, his oeuvre, so that decision was essentially a no-brainer. “No-brainer” turned out to be more accurate when we tried to work with the good doctor or when we received his expense account requests. But if you were of that generation and if you were a fan of writing/journalism, Thompson was one of the first authors you would think of.
3. How did you pick Ken Kesey to write “The Summer of Our Discontent ?”
Some stories pick their own writers. Kesey was a track & field enthusiast, an Oregon Duck fan, lived in Pleasant Hill, next to Eugene.
And, of course, Kesey was on our short list.
When Ned and I were selling Nike on the concept of buying our magazine, we came with editorial ideas.
And if I was more organized, I have those ideas around someplace. But…Thompson at the Honolulu Marathon, Kesey at the Olympic Trials, Edward Abbey writing about the Tuba City High School cross-country team. Or maybe the Tarahumaras.
That was our concept: a literary running magazine. An athletic Esquire, if you will.
Some stories pick their own writers. Kesey was a track & field enthusiast, an Oregon Duck fan, lived in Pleasant Hill, next to Eugene.
And, of course, Kesey was on our short list.
When Ned and I were selling Nike on the concept of buying our magazine, we came with editorial ideas.
And if I was more organized, I have those ideas around someplace. But…Thompson at the Honolulu Marathon, Kesey at the Olympic Trials, Edward Abbey writing about the Tuba City High School cross-country team. Or maybe the Tarahumaras.
That was our concept: a literary running magazine. An athletic Esquire, if you will.
4. What was Nike public relations like then?
Public relations for Nike was a stew of marketing, advertising, sales, promotions, stirred by a senior vice-president who pretty much had his hands in anything fun. Disorganized, is the first word that comes to mind. Unprofessional. I mean neither term in a pejorative sense. The first actual PR director was not a pro. As I recall, he had an aggressive personality and probably just talked his way into the job.
We were known to be out partying on a Friday night, meet a guy – or gal – we enjoyed and they’d start working with us Monday morning. We would find people we liked and cobble a place for them. Wasn’t hard to create a place at the rate we were growing. Actually, a valid recruiting technique back in the day.
After that first PR guy was let go, I was approached. Mostly, I guess because I could write. I was told around the first of December the promotion would become official in the new year. “Don’t tell anybody,” I was told. Then they waited and listened and wondered when I would open my mouth. Well, I can keep a secret. So, I got the job, a large part of which was rejecting media requests for interviews with Phil Knight.
Public relations for Nike was a stew of marketing, advertising, sales, promotions, stirred by a senior vice-president who pretty much had his hands in anything fun. Disorganized, is the first word that comes to mind. Unprofessional. I mean neither term in a pejorative sense. The first actual PR director was not a pro. As I recall, he had an aggressive personality and probably just talked his way into the job.
We were known to be out partying on a Friday night, meet a guy – or gal – we enjoyed and they’d start working with us Monday morning. We would find people we liked and cobble a place for them. Wasn’t hard to create a place at the rate we were growing. Actually, a valid recruiting technique back in the day.
After that first PR guy was let go, I was approached. Mostly, I guess because I could write. I was told around the first of December the promotion would become official in the new year. “Don’t tell anybody,” I was told. Then they waited and listened and wondered when I would open my mouth. Well, I can keep a secret. So, I got the job, a large part of which was rejecting media requests for interviews with Phil Knight.
5. What happened to American distance running in 1984?
Well, I left Nike, Mary Decker (Slaney) fell, Joan Benoit (Samuelson) won the gold medal in the first women’s Olympic marathon. Seems to me Alberto Salazar was not 100%. He finished 15th in Los Angeles, where it was a trifle warm. 1984 saw Nike’s first slump, in some small part because we’d missed the growth of aerobics, particularly among women.
As for USA performance in general… professionalism, i.e., cash prizes + influx of foreigners chasing that cash = fewer USA athletes at the top end. Fewer USA athletes at the top end reduced the incentive for those less talented to make the climb. Again, still, forever, there are not enough coaches, not enough support for post-collegiate athletes. When American stars became fewer and fewer, less notable, high school kids looked for different opportunities.
I sense a renaissance, part of the reason I wrote the book.
Well, I left Nike, Mary Decker (Slaney) fell, Joan Benoit (Samuelson) won the gold medal in the first women’s Olympic marathon. Seems to me Alberto Salazar was not 100%. He finished 15th in Los Angeles, where it was a trifle warm. 1984 saw Nike’s first slump, in some small part because we’d missed the growth of aerobics, particularly among women.
As for USA performance in general… professionalism, i.e., cash prizes + influx of foreigners chasing that cash = fewer USA athletes at the top end. Fewer USA athletes at the top end reduced the incentive for those less talented to make the climb. Again, still, forever, there are not enough coaches, not enough support for post-collegiate athletes. When American stars became fewer and fewer, less notable, high school kids looked for different opportunities.
I sense a renaissance, part of the reason I wrote the book.
6. Your favorite athlete to interview?
Whenever possible, I sought a conversation more than an interview per se. I know what it’s like to run over one hundred miles weekly. I know what it is like to run as hard as you can, maybe harder than you think you can. I know what it is like to arrive at an important starting line with an injured body. I’ve been down that road. What I don’t know is what it is like to be great or what it’s like to be an Olympian, what it takes to get there. What it’s like to have talent. Because that’s not a road I am taking.
I am a student of competition, and I have noticed a combination of genius and a form of insanity, for lack of a better term. So, the short answer is Alberto Salazar & Joan Benoit Samuelson. Very simple, yet very complex. Neither suffers fools gladly, but they were always willing to cut me some slack. Because both know I care about them and the sport.
Bill Rodgers is a hoot. Don Kardong, Benji Durden, Ken Martin and Anne Audain are particular favorites, but I never wrote a piece about them.
Whenever possible, I sought a conversation more than an interview per se. I know what it’s like to run over one hundred miles weekly. I know what it is like to run as hard as you can, maybe harder than you think you can. I know what it is like to arrive at an important starting line with an injured body. I’ve been down that road. What I don’t know is what it is like to be great or what it’s like to be an Olympian, what it takes to get there. What it’s like to have talent. Because that’s not a road I am taking.
I am a student of competition, and I have noticed a combination of genius and a form of insanity, for lack of a better term. So, the short answer is Alberto Salazar & Joan Benoit Samuelson. Very simple, yet very complex. Neither suffers fools gladly, but they were always willing to cut me some slack. Because both know I care about them and the sport.
Bill Rodgers is a hoot. Don Kardong, Benji Durden, Ken Martin and Anne Audain are particular favorites, but I never wrote a piece about them.
7. Most challenging athlete?
Mike Ditka. Guessing that is not the answer you were expecting. I’ve covered other sports. I have been waiting over twenty years for Iron Mike to return my call. No story, no paycheck… so the story was getting done, with you or without you. I got paid.
Mike Ditka. Guessing that is not the answer you were expecting. I’ve covered other sports. I have been waiting over twenty years for Iron Mike to return my call. No story, no paycheck… so the story was getting done, with you or without you. I got paid.
8. Tell us about Ralph Steadman?
A great artist, iconic genius. I am a huge fan, but I never had any personal contact with him. We always intended Ralph would be a package deal with Hunter. And, of course, from that assignment for RUNNING, the world got The Curse of Lono.
A great artist, iconic genius. I am a huge fan, but I never had any personal contact with him. We always intended Ralph would be a package deal with Hunter. And, of course, from that assignment for RUNNING, the world got The Curse of Lono.
9. Tell us about your first marathon?
My first marathon was the Connecticut AAU Championship on March 4, 1973, less than a year after I began jogging. There were 128 starters and I finished 66th in 3:22:03. I actually have no memory of it, but I do have my journals. I stopped twice, once to piss, once to drink. The goal was to qualify for Boston. The BAA had recently instituted qualifying times (3:30 for me then) because the field in Hopkinton was getting too large.
The next month there were 1574 marathoners in Boston, a dozen of whom were women. There I placed 498th in 3:19:40. Real hot day.
My first marathon was the Connecticut AAU Championship on March 4, 1973, less than a year after I began jogging. There were 128 starters and I finished 66th in 3:22:03. I actually have no memory of it, but I do have my journals. I stopped twice, once to piss, once to drink. The goal was to qualify for Boston. The BAA had recently instituted qualifying times (3:30 for me then) because the field in Hopkinton was getting too large.
The next month there were 1574 marathoners in Boston, a dozen of whom were women. There I placed 498th in 3:19:40. Real hot day.
Those first few years, I just kept getting faster and faster.
10. Once, and for all, tell us if there is a Hunter S. Thompson fitness book?
I have taken an eternal oath of silence. He certainly had the constitutional makeup of an ultra/adventure runner. HST did say marijuana was, and I quote, ” a basic staple of life.” So, we know the chapter on nutrition would be a voyage of discovery. His theories on hydration and performance-enhancing drugs were thoroughly researched.
I have taken an eternal oath of silence. He certainly had the constitutional makeup of an ultra/adventure runner. HST did say marijuana was, and I quote, ” a basic staple of life.” So, we know the chapter on nutrition would be a voyage of discovery. His theories on hydration and performance-enhancing drugs were thoroughly researched.
11. Any printable stories on Thompson?
Somewhere around here there’s a copy of a letter he wrote us, but I haven’t seen it lately.
Found it! HST opens with a scathing review of the free shoes we sent him. The missive concludes… “I talked very vaguely to Steadman about the [Honolulu Marathon] gig, but he didn’t seem into it, or maybe he just didn’t believe me… My own numbers remain unchanged: $5K & All expenses for Two for 10 days, with plane tickets & hotel room paid in advance so I won’t have to risk my AmExp card again. I also want to own & retain all copyrights on the original story, in my name, plus all dramatic, literary & other pertinent rights… that seems fair for $5K & expenses.”
He was worth every penny.
Somewhere around here there’s a copy of a letter he wrote us, but I haven’t seen it lately.
Found it! HST opens with a scathing review of the free shoes we sent him. The missive concludes… “I talked very vaguely to Steadman about the [Honolulu Marathon] gig, but he didn’t seem into it, or maybe he just didn’t believe me… My own numbers remain unchanged: $5K & All expenses for Two for 10 days, with plane tickets & hotel room paid in advance so I won’t have to risk my AmExp card again. I also want to own & retain all copyrights on the original story, in my name, plus all dramatic, literary & other pertinent rights… that seems fair for $5K & expenses.”
He was worth every penny.