NEVER STOP PRE: The Enduring Inspiration of America’s Greatest Sports Legend

On May 31, 1975, Coos Bay, Oregon native Steve Prefontaine died in an automobile accident. At the time of his death, he held 14 American records in distance running.

Pre was 24 years old and already a legend in Oregon and the world of track of field.

A half century after his tragic end, his remarkable story continues to inspire others on a near mythological level to compete in a multitude of ways, from Phil Knight to a country singer to an Iraqi War vet to an impoverished high school runner to a man battling addictions to an obsessed sculptor and so many more.

In Never Stop Pre: The Enduring Inspiration of America’s Greatest Sports Legend, Matt Love, prolific chronicler of modern Oregon history, races the reader through a decathlon of literary genres to investigate the ongoing phenomenon and spectacular influence of Steve Prefontaine.