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Commentary Dobson set to chase down Pre's record By DON HUNT Ian Dobson admits it's a long shot, but the Klamath Union High distance runner will chase the oldest record in the books at the Class 4A state track meet this weekend in Eugene. Dobson is perhaps the state's top distance runner since the legendary Steve Prefontaine starred at Marshfield High in the late 1960s, and it is Prefontaine's lung-burning time of 8 minutes, 8 seconds in the 3,000 meters that Dobson will attempt to break Friday afternoon at Hayward Field. Dobson ran 8:18.16 at the Centennial Invitational earlier this spring. Lopping 10 or 11 seconds off a race of that distance -- 3,000 meters is about 200 meters shy of two miles -- is doable. The question is, can anyone push the Pelicans' standout? Noel Paulson of Cascade High in Stayton clocked 8:18.72 in the Centennial meet -- losing to Dobson by only a meter or so -- but won't be in the same race Friday because Klamath Union is a Class 4A school while Cascade is 3A. That limits Dobson's only real competition to Canby's Eric Logsdon, who has run 8:22.46. "I honestly don't know if I can break the record but I'm not afraid to try," says Dobson, who will attend Stanford University next fall on a track scholarship. "If the conditions are right and Logsdon wants to go out with me, then it's realistic." Dobson has won back-to-back state championships in cross country and will be searching for his first track title on Friday. He will double back in the 1,500 Saturday, where his fastest time of 3:53.52 ranks within one second of the state's best. Dobson would love to win both events, but admits breaking Prefontaine's record would be far more meaningful. Prefontaine went on to star for the University of Oregon on the same Hayward Field track that Dobson will compete on this weekend, and finished fourth in the 5,000 meters at the 1972 Olympics. He was killed in a car wreck in 1975. Two movies depicting Prefontaine's life have come out in recent years. "Winning a track title isn't what people remember," Dobson says. "But that (the record) would be huge. Pre's a legend to any distance runner in Oregon." Other than their obvious running talent, Dobson and Prefontaine don't have much in common. Whereas Prefontaine was short (5-foot-9) and almost barrel-chested, the 6-2, 145-pound Dobson is lean and lanky. Dobson's stride is so silky smooth that he doesn't even look as if he's running particularly hard, even when he's on a record pace. "I've had a few parents tell me, `Why don't you run harder,"' Dobson says. "My stride is natural. I just try to be as smooth and efficient as I can." Dobson also differs from Prefontaine in that he's very modest and unassuming. Pre, as he was known to his fans, was emotional, brash and not afraid to make contact with a fellow runner. When Dobson and South Medford's Perry Custance sprinted side-by-side over the final 50 meters in the district 1,500-meter run last Saturday, Dobson, who pulled away at the very end, said afterward that he made sure not to dig an elbow into Custance. "That's just not my style," he says. "I have so much respect for a guy like that (Custance) and the last thing I want to do is hurt him." Dobson is coached by Marnie Mason, who pulled off one of the greatest feats in SOC track and field history when she won the 100- and 300-meter hurdles, the 3,000 and ran the anchor leg on Klamath Union's 4 x 400-meter relay during the 1985 district meet. She still holds the district record in the 1,500 (4:39.0). Mason got a scholarship to Brigham Young University but dropped out after three years without receiving her degree. After working for several years at a golf shop in Klamath Falls, she went back to school at Southern Oregon University, got her sheepskin in 1994 and has been teaching and coaching ever since. With a stopwatch in one hand and a tape recorder in another, Mason stands at one end of the track at each meet, encouraging her runners and yelling out instructions. Dobson is not her only prize pupil. Senior Evan Garich owns the state's best time in the 800 (1:54.5) and freshman Lauren Jesperson ranks No. 3 (1:55.4). Asked how much Mason has meant to his development, Dobson says, "Everything." "I can't say enough good things about her," he says. "She has so much knowledge about running and her passion for the sport is contagious to all of us. "When I was going through the college recruiting process one of my main objectives was to find someone who coaches like she does." Dobson only trains 35 to 40 miles per week, less than half the distance work that world class distance runners often put in. In lieu of distance training, Mason has her runners do a lot of speedwork and has them do a couple of workouts in a pool each week. Dobson, who has been a member of the Klamath Union High swim team, does lap swimming, kick-boarding and jogging during his water workouts. "I'm a firm believer in that," Mason says. "You get a great cardiovascular workout without any stress on the legs." Dobson says the crosstraining and lighter distance load leaves him fresh for the big meets and is less likely to leave him injured, although he's been battling an Achilles heel injury suffered when he ran the 4 x 400 relay at the Grants Pass Rotary meet last month. "I didn't have any discomfort at district -- that was encouraging," Dobson says. Although Dobson has a very capable kick -- he has run a 400 in 51 seconds -- his ability to maintain a strong pace suggests that he could develop into a world-class runner in the 5,000, 10,000 or marathon. He finished third at the national Foot Locker cross country meet last year in Orlando, Fla. "I think the steeplechase could be a great race for him, too," says Mason, noting that Dobson won a 2,000-meter steeplechase for high school runners last year in Raleigh, N.C. The college and Olympic distance for the event is 3,000 meters. "He already has good hurdling form," Mason says. In a figurative sense, Dobson will attempt to clear his biggest hurdle yet -- Prefontaine's record -- on Friday. Don Hunt is a Mail Tribune sports writer. He can be reached at 776-4469 or at [email protected] Today's Edition : News | Sports | Business | Weather | Tempo | Classifieds Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 2000, Medford, Oregon USA