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For 25 years, it�s been some kind of run By Don Hunt When Frank Shorter leaned across the finish line to win the inaugural Pear Blossom Run in 1977, founder and co-director Jerry Swartsley had no idea what a hugely popular event he had spawned in the Rogue Valley. More than 4,500 runners, joggers and walkers will participate in Saturday�s silver anniversary event, or about 4,000 more than took the starting line in that run 25 years ago. Much has changed. The original half-marathon distance of 13 miles was shortened to 20 kilometers (12.4 miles) in 1981 and to 10 miles in 1990. Several other options � runs of one and two miles and five kilometers � were added to accommodate younger runners and families. Results became computerized. A huge timing device was brought in. Scholarships were created for the top high school runners. And running shoes, which went for $11.99 a pair at local sporting goods stores, went up faster than the mercury in August. But one element stayed the same as the 21st century approached, arrived and flew by: the spirit of the event. Swartsley had some big names that first year: Shorter, who had won the gold medal at the Summer Olympics in Montreal the year before; Jon Anderson, who was coming off a victory in the Boston Marathon; and defending national one-hour champion Jim Nuccio, who covered 19.65 kilometers in that time. Swartsley also brought in former University of Oregon track coach Bill Bowerman, who had spent the 1940s in Medford coaching football and track, to start the race. It was Bowerman who lured the renowned Shorter and Anderson to Medford. The dignitaries were nice, but Swartsley�s idea was to make the run a people�s event. He wanted the heavyset person in the back of the pack to feel as welcome as Shorter. He wanted the wheelchair participants to feel as important as Anderson. To help create that flavor, he decided in the beginning not to pay the elite runners, a decision that irked some but pleased most. "Before our run ever got started, I went to Eugene one time and talked to Bowerman," Swartsley says. "He was real adamant about not paying anyone. He said you�d be selling out if you do. And we took that philosophy to heart." In the late 1970s and �80s, the running boom was in full swing nationally and the Pear Run was still able to lure top competitors. It may never again witness the feat put on by Bill McChesney in 1983. The former University of Oregon standout and world-class runner steamrolled the old 20K course in 59:17, the nation�s fastest time over that distance that year. Anyone who has completed a 10K road run knows the difficulty of running one under 30 minutes, let alone two, strung together back-to-back. He ran at a blistering 4:50 mile pace that day, considerably faster than this year�s winner will run. And on a course that was 2.4 miles further. The days of seeing such blistering times are probably gone forever, just like those $11.99 shoes. The fastest runners are going places where they do get paid, if not on the Grand Prix circuit then at huge runs in big cities. It�s a shame for those who appreciate world-class runners. But frankly, the average 7�-minute mile guy couldn�t care less. They�re there to pound the pavement with their aunts and uncles, kids and grandkids, and their buddies who live down the block. Only about 1,100 will compete in the 10-mile event this year, or about half the number that toed the starting line in the 1980s. But 2,900 will gather for the 1- and 2-mile fun runs, and another 300 or so in the 5K event. The atmosphere is more family oriented and low-key than it used to be, and that�s fine with Swartsley. "I remember saying that some day the shorter runs would become more popular than the 10-miler, and some people laughed at me," Swartsley says. "The running craze like we once knew it is gone. "The emphasis is different, and that�s OK. The hardcore runners still have their event, and now the recreational runner and the kids have theirs." Swartsley turned 60 this year but has no plans to retire, either as the run�s co-director � his wife Zellah is the other co-director � or as a participant. The longtime school teacher is one of 13 runners who have completed every Pear Run. The event surely soaks up a lot of hours, but the Swartsleys have 600 volunteers, some of whom have been with them since the beginning. It�s been a labor of love, and Jerry Swartsley isn�t sure where some of those 25 years went. "I was just thinking the other day how so many of the people who will be running Saturday weren�t even born when we started," he says. "They probably have no idea who Frank Shorter is." Or Bill Bowerman, for that matter. But they know a good run when they see it. Reach reporter Don Hunt at 776-4469, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.