We haven’t abandoned you! Both Paul and I have been extremely busy with our various enterprises and unfortunately have been unable to dedicate ourselves as fanatically as we would have liked. Nevertheless, be assured that we are following your progress and will soon (however belatedly) reward you for your determination to reach the big 2K miles. Please check back soon for award details, and keep the feet on the street.

One hundred years ago they held the First Annual Mercury Marathon in Yonkers, New York. The winner of that race was Johnny Hayes. Johnny Hayes would go on to win the Olympic Marathon for the U.S. in London in 1908 after Dorando Pietri was disqualified for receving assistance from British track officials.  That Olympic race in London is significant because it gave us the standard marathon distance of 26 miles and 385 yards. This club was started in 2007 to pay tribute to first “marathon boom” of 1907-1908. It was a significant glimpse into how running and the human spirit are linked.

This club is founded upon this basis; you should earn your lot in life.  When I acquired Nike’s Pirate 2000 Mile Club shirt, I felt a little funny about wearing it. It was like the feeling you get wearing a race T-shirt before the race is run.  This is very taboo for runners; you don’t wear it until the race is completed, only then it is legitimate. The question arose, is there a way to validate the Pirate 2000 mile shirt?  Out of respect for Steve Prefontaine and the fact that it would be impractical for me to enroll in Marshfield High School in Coos Bay Oregon as a 49 year old, duplicating the Pirate Club wasn’t in the cards. However a “mirror” club that would link the past with the present could serve the purpose. At that’s where Jolly Roger’s 2000 fits in. For me and for anyone that joins, we could retrace Pre’s footsteps of 1967-1969 and pay a small tribute to Pre’s life. So with a start date of January 1, 2007 and beyond, we could all have the goal of hitting 2000 miles. Make no mistake, we know we can never be a Pirate that Prefontaine became, but we might become modern day Jolly Roger’s.  

Jolly Roger’s 2000 started San Antonio, Texas but interest in this club has grown across the country and overseas.  We have members from several states and runners that putting their miles in in Afganistan and Iraq. Join the revolution and expand your horizons today! 

Back in the late 60s, Steve Prefontaine ran at Marshfield High School in Coos Bay Oregon. The team’s mascot was the Pirates and they had a “Run for your Life” Club to help motivate the track team,. You could earn Pirate T-Shirts with mileage thresholds at every 500 miles.  In 1967-1969 when he was junior and senior at Marshfield, Pre logged over 2000 training miles. Pre was the only track runner at Marshfield High to make to the 2000 mile mark. 

This was an early indicator showing how Pre was wired a little differently than the rest of us. The 2000 mile shirt turned out to be one of his favorites.  Pre had a remarkable career at Marshield High, he was undefeated in cross country and track his final two years and during his Senior year he established the National High School two mile record of 8:41.5  In the movie AWithout Limits,@  Pre wore the Pirate 2000 mile shirt on several training runs.  It was the one he was wearing when he received a recruiting letter from legendary coach Bill Bowerman encouraging him to attend the University of Oregon.  It was this letter that helped persuade Pre to go to Eugene and continue to leave larger than life footprints during his brief time on earth.