Every once in a while I think, ‘What am I doing out here running, busting myself up? Life could be so much easier. The other guys are out having fun, doing other things, why not me?’ – Steve Prefontaine
If he’s having a good day and running the right race, nobody can beat Frank Shorter at 10,000 meters… nobody except me. – Steve Prefontaine
I like to be able to go out to dinner once in a while. I like to be able to drive my MG up the McKenzie River on a weekday afternoon. I like to be able to pay my bills on time. – Steve Prefontaine
Something inside of me just said ‘Hey, wait a minute, I want to beat him,’ and I just took off. – Steve Prefontaine
For me, running against the Poles and Czechs would be like running against high school kids. And I hate all this gung-ho, run-for-the-red-white-and-blue attitude that the AAU spouts. If that’s important to some people, fine, more power to ’em. But, damn it, I wish they’d leave me alone to do what I want to do – run against the best. – Steve Prefontaine
Over the years, I’ve given myself a thousand reasons to keep running, but it always comes back to where it started. It comes down to self-satisfaction and a sense of achievement. – Steve Prefontaine
A lot of people run a race to see who is fastest. I run to see who has the most guts, who can punish himself into exhausting pace, and then at the end, punish himself even more. – Steve Prefontaine
Kids made fun of me because I was a slow learner, because I was hyperactive, because of a lot of things. Running gave me confidence. – Steve Prefontaine
A race is a work of art that people can look at and be affected in as many ways they’re capable of understanding. – Steve Prefontaine
I’m going to work so that it’s a pure guts race at the end, and if it is, I am the only one who can win it. – Steve Prefontaine
People say I should be running for a gold medal for the old red, white and blue and all that bull, but it’s not gonna be that way. – Steve Prefontaine
I know places you better speak low if you’ve been to college. Men will come across the room and cold-deck you if you hold your glass wrong. – Steve Prefontaine
My philosophy is that I’m an artist. I perform an art not with a paint brush or a camera. I perform with bodily movement. Instead of exhibiting my art in a museum or a book or on canvas, I exhibit my art in front of the multitudes. – Steve Prefontaine
Some people create with words or with music or with a brush and paints. I like to make something beautiful when I run. I like to make people stop and say, ‘I’ve never seen anyone run like that before.’ It’s more than just a race, it’s a style. It’s doing something better than anyone else. It’s being creative. – Steve Prefontaine
Did you ever run behind a slow pack? You get a trailing wind and a lot of body odor. – Steve Prefontaine
I’m the one who has made all the sacrifices. Those are my American records, not the country’s. – Steve Prefontaine
I’ve been in international competition, and now I know what the big boys can do. You don’t go out and just run. There’s an offense and a defense. – Steve Prefontaine
When people go to a track meet, they’re looking for something, a world record, something that hasn’t been done before. You get all this magnetic energy, people focusing on one thing at the same time. I really get excited about it. It makes me want to compete even more. It makes it all worthwhile, all the hours of hard work. – Steve Prefontaine
American athletes, especially distance runners, are at a big disadvantage against the rest of the world. We’re expected to live by all the rules, like not being able to coach, but still train and make our own living. – Steve Prefontaine
