Bill Bowerman
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William J. Bowerman (b. February 19, 1911 in Fossil, Oregon, d. December 24, 1999) was an American track and field coach and co-founder of Nike, Inc. He was a very successful track and field coach, having trained 31 Olympic athletes, 51 All-Americans, 12 American record-holders, 24 NCAA champions, and 16 sub-4 minute milers. During his 24 years as coach at the University of Oregon, the track and field team had a winning season every season but one, attained 4 NCAA titles, and finished in the top 10 in the nation 16 times.
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[edit] Early life
William Jay “Bill” Bowerman was born February 19, 1911 in Fossil, Oregon. Bill’s mother grew up in Fossil, Oregon. The family returned to Fossil after the parents divorced in 1913. Bill had an older brother and sister, Dan and Mary Elizabeth “Beth.” Bill also had a twin brother, Thomas, who died in a tragic elevator accident when they were two years old. Bill attended Fossil Grade School, and Medford and Seattle schools, before returning to Medford for high school. Bill played in the high school band and for the state champion football team his junior and senior years. Bill first met Barbara Young, the woman he would marry, in high school in Medford. Bill came to the University of Oregon in 1929 to play football and study journalism. After one year studying journalism, Bill switched to a business major, which he did not like, but he decided to finish the degree anyway. He competed in track while finishing up pre-med courses. After graduation, Bill was set to teach school for two years, and then attend medical school. He taught biology and coached football at Franklin High School in Portland in 1934. In 1935 he moved back to Medford to teach and coach football. In 1936 he added the coaching responsibilities for basketball as well as football. He started a track team at Medford High School in 1937, and gave up his basketball coaching duties to become the track coach. Bill and Barbara were married on June 22, 1936. Their first son, Jon was born June 22, 1938. William J. Bowerman Jr.. “Jay” was born November 17, 1942. Bill was in the Army’s Tenth Mountain Division from 1943 until 1945. After the war, he returned to his position at Medford High School. Bill and Barbara’s third son, Thomas was born May 20, 1946. The family then moved to Eugene, Oregon for Bill to become the Freshman Football coach. His first day of work with the University of Oregon was July 1, 1948.
[edit] Coaching career
Bill made his biggest mark as a track coach. His ‘Track Men of Oregon’ won 24 NCAA individual titles (with wins in 15 of the 19 events contested) and four NCAA team crowns (1962-1964-1965-1970), and posted 16 top-10 NCAA finishes in 24 years as head coach. His teams also boasted 33 Olympians, 38 conference champions and 64 All-Americans. At the dual level, the Ducks posted a 114-20 record and went undefeated in 10 seasons. In addition Bill coached the world record setting 4-mile relay team in 1962. This team consisted of Archie San Romani, Dyrol Burleson, Vic Reeve and Keith Forman with a time of 16:08.9. Among athletes that Bill Bowerman coached are: Kenny Moore, Bill Dellinger, Mac Wilkins, Steve Prefontaine, Jack Hutchins, Dyrol Burleson, Harry Jerome, Sig Ohlemann, Les Tipton, Gerry Moro, Wade Bell, Dave Edstrom, Roscoe Cook, Roscoe Divine, Jim Grelle, Bruce Mortenson and Phil Knight.
In 1970 Bill stepped back from day to day coaching activities to spearhead the fundraising for renovating the Hayward Field grandstands before the 1972 Olympic Trials. Bill officially retired as the UO head coach in 1972, letting Bill Dellinger officially take over the reigns.
Bill created a training program for adjusting athletes for the high altitude that they would experience at the 1968 Mexico City Olympic Games. This successful program led to his selection as the 1972 Munich Olympic Track and Field head coaching position. Bill coached members of teams from Norway, Canada, Australia, and the United States.
Bill is a member of the National Distance Running Hall of Fame, the USA Track and Field Hall of Fame, the Oregon Sports Hall of Fame and Oregon’s Athletic Hall of Fame.
[edit] Jogging
During a trip to New Zealand in 1962, Bill was introduced to the concept of jogging as a fitness routine through a jogging club organized by his friend and coaching colleague Arthur Lydiard. Bill brought this concept back to the United States, and began to write articles and books about jogging. Bill also created a jogging program in Eugene that became a national model for fitness programs. A Jogger’s Manual, a three page guide, was published shortly after Bill returned from New Zealand. In 1966, along with cardiologist W.E. Harris, Bill published a 90-page book entitled Jogging. Short and to the point, the book sold over a million copies and was credited with igniting the jogging phenomenon in the USA. Due to the popularity of Jogging, Harris and Bill published a 127 page book in 1967. To this day jogging remains a popular form of exercise for men and women of all ages.
[edit] Nike
In 1964, Bowerman entered into a handshake agreement with Phil Knight, who had been a miler under him in the 1950s, to start an athletic footwear distribution company called Blue Ribbon Sports, later known as Nike, Inc.. Knight managed the business end of the partnership, while Bowerman experimented with improvements in athletic footwear design.
Bowerman's design ideas led to the creation of the "Cortez" training shoe in 1967, which quickly became a top-seller and remains one of Nike's most iconic footwear designs. Bowerman designed several Nike shoes, but is best known for ruining his wife's waffle iron in 1971, experimenting with the idea of using waffle-ironed rubber to create a new sole for footwear that would grip but be lightweight.
Bowerman's design inspiration led to the introduction of the so-called "Moon Shoe" in 1972, so named because the waffle tread was said to resemble the footprints left by astronauts on the moon. Further refinement resulted in the "Waffle Trainer" in 1974, which helped fuel the explosive growth of Blue Ribbon Sports/Nike.
Bowerman's obsession with shaving weight off his athletes' running shoes was legendary. He believed that custom-made shoes would weigh less on the feet of his runners and cut down on blisters, as well as reduce the overall drag on their energy for every ounce he could remove from the shoe.
Today, the headquarters for Nike is located on Bowerman Drive in homage to the company's co-founder.
