Bob Williams: A Lifetime of Winning, Coaching, and Service

Bob Williams grew up in America’s running mecca, Eugene, Oregon, where he rubbed shoulders with future Olympians and discovered his talent (and interest) in running.

That talent first appeared his sophomore year of high school, when he took up track and ran a 4:37 mile to help his team win a distance medley relay. Inspired by that, he went out for cross-country, finishing 2nd in the state his senior year. He then walked on at the University of Oregon, where he went on to win the Pac-8 (now the Pac-12) title in the 3000m steeplechase, while majoring in recreation management.

He would later run twice in the U.S. Olympic Trials, finishing as high as 5th, only two places shy of becoming an Olympian. In the process, he also worked as a group leader with his coach, Nike-cofounder Bill Bowerman, to establish a community-based jogging program at the dawn of what is now known as the first jogging boom, in 1965-1967. He also helped Bowerman assemble his famous waffle soles (made with his wife’s waffle iron), which would go on to revolutionize running shoes and help propel the 1960s jogging boom to national prominence.

His inventiveness would also help him develop the Williams Pace Calculator, an inexpensive plastic device that thousands of coaches and runners have used since 1982 to quickly calculate target times for both race splits and track repeats. (It is now also available as a smart-phone app.)

After graduation and competing in the 1968 USA Track and Field Olympic Trials, Bob went to Seattle, Washington, where he worked to develop the state’s first Special Olympics and first “Wheelchair Games” (precursor to the Paralympics). He then went back to Eugene to pursue a master’s degree in therapeutic recreation, which led him to work with hospitals, diabetes treatment centers, sports medicine clinics, adult running camps, Nike, and the Portland Marathon to develop a diverse array of running-based fitness and health programs.

Meanwhile, he was studying coaching. By 2002, he held a USA Track & Field Level II coaching certificate in endurance running. But he’d long before been having success coaching, partly with individuals, but also at schools, starting with Lincoln High School in Portland, where in 1995-96, he coached athletes to three state championships, and later at Lake Oswego High School, where he guided both boys’ and girls’ teams to top-4 finishes. He subsequently worked with Westview High School, Ida B. Wells High School, Concordia University, Nike, and Portland State University, as well as with a wide range of individual athletes. In the process, he also developed a sub-specialty in helping runners return to form after injuries, a specialty he continues in collaboration with Eugene physical therapist Dan White.

Notable trainees include:

• Lisa Karnopp-Nye (1996-2001). Under Bob’s guidance, Lisa, a former All-American at the University of Oregon, took up Bob’s own best event, the 3,000m steeplechase, ultimately setting the American record, winning the USATF National Championship, and competing internationally for Team USA.

• Elijah Greer (2007-2009). In high school, Elijah won both the 1500m and 800m state championships multiple times, as well as the USATF National Junior Championships in the 800m. He qualified for the World Junior Championships in Bogdaszch, Poland, where he became the fastest high school junior of all time.

• Marie Davis Markham (1995). At Portland’s Lincoln High School, where Bob coached her, she was state champion in both the 1500m and the 3000m. She was also a Foot Locker cross-country finalist and two-time member of Team USA in the Junior Cross-Country World Championships.

• Christy Lacey-Krietz MacColl (1996). A multi-sport athlete, also at Lincoln High School, under Bob’s guidance, she won the 800m championship, while also competing in basketball and soccer.

• Rick LaGreide (1982). In the spring track season, Rick became an NCAA Division II All-American, taking 3rd place in the 5000m championships (14:17)—a time that until at least as until at least as recently as 2020 stood 2nd on Portland State University’s all-time list. Then, in the fall, he became the Portland State Vikings first Division II cross-country All-American, taking 8th in that year’s national championships.

Meanwhile, Bob has been happy to share his coaching wisdom with the running community at large. From 1995 to 2004, he co-wrote seven articles for Runner’s World with such luminaries as Hal Higdon, Doug Rennie, and Marc Bloom. Tim Noakes, author of the encyclopedic Lore of Running, has included a section on Bob’s marathon training program in multiple editions of his encyclopedic Lore of Running. More recently, Bob’s wisdom has often been cited in Outside RUN, Women’s Running, Podium Runner, Running Times, Peak Performance (UK), and other running magazines.

Details of Bob’s long, diverse career can be found here.

If you have questions, use the contact box on this website, call 503-888-9882, or write to PO Box 50921, Eugene, Oregon 97405.