The Gift of Doug Speck
By Aron Taylor
Across the timeline of athletics, icons come and go who redefine our sport with their human legacy of personal achievement. Jim Ryun, Joe Newton, Alan Webb, Foot Locker, Nike Cross Nationals, are a few examples that have left a mark that will forever influence how coaches, athletes and spectators view the sport of prep track & field and cross country.
They redefine what it means to be a champion and what success can be. The names, the faces, and the achievements change with each season, but the legacy of individual passion is what drives all aspects of a sport and will remain for an eternity.
(Photo L to R: Mike Kennedy, Doug Speck,
and NSSF announcers Ron Lopresti and Stephanie Dueringer)
This past month a legendary Editor in prep track & field and cross country passed away. Doug Speck, a legend in the sport whose passion for track & field transcended four decades. If Jim Ryun is the Patriarch of the prep mile, Doug Speck stands as the Patriarch of US Track & Field and certainly the father of California Track & Field coverage. It is undeniable that Speck's efforts during the 1970's led to the development of California prep running on a national spectrum and eventually the emergence of Dyestatcal. He was tied into the sport when few were; and produced years of the legendary California Track Report.
His passion was felt in the largest forums for the sport, Dyestat, Milesplit, Nike Cross Nationals, Arcadia, the California State Championships, and the Olympics. Speck's hands were in the mix from the beginning and his influence on the sport stretched from California across the nation. It is safe to say that there is no aspect of the sport where the influence of Doug Speck cannot be felt.
Joy J. Golliver said, "The meaning of life is to find your gift, the purpose of life is to give it away." Doug Speck had a gift and we all benefit from his tireless contributions. From Dyestat to Milesplit, from LetsRun to Track & Field News, the hand of Doug Speck has been the common denominator among those who passionately strive to improve a sport we are passionate about.
Even to the end, he was present and always helpful and often sent me advice on California prep cross country teams for the XC legacy Series to ensure accuracy. What stands out is that he remembered names, dates, and places. Doug Speck will always be remembered as a living legend who left us too soon. What remains is a resounding legacy that will be felt for decades to come.
It has been said that passion is what drives everything. Passion has magical power. It can bring the nonexistent into existence. Doug Speck's life was lived with passion. A legend of the sport who will be greatly missed, a man who exemplified the good in our sport and was admired by all those who seek to follow in his footsteps.
We have all been touched by the Gift of Doug Speck. Doug Speck Obituary.
If a man is called to be a street sweeper, he should sweep streets even as Michelangelo painted, or Beethoven composed music, or Shakespeare wrote poetry. He should sweep streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and earth will pause to say, here lived a great street sweeper who did his job well.
~ Martin Luther King Jr.