Law student rememberedfondly in first Foster Fun Run
By Scott Pesznecker
Oregon Daily Emerald
Nearly 300 runners spanned the
out-and-back course of the first
annual Foster Fun Run shortly af
ter 9 a.m. on April 22.
Racing conditions were perfect.
The five-kilometer course was flat
and fast, following the concrete
pathways that span the north side
of the Willamette River near
Autzen Stadium, and the occa
sional sun breaks warmed the oth
erwise cool morning air.
It was a fitting way to remember
Tom Foster, a 28-year-old Oregon
law student who died when his
heart stopped beating on Dec. 21,
1999.
Foster was in his third-year of
law school and was executive edi
tor of the Journal of Environmen
tal Law and Litigation. He also
kept busy by working for the dean
and practicing patent moot court.
And when he managed to find
free time, he loved running.
“He loved life. He never wanted
to have any regrets about any
thing,” said Matt Mattson, one of
Foster’s good friends and running
partners. “He wanted to live every
day to its fullest. He lived by that.
“ Run
ning went
along with
his love for
life; he
loved the
feeling he’d
4 4 4 4 4 4
Reporter’s
NOTEBOOK
get after a long run.”
Foster’s family and friends set
the high goal of making an en
dowed scholarship in his honor,
an accomplishment that requires
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them to raise $10,000. Planners
decided that for the Fun Run to
generate a valuable contribution,
200 people would need to show
up for race day.
It should have been difficult to
get so many participants. Not
many people would know about
the race because it was in its first
year. Unlike other local races, the
Foster Fun Run had no communi
ty press coverage. Even the Emer
ald declined to run an article.
But like Foster endured the
hardships of a marathon, his fami
ly and friends persevered and ex
ceeded their goal.
After the race, coordinators
proudly announced that $6,200
had been raised by the race and
from other donations. Another
Foster Fun Run will take place
next year, and the $10,000 mark
will be reached.
I talked to several people be
fore and after the race, trying to
get a better idea of what Foster
was like. Many of those people
said the same things: Foster was
hard working, dedicated, kind
and a friend to all.
Even people who’d never met
Foster had things to say about him.
“The way my girlfriend de
scribed him, he was outgoing and
always keeping busy,” said Dana
Ailing, a six-year Eugene resident.
“This is probably something he
would have started himself. ”
When runners go into a race,
they’re usually trying to beat ei
ther a time or a person. On the
course, athletes often pick people
out of the crowd and try to pass
them. I’m far from being a good
runner, but I’m usually competi
tive. I know that most races are
about finishing well.
But the Foster Fun run wasn’t
about finishing.
It was a time to reflect. It was a
chance to shed sweat and tears for
someone who’d passed on. It was
a golden moment to remember
that life is precious and that every
one should stop and think — if
only for a moment — what we
could do to live every moment to
its fullest.
More than anything, it was
about closure. It was an emotional,
final goodbye to Tom Foster.
“He’d be awestruck that people
would do this for him,” said Kate
Felton, one of Foster’s close
friends. “I hope he knows how
much people loved him.
“He would have finished in
front of the pack; I’m sure of it. ”
Scott Pesznecker is a sports reporter at
the Emerald. He can be reached via e
mailatjflak1@aol.com.
Pac-10 golf
continued from page 11
where-in-between day.
“I’m really glad we have two
more days,” head coach Renee
Baumgartner said. “I believe [the
team] has a lot of potential and can
play really well.”
The Ducks ended up in the mid
dle of the pack after 18 holes, fin
ishing sixth out of the 10 ranked
teams. Heuser, despite her first
drive and a double bogey on the
16th hole, finished at one-under
par for the day, only a stroke be
hind tournament leader Amanda
Moltke-Leth of UCLA.
“Obviously, a low number al
ways helps the team score,”
Heuser said. “But we are fortunate
enough that we have five players
that can all play well. Today was
my day and tomorrow might be
somebody else’s.”
The good news for the Ducks?
Eliminate some of the first-round
jitters and the team could have
dramatically lower scores today
and Wednesday. The bad news?
The rest of the Pac-10 could come
around, too.
In the latest MasterCard Colle
giate Golf Rankings, the Ducks
jumped up to No. 18 in the nation.
However, the rankings show what
a tough golf conference the Pac-10
is. Eight of the nation’s top 25
golfers — including No. 1 Jenna
Daniels of Arizona and No. 2 Miri
am Nagl of Arizona State — are
competing, and so are seven of the
I
nation’s top 25 teams.
Some of those players and teams
aren’t yet performing up to par. No.
4 Arizona State holds down the
eighth spot, 20 strokes behind tour
nament leader Southern California.
Washington, Oregon State and
Washington State, all ranked, also
fared poorly yesterday.
The first tee time for the Ducks
tomorrow is 10:06 a.m.
The Oregon men hold second
place after a round at their Pac-10
Championships at Karsten Golf
Course. Oregon trails No. 4 Ari
zona State by an almost-insur
mountable 17 strokes, but head .
coach Steve Nosier is happy about
his team’s two under-par rounds.
“It’s been a relaxing round, just .
because [the whole team] is still in
it,” Nosier said, sounding relieved
by his team’s performance.
Unlike the women, the men
played 36 holes today in 95-degree
weather and will play 36 more
during the next two days.
Senior co-captain Andrew
Tredway and freshman Chris Car
nahan lead the Ducks in Arizona.
Both shot six-under par 138s to
finish tied for fourth.
But the real story for Oregon has
been team play. All six golfers are
in the top 40, but more important
ly there have been no bad rounds
by any of the Ducks.
“The kids know what they’re
here for,” Nosier said, presumably
talking about a Pac-10 title. “They
played well.”
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