‘Track Town USA’ marches to own beat

EUGENE, Ore. – It was back in the 1960s when what has since been known as the “granola curtain” came ringing down around this quiet campus town, trapping within it a tradition of activism, political correctness, environmental concerns, easy outrage and today’s “green” everything.

The curtain has risen but slightly since those halcyon days, and if outsiders call the place a time warp, and many do, a lot of Eugeneans wouldn’t argue.

That’s changing somewhat, but remnants of the old days are in full flower around Hayward Field, where 1,100 athletes are competing for spots on the U.S. Olympic Track and Field team and a trip to Beijing.

Medieval-type pennants flutter from some pointy-topped tents in and around the Eugene ‘08 Festival, where those who couldn’t get tickets can watch the competition free on a giant screen.

Organizers called it a “Eugene thing” to do, letting those with no tickets watch the games just yards away from historic Hayward Field, where the late coach Bill Bowerman and a long string of running greats such as Steve Prefontaine propelled Oregon to world prominence and gave Eugene a title that has stuck: “Track Town USA.”

“Home of the hardest team to make,” boasts more than one sign.

Still, with the town’s reputation, there wasn’t a lot of activism going on. Only a handful of protesters were on hand to voice opposition to the Olympics being held in Beijing. A few signs pointed to China’s treatment of Tibet and supplying arms in Darfur.

The peaceful scene was in contrast to some of the protests that occurred on the tour of the Olympic torch.

In all, the focus seemed to be on green issues.

The Eugene Water and Electric Board fills otherwise-landfill-bound plastic water bottles free, and a Safeway tent offers generator bikes where volunteers can crank out enough electricity to power the display, with the slop-over going into storage batteries.

The grocery chain touts its plans to rely more on solar energy.

Strolling pamphleteers implore passers-by favoring a free Tibet to protest holding the games in China, as did opponents of Chinese movements against the Falaun Gong philosophy and a group with a model Darfur refugee camp built to protest Chinese sales of arms to Sudan that are used against the refugees in what is widely considered genocide.

“China wants the Olympics to take attention away from Tibet,” said Tsering Paledn,” who heads a “Free Tibet” movement in New York and New Jersey.

But political literature was confiscated at the entry to Eugene ‘08 and Code Pink, a group of mostly middle-age ladies wearing vests proclaiming “Sports Games, Not War Games” said they knew better than to even try.

“We’re outrageous women doing outrageous things to stop this outrageous war,” Bryna Livingston said.

Inside, the U.S. Army had a large recruiting display, stressing not Iraq but the fact that the Army had placed 51 athletes in the last six Olympic games and asking who might be next.

A barefoot girl was one of many who tried to make it to the top of the Army’s makeshift climbing wall.

“That’s Army-strong,” yelled a supporter. “Come on, soldier,”

She got about a third of the way up.

But generally, it was all so clean, so correct, so green, so – Eugene.

There was not a whiff of the thrice-used deep-frying oil and Elephant Ear stands that normally show up, no loudspeakers.

It was all very low key, as in, “Guess the number of old sneakers in the large plastic cube and win a year’s supply of Nikes.”

The emphasis was on healthy things, on outdoor activities,

Even so, there is security galore, from foot patrols to a state bomb squad truck. Eugene closed down two police substations for the duration and assigned the officers to Hayward Field and borrowed officers from other jurisdictions, mindful, no doubt, that such a high-profile gathering could make a tempting target.

And while the campus has been calm, mostly, for years, Eugene retains an activist anarchist community and grayer heads may have recalled the Vietnam War years when many on campus proved to be proficient bombers and arsonists.

And some here still know how.

An environmental extremist group based here was recently broken up with many of its members packed off to long prison terms for arson and other crimes.