Sprint stud Roger Pierce makes alma mater’s Hall of Fame
Roger Pierce has been on my radar for years, but I haven’t given him the attention he deserves. Now his local paper has done the work for me, thank goodness, with this great summary of his track career. His latest honor is induction into Northeastern University’s sports Hall of Fame. I love where his bio notes that he was an NU walk-on! Also news to me: “He and his wife, Fran, live in Essex, Mass., and have three children. They are a folk song duo called Tamarack and are popular on the North Shore. They also founded a coffeeshop named One World, which is enjoying its 15th anniversary.” Congrats, Roger, and many more years of speedy running.
Here’s Roger, winning at Orono (at left):
Here’s Roger and Fran in their day job:
Here’s the story in case the link goes bad:
Beverly’s Running Man: Pierce heads to NU Hall of Fame
By Christopher Hurley/churley@cnc.com
Wed Apr 09, 2008, 08:08 PM EDT
Beverly, Mass. –
Beverly, Mass. – When it comes to the track arena, Roger Pierce has always been built for speed.
From his early days at Beverly High, to his formative years at Northeastern University, to his current status as a master’s champion, the man nicknamed “The Great Dodger” by Northeastern Sports Information Director Jack Grinold, continues to build a lasting legacy for all to admire.
Pierce, a Beverly native, has been elected to the Northeastern University Hall of Fame for excellence in track. A member of the Class of 1971, he will be inducted along with six others in formal ceremonies at Lombardo’s Restaurant in Randolph April 18.
Joining Pierce in the NU Hall of Fame Class of 2008 are Vincent Barletta (rowing), Anders Hoeyem (soccer), Harry Mews (ice hockey), Nikiya Reid (women’s track & field), Brooke Whitney (women’s ice hockey) and Kelly Wilk (field hockey).
“It’s really an honor to be inducted into any hall of fame,” said Pierce, 63. “And it’s been 40 years since I was a senior captain there. So I think it’s a great thing. I’m tickled.”
Pierce started his running career as a walk-on and 46 years later has transformed himself into a United States record holder.
To this day, he remains the top-ranked in his age group in the 400, while also maintaining a similar seeding in both the 100 and 200. He set the world indoor record at 23.4 seconds in the 200.
Pierce attributes much of his success to former Northeastern track coach Irwin Cohen.
“He is responsible for everything I did because he was so good and worked us so hard,” Pierce said.
Humble beginnings
A track legend, Pierce first gained notoriety while attending Beverly High School. The Panther proved to be quite versatile as a three-year competitor on the cross country, indoor and outdoor track teams.
“It was a three-year high school, because they had a junior high school back then,” Pierce recalled. “So you didn’t get a chance to run four years, but I ran cross-country and indoor and outdoor track for three years. I didn’t get a letter until my senior year in anything.”
Primarily known as a sprinter, Pierce was an unlikely cross-country runner his senior year, but still managed to help Beverly High secure its third consecutive undefeated season under coach Bill Jenkins.
It wasn’t until Pierce started running indoor track, however, that he really came into his own.
“I was basically only a 50-yard dash man indoors,” said Pierce. “That’s all they trusted me to run. I was really small, probably weighed about 113-pounds. So it was tough for me to run against the bigger guys. But I did well.”
Pierce continued to gain serious momentum during the outdoor track season, as a member on a couple of record-setting relay teams for the Panthers, culminating with him receiving the team’s Most Valuable Player award in 1962.
“I had a great time and they gave me MVP that year, which was really nice of them,” Pierce said.
Pierce was inducted into Beverly High’s Sports Hall of Fame in 2004.
“That meant a lot to me,” he said. “Beverly has had some incredibly good athletes, and to just be with those people is really just an honor.”
Despite his successful senior swing, Pierce was unable to find any college recruiters after graduating Beverly High in 1962.
Undaunted, the Beverly runner opted to head out west.
“I went to California to get into movies,” said Pierce. “I was interested in theater and banged around there for about eight months. I taught myself guitar, came back and kicked around for another year.”
While attending a summer track meet, Pierce literally ran into Cohen, who urged him to apply to Northeastern.
“I hadn’t even thought about going to college until that point,” Pierce said. “It never even occurred to me, but I wound up going to Northeastern.”
Northeastern Exposure
A walk-on at Northeastern in 1964, Pierce tried out for the freshman track team. His position was solidified when he won the Greater Boston Collegiate freshman indoor dash. Although freshmen were unable to compete at the varsity level at that time, Pierce and Carl Farmer helped form one of the best team’s in the state.
“We had an incredible freshman team,” Pierce said. “Between Carl Farmer and myself, no one beat us in anything. We just had a really tough freshman team. We ran as well as the varsity guys were running.”
Pierce was a valued team member over the course of his varsity career, 1966-68, scoring points in the dash, long jump and relays.
Running the 100 and 200 in his sophomore season, Pierce helped NU go 10-0 indoors and 6-1 outdoors. In his junior season, Pierce continued to pour on the points, and the Huskies went 9-1 indoors and 5-0 outdoors.
In his senior year, he was elected captain of both the indoor and outdoor teams, and the Huskies finished at 7-2 and 6-0, respectively. That year, he also won the Greater Boston indoor dash and the outdoor 100-yard dash.
“Coach Cohen was an excellent coach,” Pierce said. “He pushed us really hard and showed us that we could do a lot more than we ever thought we could. I learned a lot from that.”
Pierce was voted the Northeastern Trackman of the Year and won the Parsons Award as the outstanding indoor competitor. He graduated holding the Husky 50-yard indoor dash record at 5.4 seconds and was a member of the 4×400 relay team that set both the NU indoor and outdoor record. During Pierce’s career, Northeastern had a 43-4 regular season record.
“We got so strong that we could beat people that were better than us just from our training,” said Pierce, who left Northeastern to serve in an army reserve unit in Vietnam in 1968, before returning home and graduating in 1971. “If you work out harder in practice, the meets just aren’t a big deal. That’s exactly the focus we had when we went into a track meet.”
Returning to glory
Pierce would pass on his vast knowledge of the sport as head track coach at Stoneham High for four seasons.
At the age of 39, he rediscovered the sport participating in the Masters Track and Field division, an international program.
“I just got tired of not being active, so at 39 I started running again,” said Pierce, who trained for two weeks after a 10-year layoff before entering his first competition.
After initially struggling through his first meet, the 5-foot-5, 140-pound runner kept up his training regimen, eventually winning the Eastern Indoor Championship.
“Within three-years, I was one of the top-ranked runners in the world in the 400 meters,” said Pierce.
At the age of 45, he continued to cruise as the top-ranked runner in the 400, while also maintaining a top three seeding in both the 100 and 200, setting the world indoor record at 23.4 seconds in the 200.
In 2001, at the age of 56, he went to the World Championships in Brisbane, Australia, where he won the 400-meter, placed fourth in the 200 and was a member of the U.S. teams that won the 4Ă—100 and 4Ă—400 relays. Pierce won gold at the World Championship in 2003, 2005 and 2007.
He has won 30 U.S. National Championships and has set 11 American age-group records. In World Championship competition, he has set nine records and has won gold 10 times.
Even at 63, Pierce continues to push himself in the track arena. He set a world record in the 4×400-meter relay at last weekend’s National Championships in Boston with his team Mass. Velocity, a sprint club that recruits plenty of talented athletes from masters to young runners.
Looking back, did Pierce ever think his track career would still be going strong some 40 years later?
“No, I just wanted to run,” he said. “I always loved running. I went to college because I wanted to run; I stayed in college because I wanted to run. That’s one of the things that kept me there.”
And Pierce’s lasting legacy can be expected to go the distance for years to come.
Tickets to the Northeastern Hall of Fame induction ceremony can be purchased by calling George Makris at 617-373-4821.
13 Responses
Well-deserved Honor! I am fortunate to have been Roger’s teammate and training partner for the past 13 years, and I can attribute most of my success to him. Roger is one of Masters Track’s most consistent and winning competitors nationally and at WMA meets as his record shows. Roger is also one of Masters Track’s true ambassadors; his enthusiasm and love for the sport continues to be inspiring for those who know him.
I love being around this gentleman and I mean that word. He is very gracious and modest and this honor is well deserved. He is a great ambassador for our sport. Way to go, Roger.
It is athletes like Roger who set the stage for us up and coming Masters Athletes. This is the fuel that keeps me aspiring to be one of the Greatest Masters Athletes of all Time. It is always a pleasure to watch all of you hall of fame athletes compete.
Don Drummond
“And Roger Pierce is out like a rocket.” I must have said that more than a few times, but Roger does start quickly. More important, he has a knack for winning. In Greensboro (1996 indoors) he won by 1/100 of a second in the 400, and last year (Boston, indoor nationals) he won by 1/100 again. I don’t know how he does it.
Roger Pierce deserves to be in every hall of fame for which he is eligible.
Roger is such a class guy. And I also love being around his intensity.
A man who truly loves the sport of track & field ! He deserves the honor undoubtedly !
Sal
Roger, way to go ! you certainly deserve this honor, you are a great runner and an inspiration to all of us , I have enjoyed competeing against and with you on some exciting relays. You have always been so gracious and helpful. I look forward to seeing you at the outdoor nationals.
Roger, This is wonderful and well deserving. You have paved the way for many of us that have followed you for many years. Keep up the great work on and off the track, we are all proud of you
Bill Collins
Roger,
Congratulations. Now we need to make sure you are properly nominated and inducted into the Masters HOF.
It is amazing, considering Roger’s accomplishments in masters track throughout the years, that he has yet to be nominated for the Masters Hall of Fame. He certainly belongs there.
On a personal note, I’ve never forgotten the first time Roger Pierce cheered ME on in a 200m heat. At the time I never thought that superstars like Roger would care about mediocre sprinters such as myself – even if we were teammates.
Over the few years that I’ve known him, it’s clear that he cares about everyone, teammates or not, even his competitors. There are great sprinters and there are great people but seldom do you find both in such a nice guy, like Roger.
God Speed, Roger. Well dude, you’re in my Hall of Fame for quite a while already… high time for the Masters HOF to honor you as well. Mr. Gray is absolutely correct with his suggestion.
Congrats Roger! I remember meeting Roger 15 years ago or so waiting in the paddock at the Penn Relays. He was racing with the Boston team and I was with Central Park. He stood out primarily because of his gregarious nature. The Boston club was good but they were not a contender in the M40’s 4 x 400. Again, at Millrose, I bumped into Roger under the stands warming up for the 4 X 400. Another warm hello. I think it was that time I watched him run and thought to myself that he was good but not outstanding. It wasn’t until a couple years later that I saw him racing in the 50’s bracket at Penn (Roger by then was already 52 or 53) that I was stunned to realize that Roger was 10 years my senior and classified as exceptional given he had been competing against runners in their young 40’s, the best the U. S. of A. had to offer.
It was the same pang of awakening that had hit me earlier in the year when I was told that Harry Nolan who I battled elbow to elbow with in the last Millrose Mile was 7 years my senior. But then, that is what a world champion does . . . they compete with the best a country has to offer only a decade younger.
I am surprised,proud & humbled by all this attention. I am embarrassed to say I don’t go on line very much and it was only after a friend told me to check out Ken’s blog that I discovered it last night.
Thanks for the nod Ken, always good to get positive feedback and I do check you out periodically (obviously not enough)..guess I should be on line more.
To all of the folks who wrote such nice things about me(the check is in the mail)..you may know that I have had a difficult past 7 months with many injuries (none from running) compounded by contracting Lyme Tick Disease and a job lay off. Like all masters competitors who are forced to cease training,even for a short time, one’s life changes radically. I like training and I miss it terribly. I miss being with good friends on the track..but it also teaches patience if one is willing to listen. We have the rest of our lives to compete, it is not a limited window of eligibility (like HS or College)unless it is a career ending injury..If we are willing to roll with what comes our way in life, we can learn valuable lessons from each and every situation because in the end….we never know why things happen, but we can use them all to grow spiritually and emotionally. I feel we really need to live as if each day is our last day on this planet. We need to tell people we love, that we love them…we need to do our very best every moment because life is so short. That is why I am a sprinter, so I can do everything quickly!!!!!!Thanks to all and look forward to seeing you on and off the track.
PS. The Boston Marathon is this month..and no, I will not be competing in it this year or any other year…I’m a sprinter..if I can’t see the finish line, I don’t get in the race!!!!!!
GodSpeed,
Roger Pierce
Congrats to you Roger. You are deserving of this award not only for your track prowless, but because you are one hell of a guy. It is always a pleasure to see you compete and the positive attitude you display is inspiring. It was also a pleasure to have been a part of some of your relay teams.
Best regards,
Mike Milove
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