Coaching Cross Country Successfully

Pat Tyson developed his philosophies of training and competition while associating with legendary coaches and runners. He ran at the University of Oregon for Bill Bowerman, the coach of four NCAA champion teams and the cofounder of Nike, Inc. While at Oregon, he was a teammate and roommate of Steve Prefontaine, Olympian and winner of three individual NCAA Men's Cross Country Championships.

Recognized as one of the most successful cross country coaches in the United States, Tyson currently serves as head cross country and track and field coach at Gonzaga University, a position he has held since 2008. Before accepting his position with Gonzaga, Tyson held similar positions at the University of Oregon and University of Kentucky and spent 20 years at Mead High School in Washington while developing it into a distance running powerhouse. During Tyson’s time of coaching at Mead, the Panthers achieved an impressive record of 180-8 in one of the toughest dual-meet leagues in the nation. Reaching state competition 18 consecutive years to win 12 state titles, they never placed worse than third. During that time, the Panthers had a nine-year streak when they never lost a competition. In his last three years at Mead, Tyson’s teams placed third, fourth, and fifth at the Nike Cross National Championships held in Portland, Oregon.

For his remarkable work with the Mead Panthers, Tyson has been named Washington Coach of the Year multiple times. He was nominated for National High School Coach of the Year when his Mead teams were ranked No. 1 by Harrier magazine. Tyson has produced nine Washington prep champions and nine Foot Locker Cross Country Championship finalists. Several of his runners have placed on the All-Time Top 100 List for the state of Washington.

As a competitive athlete, Tyson ran cross country and track at the University of Oregon, where he competed in two NCAA Cross Country Championships and helped lead Oregon to first- and third-place finishes.

Doug Binder is the editor of DyeStat, the internet home of high school cross country and track and field. His professional sports writing career spans 18 years, including 10 as a high school and track and field writer for Portland's The Oregonian newspaper, where he has covered numerous running championships at the high school, college, and professional levels. In 2008, Binder led the newspaper’s coverage of the Olympic Trials. Before his position at The Oregonian, Binder spent three years at the Gazette-Times in Corvallis, Oregon, and two at the Daily Chronicle in Bozeman, Montana. He is a member of the Track and Field Writers of America.

In 2005, Binder documented Pat Tyson's final days at Mead High School. Those interviews sparked a friendship that endures to this day.