A memorial service for Dave Reed will be held the afternoon of Monday, December 15th — 1pm at the Scandinavian Centre in Burnaby. The address is 6540 Thomas St. (near Highway #1 and Kensington).

All are welcome to attend. RSVP to Nancy Tinari (nancy_tinari@yahoo.com ).

A tribute to Dave and his running career has been written by George Gluppe and Nancy Tinari and was originally posted on the BC Athletics website…

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Last week’s Bulletin reported Dave Reed’s untimely death at the age of 54. After almost a week of remembering Dave and reflecting upon all we have shared during thirty years of running with him, we would like to add more comments.

Dave ran hundreds, if not thousands of races during his running career. As a youngster he excelled in many sports, and hockey was his early passion. He often spoke of waking up very early on Saturday mornings and being filled with excitement knowing that his Dad would soon be taking him to hockey practice. Yet before he became a teenager, running became Dave’s favourite sport; one in which he was clearly talented.

Dave’s races ranged from 800m track races right up to marathons, and if he were here now he would be able to relate, in detail, every split time of his own performances, as well as times from performances of other athletes he supported and admired. He had a fantastic memory not only for the races, but for practically every workout, too. He was always astonished when we couldn’t remember all of the details that he had memorized, apparently effortlessly.

Although he was a good runner in his youth, Dave really blossomed as a top competitor when he became a master. One of his best efforts was a 2:00.0 800m at age 40. Those of us who are Masters athletes realize just how good that performance was.

Dave loved the 5K distance but he probably performed better over the mile, particularly on the road. He dominated the Ambleside Masters’ Mile for years, and still holds the course record of 4:17. Dave also competed as a master in the Fifth Avenue Mile in New York City, finishing in about third place, very close to Steve Scott, who had been one of the world’s premier milers. As a masters runner, Dave also posted excellent performances in the 3000m (winning the Hamilton Spectator Games indoor masters race in 9:06.73) as well as many top-3 finishes in 5K road races with times in the 15:10 to 15:40 range. His 5K times often age-graded to over 90%, which means that he was a world class athlete.

In addition to his own running, Dave was equally enthusiastic about other runners and their accomplishments. During my peak years as a distance runner, Dave was my constant training partner, especially on fast tempo runs and distance runs (I couldn’t stay with him on the track.) He paced me to some of my best track times at a couple of all-comers’ meets in Toronto: I remember him leading me to a 9:04 3000m and a 15:41 5000m. Dave always supported me; in fact, I got a wildly enthusiastic e-mail from him only a week before he went into the hospital, in which he commended my determined effort to win the Labour Day 8K race and the Timex Series at age 49. He added, “…some things are just meant to be if you want them bad enough, I had my best year ever when I was 49, when I won the Ambleside Mile over Malcolm Smillie, and then doubled up by beating him and everyone else at the Canadian Masters T & F at Minoru Park in the 1500m.”

Dave loved to be a part of “elite” team events. He often raved about the Thetis Lake 4 x 5K relay on Vancouver Island. He provided much of the energy and effort to put together our Phoenix club’s first Haney to Harrison relay team, in 2006, and chose our name “Flight of the Phoenix” from one of his favourite movies.

Dave will always be remembered for his infectious love and enthusiasm for running; it seems that in every post-race photo, he is beaming without reservation. Dave offered his support and advice to many Phoenix and VFAC teammates, and took a particular interest in helping teenagers and younger children become better at running and other sports. He will be sorely missed by all of us and by the running communities of the Lower Mainland, Vancouver Island and beyond.