Lauren Paquette walked by a cluster of reporters gathered around Stephanie Garcia at the south end of the Mount Hood Community College Track.
Garcia won the 3,000 meters in Sunday's TrackTown Summer Series meet. Paqutte was runner-up.
"What, no love for second place?" Pacquette said, smiling and pointing to herself.
It was that kind of afternoon, relaxed, sunny, informal, and perhaps an indicator of how U.S. professional track and field can rebuild itself at the ground level.
This piece by Bradley W. Parks and Kaylee Domzalski for Oregon Public Broadcasting does a really nice job of capturing in both photos and prose what it was like to spend a warm, sunny afternoon at the TrackTown meet.
The fans got up close and athletes invited them to share the experience.
Every athlete to whom I talked was delighted with the opportunity to compete in a domestic track meet rather than traveling overseas.
"I'd much rather be over here," said shot-putter Ryan Whiting. "I've got two young kids. I get to spend more time with my family. ... I wish I could have done this my whole career."
Sprinter Mike Rodgers won the 100 to continue his comeback from injury.
"We need more meets in the U.S.," Rodgers said. "I'm tired of getting on a plane, eating nasty food at the other meets. I can stay home in an American hotel, American TV -- it's great. I hope we get more meets like this so people can stay home and track can get more popular."
The popularity thing is the crux of the problem. TrackTown USA organizers blocked off most seats at the MHCC stadium, concentrating fans near the finish line. The open seats never were completely full, although that might have been misleading.
There was a beer garden on the infield that drew fans out of the stands. And the athletes were accessible for photos and autographs, which gave people another incentive to not remain seated.
Organizers estimated the crowd at 1,300. If there were that many people there, it's not a bad first step.
You have to start somewhere.
Vin Lananna, president of both TrackTown USA and USA Track & Field, wants rebuild the sport's popularity. He has some deep-pocketed investors backing him. They will need to be patient. This isn't a sure thing, and if it does work, it won't happen overnight.
I'll be interested to see how the series finale does Thursday in New York, both at the gate and on the live ESPN broadcast.
But, for U.S. athletes, the TrackTown Summer Series already is a hit.
"It's nice to have an American meet that is putting up great prize money," said Drew Windle, who won Sunday's 800. "They host it very well, put us in a nice hotel and make sure we're taken care of. It's good for the sport, I think."
There even were compelling story lines, especially in the men's 1,500:
http://www.oregonlive.com/trackandfield/index.ssf/2017/07/post_54.html#incart_river_index
Incidentally, Robby Andrews doesn't get a world-qualifer in the 1,500 by July 23, Blankenship will get the third spot on the U.S. world championships team.
OK, more links:
Rodgers revels in the TrackTown experience and competing in the U.S. after winning the 100 at MHCC.
The athletes warm to the TrackTown experiment.
Robby Andrews leaves the TrackTown Summer Series meet empty-handed.
Andrews' roller coaster ride bottoms out Sunday, but he will have another chance in New York.
The TrackTown 1,500 doesn't go as planned Sunday, as Andrews steps off and Blankenship wins.
Andrews drops out of his bid for the 1,500 world standard at MHCC.
Andrews will be looking for a better performance Thursday in New York.
The experts at LetsRun.com recap Sunday's TrackTown Summer Series meet, and note how different the 1,500 at MHCC was from the USATF final in Sacramento.
Blankenship meets with reporters after winning the TrackTown 1,500 on Sunday.. (RunnerSpace.com video)
Here is what Andrews said to reporters. (RunnerSpace.com video)
Paul Merca: Windle wins at TrackTown's stop in Gresham.
Here is what Windle had to say after winning the 800. (RunnerSpace.com video)
Whiting and Michelle Carter talk about winning the combined shot competition at Sunday TrackTown meet in this RunnerSpace.com video.
You can watch the complete replay of Sunday's meet here.
Ex-Iowa hurdler Aaron Mallett shines in his pro debut at the TrackTown meet at Stanford.
Chris Derrick is added to the AJC Peachtree Road Race, Shalane Flanagan withdraws.
The Guardian's Sean Ingle: British track needs the next generation of stars to emerge.
Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake takes a thrilling 200 final at the British Championships.
Ronald Levy's eye-opening 110 hurdles in Paris delights his coach.
Janek Oiglane tallies a lifetime best to win the decathlon at the European Combined Events Team Championships.
The front page from LetsRun.com.
The links package from Track & Field News.
The links from Duck Sports Now.
The links from Beaver Sports Now.
-- Ken Goe