“I can make you run faster.”
That’s what Pete Peterson, owner of Red Rooster Barber Shop, said to Steve Prefontaine in the early 1970s as he saw him passing his shop.
Peterson told Prefontaine that he noticed his hair getting in the way when he ran, and he could change that for him without compromising his iconic long hair. Since then, he was the official barber and friend of Steve Prefontaine.
“I was probably as cocky of a barber as Prefontaine was a runner back in those days,” Peterson said. “We became very good friends.”
Now, Oregon students and the Eugene community can get haircuts from the same man who gave Pre, and many others, their iconic looks.
Pete Peterson is the owner of the Red Rooster Barber Shop on East 13th Avenue. Although the shop is hard to notice from the outside, once customers enter they are immediately surrounded by sports memorabilia and Oregon history from the last fifty years.
There are stories to every object.
“I could go on forever and ever and ever and unfortunately I can’t remember them all; there’s just hundreds and hundreds,” Peterson said.
Peterson started cutting hair 49 years ago when he got his barber license as a fall-back job after leaving the military. About four years into barbering, the former owner of the Red Rooster recruited Peterson because he needed someone who could work on college students. He’s been at the shop ever since.
“I found that I enjoyed the people. Each person is different and every haircut is different,” Peterson said.
Peterson has been the official barber for famous athletes and coaches such as Bill Musgrave, George Seaford, Rich Brooks, Gunther Cunningham and Norv Turner. But Peterson says that some of his favorite clients have been the University of Oregon presidents.
Peterson says that he has befriended all of the last six presidents, and has remained friends with them after they left the university. In fact, some presidents left Peterson gifts when they left the school.
Bill Boyd, president from 1975-1980, gave him a set of presidential glasses from the UO when he left. That gift would normally be given to someone who has donated $1 million or more to the university. But Peterson says to get presidential glasses, “all you have to do is cut his hair.”
Aside from big name athletes and employees, Peterson’s cuts have been a family tradition for many in the Eugene community.
“I still have people who are coming in 45 years later,” Peterson said.
One of his clients, C.B. Koch, started getting his haircut at Red Rooster because his dad did — and has continued to do so since.
Koch is a famous Duck too. He was the only Ducks mascot at the UO in 1978 when he was 18 years old, back when the entire costume was just a head. Now, UO mascot duties are shared by six to seven people.
“I was the last one to wear the old fiberglass duck head,” Koch said.
Of course, with this many famous athletes, coaches and families coming to the shop, Peterson can’t do it alone.
Peterson runs his shop with one other man: Jim Lavender. Peterson recruited Jim from a corporate salon more than 20 years ago. Lavender says the shop has an ambiance that anyone can enjoy, and an atmosphere that customers can’t find anywhere else.
“Go to SuperCuts and ask to see the latest Playboy — you ain’t going to see it. Ask me, and I’ll go right in the back and get it for you,” Lavender said.
The two say that they have good business because they treat everyone equally — and consistently give “extraordinary” haircuts.
“We treat them (college students) just like anyone else. We joke with them and we make fun of them,” Lavender said.
The Red Rooster has not paid for advertising since the ’70s but the shop remains busy every weekday; it’s almost impossible to get into the shop without making an appointment.
Peterson and Lavender say that their skills are what keep people coming in the door.
“You wouldn’t be standing here cutting hair for 45 years if you were crappy at it,” Peterson said.
As for the future of Red Rooster, Peterson said that he is getting older and sees retirement in the near future. But until then, he will remain 13th’s favorite barber.
“When you get a haircut, you should get a good looking haircut, but you should also have a good time,” Peterson said. “Make friends out of your customers, and if you do that, they are going to come back.”
Follow Lauren Garetto on Twitter: @laurengaretto