Tuhia he tohutoro mō tēnei wāhanga - I whānau a Don Clary ki Anchorage, Alaska, ā, i puta ia i te Kura Tuarua o East Anchorage i te tau 1975. I angitu a Clary i tana angitu tuatahi hei kaitakaro rangatahi (i raro i te 20) i te 1975 IAAF World Cross Country Championships
I riro ai i a ia te tuarima o nga kaitākaro o Amerika ki te taitara kapa, i te taha o Bobby Thomas, Roy Kissin, me Ralph Serna. I haere ia ki te Whare Waananga o Oregon ka rere mo te kapa Oregon Ducks. I te 1978 NCAA Division I Men's Cross Country Championships i whakanohoia e ia te tuawhitu, a ko ia te kaihauturu i roto i te roopu roopu i te taha o tana hoa akomanga a Alberto Salazar. I oma ia i te 3000-mita steeplechase i te 1978 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships ka eke ki te tuawhitu. Heoi, i wikitoria ia i tana taitara motu tuatahi i taua tau, i tana mahi i roto i te haora kotahi.