08/26/2026
We had the absolute honor of hosting ultramarathoner Zach Fiske during his mind-boggling 2,400+ mile run from Chicago to Los Angeles. Zach is out here tracing the asphalt of the upcoming Route 66 Centennial by paying homage to one of the wildest spectacles in American history: the 1928 Bunion Derby.
Conceived by the flamboyant sports promoter C.C. Pyle, the original transcontinental race was a chaotic media circus designed to drum up publicity for the newly minted Route 66. Pyle was trying to capture the tail end of the Pedestrianism craze from decades prior—an era in the late 19th century when competitive multi-day walking and running matches were America’s most popular spectator sport, drawing massive crowds to watch athletes circle indoor tracks for days at a time. Pyle blew that concept out onto a national scale. He traveled ahead in a luxurious motorbus equipped with a built-in radio station and a mobile freak show, charging small towns thousands of dollars just for the race to pass through their streets.Desperate for a life-altering $25,000 grand prize during tough economic times, 199 working-class men set off on foot from Los Angeles. For 84 grueling days, they ran through blistering desert heat and unpaved gravel roads, fueled mostly by cheap food and pure grit, while Pyle sold them merchandise and charged spectators to watch the runners suffer. Only 55 runners managed to cross the final finish line in New York.
Nearly a century later, Zach is keeping that endurance history alive by tackling 100 marathons in 100 days. With a single stroller pushing his own supplies, the raw grit and spirit of the Mother Road remain exactly the same. We are beyond proud to be a tiny part of his historic journey across America!Join us in wishing Zach the absolute best of luck on his remaining miles to California. Drop a shoe in the comments to cheer him on, and follow his incredible journey at zachfiske.com!
