A 25-year-old man from Albany, New York, stopped in Rogers County during his 2,448-mile journey run along the Mother Road.
Runner Zach Fiske said his goal is to celebrate the Route 66 Centennial from a unique vantage point.
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“What better way to see the country and to be involved in the history and culture of the U.S. than to travel Route 66, and what more intimate, involved way to do that than by foot?” Fiske said. “You just see so much, and get to experience things so much more visibly.”
Fiske gained inspiration for his Mother Road run from participation in the ultramarathon community and his interest in the Bunion Derby. That’s a moniker for the 1928 Transcontinental Footrace from Los Angeles to New York City, which Foyil native Andy Payne won. Much of the Bunion Derby path followed Route 66.
“For Christmas, my mother gave me a book about the Bunion Derby,” Fiske said. “So I started talking about this Route 66 trip, and she was like, ‘You know, I gave you a book about people running Route 66,’ so I had to go back and read it, and then after I read the book, I was like, ‘OK, now I definitely have to do this trip.'”
Fiske began his run in Chicago Aug. 4. He visited the Andy Payne statue in Foyil and the Claremore Museum of History Sept. 5. At the museum, Fiske learned more about Andy Payne and the Bunion Derby.
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“It was just really interesting to read about how the race was discussed back then, how the runners were talked about before they started,” Fiske said.
Although Fiske’s journey is extensive, he said participants in the Bunion Derby had a bigger challenge. Each day, Fiske dashes close to the distance of one marathon every day, while runners in the Bunion Derby traveled around 40 miles in a day.
“I’m running about a marathon a day. That seems pretty far, but it’s so much easier today,” Fiske said. “They did more than 50% further 100 years ago.”
While on his journey, Fiske is filming for a documentary by Justin Clifton and Page Buono of Flagstaff Mountain Films. The film will discuss what running Route 66 would have been like during the time of the Bunion Derby versus modern day.
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“My role is to be the eyes of someone in 2026 running Route 66, and to bring people along on that journey,” Fiske said.
The documentary does not have an official release date, as it is still in the making.
Fiske plans to complete his run Nov. 11 in Santa Monica, California.
