A short visit to a place can capture your desire for a return trip. Such was the case with Hungary and the area of Lake Balaton in its southwest. It beckoned me, as if to say there was unfinished business to attend.

My first visit was brief; the purpose was to evaluate the course of Ultrabalaton, a 212-kilometer race around Lake Balaton, central Europe’s largest lake. I only had enough time to see most of one side of it, and from that side to look across at the hills and mountains on the opposite shore.

One thing I knew for sure, it was a lovely setting for a race. More importantly, seeing the other side gave me some insight into the challenge I would face sometime during the race. A challenge I was willing to accept, just to see the other side of the lake.

My initial trip followed a stint as the USA Track & Field Team Leader for the 24-hour Run National Team, which participated in Brive, France in mid-May of 2010. Following a successful effort by the team and a bronze medal finish for the men, I would stay in Europe and then head for another race in France a week later, the 48-hours of Surgeres.

Between trips a jaunt into Hungary was incorporated and with the cooperation of the Hungarian 24-hour Run National Team providing a car ride, the scene was set.

I was met in Budapest by world champion Edit Berces, a professor at the business English college. I would be giving a lecture on financing minority sports in the U.S. prior to running the Ultrabalaton race. This gave me an opportunity to tour the college campus and get a feeling for the audience and the insight I might provide them.

I arrived in Vienna about 10 hours later than scheduled due to weather delays in Atlanta. A student from Zalaegerszeg, in western Hungary, the city I would give my presentation the following afternoon, waited patiently for my arrival and then we drove for nearly 4 hours to our destination.

Following a stimulating massage and lunch, I was taken to the Chamber of Commerce offices and lectured on my suggested topic, with Edit, who speaks many languages, as my translator. The audience was small, but those in attendance were very interested and the questions I received were intense and showed real knowledge of the topic, but also showed how misunderstood U.S. athletics and funding were construed by former eastern bloc constituents.

An interview with a local newspaper reporter followed and then it was off to Fonyod, a city situated on Lake Balaton’s southeastern shore, where Edit’s family maintained a summer home. Her parents accompanied us, we spent the night and the next day drove towards Tihany, on the opposite shore, where the race would start and finish. Because of the lack of time we took a ferry across.

After picking up the race packet and timing device, one I had never seen before, we went to stay with Edit’s running club friends in Vaszoly. It was a very old farmhouse, turned into a lovely guesthouse. There we met other runners from the club and we all bunked together. After a restless night, with little sleep, we had breakfast in the barn-turned-kitchen with Attila and Eva providing food and then we were off to the 10:00 a.m. start. I made sure I wore the chip as shown, but was confused as what to do with it. It looked like a plastic finger and it had an elastic band on it that slipped over the finger like a ring.

At the first checkpoint, which was near the place we spent the night, Eva came towards me holding a small red box with a hole in it. She grabbed my hand and put the timing device in the hole and it beeped. In this way, split times were recorded, without the use of mats and cumbersome battery hookups.

The course was challenging, lots of hills early on; some were 10% grade for a kilometer or more. I was glad to have put on my Wigwam Compressor socks, which reduced leg fatigue and enhanced circulation. I managed to conserve my energy, walked some of the hills and was cautious because of the heat. Later, much of the course became a bike path and flattened out.

Edit assembled a crew to assist me and they followed along on bicycles and kept me nourished and hydrated. There were also aid stations every 5-kilometers or so. It was at one of these I must have picked up some kind of “bug” which eventually caused stomach distress and 5 bouts of vomiting.

Trying to heave, I coughed violently and did something to my back. I began to get back spasms and was leaning severely to the right side. Eventually, this lean would cause me to lose my balance and I would fall in the bushes alongside the path several times.

I walked much of the final 50-kilometers, determined to become the first American to finish the race and not walk away with a DNF behind my name in the results. After exactly 34 hours of running and walking I returned to where it had all begun the day before.

Edit, always the linguist, coined a new word: HEROYIC!

The Boston Marathon medal I hung around my friend’s neck and brought a bit of joy to her life, can no longer be worn by her. As I was traveling in Europe, I missed the obituary stating she had passed away following a courageous battle with pancreatic cancer. Lana Kind was 60 years old when she died, but her attitude about life and living made her seem years younger. She accepted her fate, but she did not stop fighting it. She lived more than 20 months after being diagnosed and told she would only live 3 or 4 months.

While running the other day, I reflected on the races I had done in May and how I had struggled through some of them and how easy others had been. I guess every day is different and we have to accept those days that do not feel right to us, just as Lana did.

It goes back to a saying Wigwam had on one of their promotional t-shirts back in the ‘90s. It said: “Some run to compete, others because it’s so darn comfortable.”

Life is like that, sometimes we are competitive and we fight and struggle to get everything out of ourselves, to perform at our highest level and others we just cruise along, happy to be doing what we love to do, accepting we cannot always perform at our optimal level.

Acceptance can keep us balanced; knowing there will be days we cannot or should not be pushing our bodies to do what we have trained, allows us to move on and try again another time.

My first race of the month was a half-marathon, one I had won the masters division in 2 years earlier in 1:28. I had no expectations of coming near that time and was hoping for a 1:35. I had taken a couple of hits during the preceding months, a separated shoulder and two cracked ribs, as well as a good whack to the lower leg. These setbacks had slowed me some and my massage therapists were trying to get my body aligned again.

The first mile I knew it was a day to simply cruise and not push. I felt like I was pushing it and the split did not match the effort. At that point I went into the comfort zone and performance be darned.

I chose to wear Wigwam’s compression-type socks (Ironman Endurance Pro) for this unusually hilly course. The support my legs received was exceptional. I normally get tight calves when running so many hills, but this time when I finished my legs felt wonderful.

I guess it kind of contradicts the saying on the t-shirt, but at that point, I felt one could run to compete and be comfortable too! Why not?

I wore the same type of socks at my next two races, both ultras, one a 50K trail and the other a 48-hour track (dirt) race in Surgeres, France and again the following week at a road marathon.

Running the marathon after the 2 ultras was more for my heart than my head, as it was being run for the first time, less than a 20-minute drive from my home, on roads through the Kettle Moraine a glacial area known for its never ending rolling hills and a place I have trained often.

Again, going to the back of the t-shirt, I have to say, I was always darn comfortable. The trail race threw inclement weather in the form of rain and hail, the hilly trails drained well, and so did the socks, keeping my feet dry and comfortable and allowing me to win my age group. Two weeks later, the 301-meter dirt track in southwest France threw something else at us, in the form of dust and dirt. Again, the socks performed much better than I did. Eating dust, driven by winds caused numerous physical problems and the record-breaking performance I had trained for was left in the toilets, medical area and my camper off the track (each competitor is given a camper to use). Diarrhea, vomiting and nosebleeds slowed me down, but I continued to come back to the track and do what I could do.

I had witnessed many comebacks the week before as the team leader for the 24-hour run national team at the IAU 24h World Championships in Brive, France. At that time it was my team who struggled and fought back, earning a bronze medal. A week later, I ended up with about 130 miles, nearly 100 miles less than I expected, but remarkably, my legs felt good enough to enter the marathon the following week and I finished what I started.

The Great Midwest Marathon lived up to its booking as a hilly and challenging course. One thing I had going for me that others may not have had, was the week before I had run 3 days in temperatures ranging from the mid 80s to over 90. Temperatures soared during the marathon to 92 and the times of the finishers fell at an equal rate.

Dear Wigwam,

I've been meaning to write your company for some time now, and comment on the amazing durability of your socks. I was given a 3-pack of the Ultimax (currently called PRO) Ironman socks on my 13th birthday from my dad who is an avid runner. I love them, I wear them about once a week and over the years have lost a pair but still have the remaining two. The reason I'm writing you is that I am now 32 years old. They have no holes in them or show any signs of breaking down. I think the fact that the socks have been worn regularly for 19 years is simply amazing, talk about a quality product! I have photos but couldn't find an email adress to send them to. Thought you guys would like this story, thanks again.

Sincerely, Ben M.

Brian wants to return to Kona, this time as a qualifier, which would require placing in his age group in another Ironman. Since he considers running his weakest link (he ran Hawaii's marathon leg in 5:40), he became set last year on breaking four hours in the marathon.

Brian has completed in many marathons and triathlons since Kona and continues to strive for his personal best. In his own words (below), he expresses his determination to never give up.

“The 2010 Eagleman 70.3 event in Cambridge, Maryland was labeled ‘one of the most competitive and grueling 70.3 events ever’. It was the first 70.3 triathlon I’ve competed in since the 2008 Foster Grant Ironman70.3 World Championship and the field was packed with nearly 50 world class pros from around the globe. I’ve been training very hard this year and I have earned age group podium finishes in all my 2010 events (both triathlon and running). This past weekend I was preparing to set a personal best at Eagleman and I’m very pleased to say that this goal was reached when I crossed the finish line with a seven minute PB. However, what makes this event even more personally rewarding for me is that I competed in the race with a pretty severe head cold that almost kept me from finishing the swim. I knew it was going to be difficult competing while being sick, but I had worked so hard this season – there was no way I could miss out on this incredible race.

After swimming for almost 40 minutes through some pretty rough currents, I only had 200 yards more to go and I completely stopped, treaded water for a minute and quickly searched for the nearest rescue kayak. I was in panic mode because I couldn’t breathe, heart rate was very high, legs were fully cramped, and I was incredibly dizzy and nauseous to the point where my arms and hands were becoming numb. I had never experienced this before in a race, but have often heard horror stories from triathletes who have.

After seeking out the attention from the kayakers, they were rapidly making their way towards me when I realized that there was no way I was going to drop out of this race – visions of being in the coma, hospital, and recovery flashed through my mind as well as the thought of all the support I have been given from family, friends and the remarkable people who played a helping hand in my journey back to life. I was going to make it to land even if I had to doggy paddle to the shore.

As soon as my foot struck the sand, I quickly tried to get my bearings straight, while shaking loose the severe cramps in my legs. Being one of the last guys in my age group out of the water, I shuffled through the transition area, found my bike and sprinted out of there as fast as I could. I hopped on the bike and took off, averaging a total of 24.3 MPH throughout the bike segment in some pretty severe headwinds along with a 101 heat index. I knew I had to make up a lot of time to catch up to the leaders of my age group, and after two hours and 18 minutes on the bike, I was amazed to find out that I was the first guy in my group back into the transition area with the fastest bike split of the day in my age group, which was an all time first for my triathlon career.

I soon discovered some trouble in the run because I couldn’t hold my hydration and nutrition down, but I was very happy to still earn a podium finish under these brutal conditions. The fact that I was able to finish at all was the most important thing to me…but I have to admit that it was pretty incredible to come in first off the bike with a split that was faster than some of the male pros.

Looking back at 2007 when I began competing in triathlons, I honestly didn’t know to much about riding road or triathlon bikes. Aero bars and bike pedals were a very new thing for me. It took some bumps and bruises to find out how to ride properly, but the hard work has been well worth it and the quest for Kona is just getting started.”

TOMRV is the Tour of the Mississippi River Valley, a Midwest cycling tradition now in its 33nd year. Every year 1,500 bicycling enthusiasts come to ride the TOMRV tour. They enjoy a challenging ride on scenic roads, through Midwest farmland, and along the Mississippi River. Of those 1,500 bicycling enthusiasts were a few of Wigwam's own employee's, family members and others connected with the company. All of which were sporting the Wigwam logo throughout the ride.

The ride started on Saturday June 12th from Bettendorf, Iowa (106 miles) or from Preston, Iowa (69 miles) and travel to Clarke College in Dubuque, Iowa. The following day riders returned using a different route to Bettendorf (90 miles) or to Preston (46 miles). The route is varied and scenic, using lightly traveled paved roads. There are many views of the Mississippi River as racers ride along it, over it on bridges, and through it on causeways. The route is hilly near Dubuque, with 6,000 feet of climbing on Saturday and 4,000 feet on Sunday - no easy feat for any average rider.

"During the 106 miles on Saturday and 90 miles on Sunday, it rained for about 60 miles. We all made it back wet, but safe and sound," said Bob Radzins, Forecast Analyst at Wigwam. Though the conditions were not ideal, the Chain Gang powered through and plans on attending the race for many years to come. Wigwam is proud to support the Chain Gang and is thrilled to have its employee's, and friends of Wigwam participating in athletic events like the TOMRV!

Pictured in the photo (from left to right) is Steve Ballou (68), Bob Radzins (55), Dale Schmideler (42), and Glen Schmideler (48).

Wigwam sponsored athlete Carol Dillinger has been proudly running in Wigwam socks since 2003....and no blisters! Carol's favorite socks are

But the last few marathons have had special meaning for the woman who treats each race like an individual journey. Last October, one day after finishing the Portland Marathon, Dellinger went for her annual mammogram and soon learned she had breast cancer.

“Cancer picked the wrong woman to mess with,” she said. “It was a new marathon to run.”

Next week, on June 4 and 5, Dellinger will represent Cancer Care Northwest and herself as she runs 30 solo miles during the 2010 Relay for Life at Spokane Falls Community College, a fundraiser for the American Cancer Society.

“It’s my way of proving cancer did not beat me. I won this,” she said, noting she picked 30 miles because it’s more than a marathon but not so many miles it will set back her training schedule.

Of course, the cancer diagnosis did set back her training schedule, forcing her to cancel three marathons last fall and winter. But she’s glad that was it, because the cancer was caught early. “I was a fit, powerful woman. How could it be me?” Dellinger said, describing her range of reactions. She didn’t drink or smoke, she exercised and ate healthy foods and didn’t have any symptoms or lumps.

Still, Dellinger, 47, was religious about getting an annual mammogram. “I’ve had a mammogram every year since I was 35,” she said, explaining that five women in her family had gotten various kinds of breast cancer, though Dellinger knew from a DNA test that she didn’t carry one of the identified genes that are susceptible to the disease.

Her cancer, ductal carcinoma in situ, is a common cancer of the milk ducts and curable when detected before it has a chance to spread, said Dellinger. “Six more months and it would have been invasive. … I’m so fortunate it was caught early … By early detection my cancer was 100 percent curable.”

Dellinger recalled asking her surgeon, Dr. Stephanie Moline, if she was going to die. The answer? Yes, eventually, but not from breast cancer.

So, Dellinger flew to Boston and ran the Cape Cod Marathon, her last as a two-breasted woman. Then she came home and had her right breast removed on Nov. 9. She declined reconstructive surgery because she wanted the fastest recovery possible, to run more marathons. Just nine weeks later, on Jan. 17, Dellinger finished PF Chang’s Rock ’n’ Roll Marathon in Phoenix.

“I think that’s what kept me so upbeat and motivated through the entire recovery, because I had that goal. I was running my comeback marathon,” said Dellinger, adding that she presented the finisher medal to Moline as a thank you. “It was an amazing experience crossing the finish line of that marathon, knowing just nine weeks prior what I had been given.”

The medal is displayed at Cancer Care Northwest, where it’s a reminder to the staff that what they do matters.

“I felt very blessed that she would share that with us and thought of it as a good inspiration,” said Moline. “If she can do this, we can keep working too.”

According to Moline, Dellinger’s upbeat attitude likely helped her recovery. “She has a lot of positive energy, whether it’s facing 26 miles or facing a diagnosis of breast cancer. Most women don’t recover from surgery that quickly or bounce back with a positive attitude and keep going … Having a positive outlook, I think, made her recovery easy.”

Now, Dellinger wants to use her story to encourage others, blending the lessons she’s learned running so many marathons with the lessons she’s learned beating breast cancer.

“Marathon running is a way of life. Now as a breast cancer survivor, I can entangle the two and be an inspiration,” she said. “I run for hope. I run for every mother, woman, aunt, grandmother, partner, and sister who has ever been diagnosed with breast cancer. I also run to feel. Surviving breast cancer is something I have to feel.”

SHEBOYGAN, Wis., May 27, 2010 – Otherwise known as “The Fish,” Steve Fisher, an American professional snowboarder, is partnering up with Wigwam for the 2010-2011 seasons. Wigwam has outfitted Steve with socks for the year, on and off the mountain, and is supporting him at his events nationwide.

Steve grew up in Saint Louis Park, MN, a suburb out of Minneapolis. As a young boy, his home mountain was Buck hill which was home to one of the first halfpipes in the Midwest. Steve rode at Buck hill every day and night until he was ten years old; saying that he rarely spent any time at home during the winter. He began competing in local competitions at age eight and qualified for USASA nationals by age nine. Fisher went pro in 2002 when he was asked by the US Snowboarding Team to forerun the 2002 Olympic halfpipe event and become a part of US Snowboarding. In 2004 and 2007 Steve was the Winter X-Games Champion and beat out professional snowboarder, Shaun White. He is currently ranked the #1 halfpipe rider in the United States by the USSA ranking system.

“I'm so excited to partner up with WIGWAM! Being a native mid-westerner I've grown up and always been a huge fan of the brand. Having such a great product on my feet will definitely help while I am on and off the mountain,” said, Steve Fisher.

Wigwam is thrilled about the partnership and with Steve and is looking forward to the relationship growing. We hope that this year, our product will help Steve achieve his personal best. This year, choose Wigwam if you are looking for the proper fit, function and fiber. Let Wigwam help you achieve “Your Personal Best” at whatever activity you enjoy.

About Wigwam:

Wigwam Mills, Inc., was founded in 1905 and is located in Sheboygan, Wisconsin. It is an authentic American brand that designs, manufactures and markets the knitwear that America grew up with. For more information, visit www.wigwam.com or e-mail Wigwam at socks@wigwam.com. Wigwam…Your Personal Best.

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