LTC Distinguished Service Award 2018: Brian Wandzilak

“Rise to it!” This is the battle cry for one of Lincoln’s most influential running community members.It seems fitting, given the fact that this person “rises” early nearly every morning to spend some time in solitude, training, while ensuring that the demands of a husband, father, public school teacher, and coach are also met.It also seems fitting, knowing how this person has spent a decade working tirelessly to mentor and coach a new generation of runners to “rise” to their potential, often at the expense of their own training.Despite being pulled in multiple directions, this person managed to “rise to it” in 2018 by running close to 2,500 miles; 2018 also saw this athlete extend his streak of running faster than a 5-minute mile to nearly 20 years! In addition, Athlinks.com estimates that this person has run nearly 150 races throughout his career. This includes marathons in under three hours, half marathons in 1:14, 10Ks better than 35 minutes, and 5Ks in nearly 16 minutes.So it’s no surprise that when asked to volunteer his time, to serve the Lincoln Track Club, Brian Wandzilak decided to do just that and “Rise to it!” And it is because of this, along with the impact that he has had on hundreds of Lincoln runners and his own proven ability to perform as one of the city’s premiere endurance athletes, that the Lincoln Track Club is excited to present Brian Wandzilak with the 2018 Distinguished Service Award.Thank you, Brian, for inspiring Lincoln to “rise to it.”