It’s all a bit of a mystery on how to enter but what we do know is that with places limited to 40 runners, competition to get one of those coveted spots is tough. There is no obvious entry process as there is no race website. The future founder of Barkley Marathons, Laz upon hearing this reckoned he could have made it at least one hundred miles and so the idea was born. In that time, he had only managed to cover eight miles. He escaped from Brushy Mountain State Penitentiary in 1977 but was caught after fifty-six hours on the run. The route was inspired by the prison break of James Earl Ray, Martin Luther King Jr.’s assassin. In 2006, nobody even finished the 60-mile ‘fun run’ within the 40-hour time limit. If you want a hard fact about how difficult this race is then here it is: out of about 1000 starters over its history, there have been only 18 finishes by 15 runners. The loops are unmarked with no aid stations except for water at two points along the way. That is the equivalent of climbing up and down Mount Everest twice. Once a competitor has started a loop they are not allowed to receive any assistance until they have finished that loop. Runners must ascend and descend about 120,000 feet of elevation.

That is a 12 hour cut off time per loop and there are five loops. You have 60 hours to complete the entire course.

The race distance choices are a 97km ‘fun run’ or 160km for the full course. Here are 10 reasons why the Barkley Marathons is the most ballistic thing on earth (in a good way!). Only the truly tough ultrarunners would even consider it and even then they may not get in if their penmanship is not good enough! Held in Frozen Head State Park in Tennessee, it’s quirky, it’s insane, and it’s just downright brilliant. This is an ultramarathon trail race like no other. It is a race you may have heard of from the documentary on Netflix, The Barkley Marathons – The Race That Eats Its Young. On the first week of April (around April Fool’s Day) every year a flock of 40 hardcore ultrarunners gather in the Appalachian mountains for the notorious fringe event known as The Barkley Marathons. If you are an avid ultrarunner, you will definitely have heard about this insane ultra in Tennessee, The Barkley Marathons.

Download gary robbins barkley