I recently learned about a documentary film about the Barkley Marathons. I had never heard about the Barkley Marathons, but hey, anything running related is something I want to know more about. Now that I’ve seen the film, I wanted to share a little with you, so that you can get a copy of the film for yourself on iTunes. While I’m not a trail or an ultra runner, I have very good friends who are both. I hope each and every one of them have an opportunity to see this film! The details of the Barkley Marathons blew me away!
Every year, about forty or so runners descend upon a small town in Tennessee by invitation only to test their mental and physical limits against the Barkley Marathons. It started out as a mockery of James Earl Ray’s historic prison escape gone awry and the race had seen only 10 finishers in its first 25 years. The race’s co-founder Lazarus Lake is quite the unusual guy – very unpredictable, and irresistible a character as the idiosyncratic event he has created.
The first year that you do this race, it costs $1.60, an essay on why you should be permitted to run the Barkley and a license plate from your state. The next year you do the race, it may cost you a white shirt or some socks, or even a flannel shirt depending on what is decided for that year. From what I understand, if you are accepted to run this race, you actually receive a letter of condolence! LOL!
This crazy race has a secret application process, unknown start time, and treacherous terrain, the Barkley has gained cult-like status with ultra-runners and amateurs alike. Basically the runners have one hour from the time Mr. Lake blows the conch shell to start the race. He may blow the horn at midnight or at 6am, it just doesn’t matter. All that matters is that when you hear the horn blow, you had better be at the yellow gate in an hour. When Mr. Lake lights his cigarette, that means you start the event – no big gun or horn sounding for the start.
The race actually consists of five loops. Each loop is 20 (or possibly 26) miles. If you complete three loops (60-78 miles) they call it a “fun run”. You start and finish this race at the same yellow gate. The first two loops are clockwise, the next two loops are counterclockwise, and then the fifth loop is alternating, with the first runner choosing whether he or she will run clockwise or counterclockwise. Brett Maune has the course record – the one he set in 2012 – of 52 hours, 3 minutes and 8 seconds.
…and get this: Each loop climbs 12,000 feet and descends 12,000 feet for a total of 120,000 total elevation change. So you see those numbers but when they tell you that 120,000 total elevation change is like climbing Mount Everest TWICE, it puts the whole number/elevation thing into perspective.
Out on the course there are books. When you find the book, you are to rip out the page that corresponds with your bib number. When you check in, you turn in your book pages and they are counted/checked to make sure you’ve actually followed the course. When they showed some of the names of the books in the movie, it almost seemed like they were taunting the runners by choosing the book titles that they did.
The history behind the Barkley Marathons stems back to the first race – the prison break of James Earl Ray on June 10, 1977. You may remember James Earl Ray since he is the man who shot Martin Luther King Jr. He escaped from Brushy Mountain State Penitentiary and fled across the briar-bearded hills of northern Tennessee. Fifty-four hours later he was found and they realized he had only gone about eight miles. Some might hear this and wonder how he managed to squander his escape.
If you want to know more about this documentary film, be sure to check out the Barkley Marathons Movie Website, or catch them on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram! You can get the movie itself on iTunes HERE!
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