2024 Barkleys (Read 116 times)

John Kelly didn't even think Paris would finish according to his own social media post.

A few days ago a bunch of my friends came & ran around the woods of Tennessee tearing pages out of books for the Barkley Marathons. The 5 of us here gathered 75 each. Jasmin Paris had the kind of performance that makes this arbitrary adventure have meaning so far beyond this yellow gate. I don't think anything at Barkley will ever top it.

I wrote back in 2018 (https://randomforestrunner.com/.../can-a-woman-finish.../) that a woman could finish Barkley. But being possible & actually happening are two entirely different things, and I didn't know if I would ever see it. Jasmin had all the right ingredients - incredible strength & speed, an unstoppable quiet resolve, master navigation, & amazing support from her husband Konrad. She failed in 2022 & 2023, but nevertheless, she persisted & gained valuable experience.

When the giant group of 16 in the lead half way around loop 1 started to spread out, she was not amongst the 6 of us back to camp first. Nevertheless, she persisted & caught us going up Rat Jaw in the afternoon sun.

She seemed to start to struggle getting enough food down. Nevertheless, she persisted & kept pace with me, @ihorverys, & @ultra_damo until nearly the end of loop 3. She hit another low point & slipped back - something that at that point would have made it extremely easy to give up hope of a finish. Nevertheless, she persisted & joined @derajslc & Greig for the daunting & critical loop 4.

When we crossed paths on loop 5 & I did the math in my head, the odds for her were very bad. After I finished & heard how far behind she was at the fire tower, the question was how long over the cutoff she would unfortunately be. Nevertheless, she persisted.

As the last few minutes of hope disappeared, my oldest son was the 1st to spot her moving through the woods towards camp. Someone dismissed it as just a kid saying things. When she emerged, Jared & I started frantically looking between each other, our watches, & her willing her broken body up the road. @garyrobbins, who has the most heart breaking near finish at Barkley & returned this year to crew me, stood behind us.

My daughters were there watching. Thank you Jasmin, for showing them what I never fully could.

@howiesternphoto

 

I honestly don't see any spectator value in Barkley.  You're seeing the competitors what, once every 12 hours or so? 

But...if you have YouTube channel, or some other internet channel or site, where you can make money from people viewing what you post, then it's in your interest to go out there and film the race.

Was the course harder? John Kelly speaks -

Some general #BM100 thoughts. To start, how were there so many finishers? Not intentionally being a smartass, but it's because there were so many finishers. Working alone there might have been 1-2 if even that.

We were in 2 lead groups. One had me (22 loops prior to this year), one had Jared (25). Also Greig & Jasmin (6+ each) plus Damian (4). Everyone was a solid navigator (Jasmin in particular seemed to instinctively know things). There's benefit to everyone - even me. This year I was mainly the "fixer" - ensuring no small mistakes became disasters. Little things can kill, but one big mistake could've ended it for everyone.

I also get more seeing a finish from e.g. Jasmin, Ihor, Greig. I've got mine. There's marginal value to more. You don't get to the top & stay there by knocking everyone else down. Pull them up w/ you. Then when you inevitably slip they're right there to catch you.

This was the 2nd year in a row with fantastic conditions. Last year slightly too cold, this year slightly too warm, but neither w/ heavy rain or fog. Start time was in my ideal 5-8 AM window. Good sleep, light by the time you need it, guaranteed daylight finish, no loops of near total darkness.

Course changes were significant, but difficult to quantify. Replaced 1 of my least favorite sections w/ my new least favorite (briars, blowdowns, cliffs, no clear path... an absolute mess). Added 2 books, even if no new distance that adds ~10 minutes.

Is 5 too many? Will the course now get much harder? I don't think so. Everything perfectly aligned, none of the finishes by a huge margin. Next year will probably have a worse start time, worse weather, & not as many strong veterans.

Sometimes people catch lightning in a bottle (congrats Ihor & Aurélien!🙂), but usually people keep at it until they get "lucky" conditions (e.g. Greig, Jasmin, Karel). Zero finishers 2018-2022. "The harder I work, the luckier I get."

Is the goal 1% of attempts finish, 1% of participants (i.e. Jared & I don't "count"), or 1% of qualified applicants could finish? I don't know. If 1% can finish, that 1% is selected, & everyone finishes, seems that's actually right.

I'm pretty sure no one will finish next year. Having FIVE finishers this year is probably making Laz think he made this year's course too easy. Next year will be brutal.

I was told by the one who counted the pages that he had to go back and get the missing page, which he did. I had not heard that somebody brought it to him.

Guillaume Calmettes' dropped page got returned. Talk about serendipity. And sportsmanship.

I'm pretty sure no one will finish next year. Having FIVE finishers this year is probably making Laz think he made this year's course too easy. Next year will be brutal.

Weather plays a factor into finishing.