At first glance, I thought the subject line was "If you ever wanted to run to the bakery."  Coincidentally, I almost stopped at a bakery on a run this weekend, but I kept going when I remembered that I didn't have any money.

That would probably be a good run to do. Based on what I have read, the actual Barkley run seems like more of a pain in the ass than anything else, lots of moving through areas without much of a trail at all, briars, etc. (Hard for the sake of being hard). And that is all fine and good, but it just never appealed to me. I slow myself down enough without a bunch of extra crap to slow me down. I just want to go slowly as fast as I can. This, however, is something I wouldn't mind doing. The area is gorgeous.

Interesting.

A little more from laz, compliments of the ultralist (description of how the fall classic came to be)

> From: owensx41@gmail.com
> 
> With all the talk of "Instant Classic" being used to describe sporting events and movies etc. I think I'm seeing the beginning of a shift in a words meaning.  In the future, Classic will not be used to describe 
something that has withstood the test of time, but will be used as a predictor of greatness......maybe this has already happened.

(from here down is Laz) 
interesting take. 
perhaps the definition has already changed somewhat,
at least in regard to sports events.
 
over the decades, as a basketball or baseball coach i have seen lots of "classics" come and go.
"christmas classic" is a basketball favorite
in some way, my mind has always equated the "classic" part to the overall concept.
the christmas tournament;
offering a team the chance to play some "new" opponents in new venues,
and giving a break from the grind of conference play,
is an old one and a good one.
christmas tournaments are a "classic" concept,
even tho the hooterville christmas "classic" might be in its first year.
 
every year i think about ending the barkley for one reason.
that day when i get about 10 applicants for every slot.
it is just plain unpleasant.
i am sure i am not the only RD who finds it painful to turn people down.
 
a few years ago, i got the germ of an idea.
why not string together a course featuring a bunch of the favorite barkley trails;
except one that could handle more than 35 people. 
 
a course that doesn't take an expert woodsman, 
and a world class navigator to follow.
 
my thought was;
how could i make a taste of the barkley experience available to every runner that wants it.
the magnificence of frozen head,
the lost world feel of the deep hollows where the sun never shines
and the inspiring overlooks where you can see a hundred miles...
 
and repeatedly traveling from one to the other,
on a ball-busting course.

a refreshment to the soul from the scenery,
coupled with a challenge to the heart from the sheer difficulty.
 
i have played with the idea several times,
never coming up with quite the right course,
nor any real strong concepts of how to bring the idea to fruition.
this year, after the agony of turning down 90% of the barkley applicants
(many of them good friends)
i decided i had to come up with a way to make this idea happen.
me and durb played with the maps,
until we figured out a course that would work.
(and it is a beauty)
 
thinking of what to name this new race was a trick.
barkley marathon, or barkley 50k, those would cause confusion with the spring event.
but we wanted to keep some barkley connection,
because this is really an outgrowth of that race.
an "everyman's barkley" of a sort.
barkley fall classic, when it popped into my head, seemed like a revelation.
the trails and hills are "classic"
over the past 30 years they have proven their mastery over many a barker.
the barkley loop concept is a "classic."
there are an awful lot of barkers who think finishing a loop is a real achievement.
 
trust me. finishing this one will be an achievement.
i will be shocked if there is a 50% finish rate.
 
creating the right course was only one obstacle to overcome.
another immediate issue was how to provide aid stations.
about the only way to access any points on the course requires a 4WD vehicle.
and there are not many points that offer even that.
on top of that;
morgan county is not exactly a hotbed for trailrunning,
and i am not the world's best volunteer recruiter...
 
the solution, when we came up with one,
only sweetened the deal.
we divided up the tasks that volunteers would ordinarily perform,
and recruited assistance from the sports teams at local wartburg high school.
in return, we added an amount to the entry fee, to make a donation to each team that took on one of the jobs we need done in order to hold the race.
morgan county might not be a trailrunning hotbed,
but it could be the 4WD drive capital of the world.
and their high school is not a rich school with unlimited funds.
our offer was like a godsend.
we have our manpower, and our 4WD capabilty, solved
(not to say we won't be glad to have any other volunteers that are interested!)
being long associated with a small rural high school, myself,
i am fully aware of how much the contribution we will be making will mean.
unlike many charitable options,
i know that every dollar will be squeezed for the maximum benefit for a purpose i hold near and dear.
sports opportunities for young people.
 
we still faced the resistance from the park.
my first inquiry had been met with; "frozen head is not for runners."
but the idea had begun to gain momentum of its own.
the local community had embraced the idea.
and we had added an amount to the entry fee to make a contribution to the park, itself.
at the state level, where funding is actually significant,
this was a well-received idea.
we had all the political support needed to remove the last obstacle.
 
over the past month i have spent 6 wonderful days at frozen head,
and while there have gone over a lot of the course.
it brought a smile to think of what the runners would be thinking at the various points.
we built in "quitters road" options,
so beaten runners could break their day off at 9, 15, or 24 miles.
i laughed out loud,
thinking of people coming to those points,
and deciding; "no mas."
 
i realized that we had better describe the trails as "technical"
because they are not easy, manicured footpaths.
i thought about how many times someone was going to stop, look around, and think;
"god, this is beautiful" and
"what a fabulous place!"
 
not to mention;
"will these hills ever end?"
 
i came home with a song in my heart;
and then find out the word "classic" is an issue!
 
hey,
at least we didn't call it the "first annual"
or the "toughest 50k in the world!"
 
laz

One other thing regarding the difficulty of the "real" barkley.

I recently listed to a podcast on Elevation Trail where they interviewed Gary Cantrell (aka Laz)

It was fascinating hearing about the history of the Barkley and how he views the difficulty of the race.

He got into the origins of the race, how it has evolved over the years (not the course, more the participants), his views on the current ultra running scene, thoughts on the best way to race, his other ultra's and much more.

It was a great listen and well worth the time.

For me to write a race report, first I will need to survive.

there are some statements out there that this will be a one time race, not something that repeats every year. You want it, come and get it.