I’m sure you have, however, heard of the secretive and brutal race called the Barkley Marathons. A five loop, one hundred mile ultramarathon held in Frozen Head State Park just north west of Wartburg, Tennessee (USA).
Well what you might not have heard is that a kiwi just got on the record breaking 5-way ‘podium’ to be one of the finishers at the year’s race.
It might not sound like a big achievement to ‘finish’ a race. But this isn’t just any race.
This is HUGE considering there have only ever been completed by 20 runners EVER, and the race has been running since 1986!
Greig Hamilton, touched the finish line, the infamous yellow gate, in 59 hours 38minutes and 42 seconds. He was the 19th ever finisher of the grueling race coming in just over 20 minutes before the 60 hours cut off – which would have resulted in a DNF.
Want to enter? Well, that’s a challenge in itself.
The entry procedure is secret. There is no official website. The race is not listed on any calendar. You have to email the race director on a certain day of the year AND the race will fill up on that day, no matter what. In 2024 there were about 1200 entries and only 40 were accepted to race.
Good luck!
Photo: Howie Stern / iRunFar.com
Greig – a member of the Bivouac Southerly Storm Orienteering Team (NZ) – wearing his blue and white top for the finishers photo.