It's been 10 days since the gruelling Barkley Marathons crushed every one of its victims, and the runners are finally recovered enough to share their thoughts on this year's race. Some, like Australia's Isobel Tait, explain that sickness that kept them down, while Colorado-based Chris Fisher noted the heat and pace, but UK-based American runner John Kelly has a rather more philosophical take on things.
The ultra runner was the only one of 40 starters to complete three laps of the course at Frozen Head State Park, which founder Gary "Lazarus Lake" Cantrell made more difficult after last year saw a record number of finishers (five) including the first-ever woman (Jasmin Paris). So there wasn't a winner exactly, but Kelly – who has completed three Barkleys – definitely came the closest and those punishing 60 miles in 39 hours, 50 minutes earned him the most dubious "Fun Run" in trail running
But despite yet more photos showing Kelly's shredded legs posted to Facebook, Kelly has come out in defense of the race.
"Barkley isn't sadistic. If anything, it's existentialist," says Kelly in response to what he calls the "armchair experts" who have been calling it intentionally impossible.
"Barkley is a satire. All races are absurd, as are other sports, and art, and music, and most things that give us joy or meaning," he continues, saying that for him, Barkley is no less absurd than five people try to put a ball through a basket on a court with random lines drawn on it
"All of these things are absurd. None advance society, provide fundamental needs, or ensure the survival of our species. Most things that make life worthwhile are inherently not worth anything. Their value and meaning come only from what we give them, or from contributing to things that do matter."
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As for his performance? Kelly, who in January ranked fifth in the brutal Montane Winter Spine Race, says he's not upset about not finishing, even if he was hoping to tie Jared Campbell for the most finishes ever.
"It's an opportunity I hadn't had there in a while - to push myself until there was nothing left, to now be searching for what I could do better and how I could go farther. That, to me, has meaning."
That said, it wasn't all mellow rumination for the runner. A few days before this post, he revealed how the course beat him up, snatching a glove and both flasks from his Ultimate Direction hydration pack, which then got caught on a tree and broke. He lost a BOA fastening off his La Sportivas, which look a lot like the Jackal IIs and his headlamp went into low battery mode. Still, we can't say for sure, but it sounds like Kelly might be back next year for another lesson in humility.
Meanwhile, a new documentary, which you can watch below, gets into the details of the chaotic race as it chronicles Jasmin Paris' historic 2024 finish, which she pulled off with less than two minutes to spare and in a pair of very old Inov-8 Mudclaw G 260s. She describes how she chanted the names of family members to get her to the finish and how it felt realizing she only had eight minutes left to complete the course and it's well worth a watch.
