The Barkley Course

Damn right.

What the actual hell?

@DivyaOYR There won’t be any finishers this year, either.

Most marathons measure distance. Barkley measures people. No cheering crowds. No clear course. No prize money. Just a man named Lazarus Lake, a cigarette, a conch shell & a start line that appears whenever he feels like it. The Barkley Marathons were born after a prison escape in Tennessee. An inmate ran only 8 miles in 55 hours through those woods. Lazarus thought: “I could do at least 100.”So he built a race to prove it. Five loops. Roughly 160 kilometers. Unmarked trails. Thorns, fog, hallucinations & climbs that feel personal. Instead of aid stations, runners search for hidden books in the forest. Tear out a page matching their bib number. That’s proof they survived the loop. Miss one page? You don’t exist. The entry fee? $1.60 and a license plate. First-timers bring a white shirt. Veterans bring whatever bizarre gift Lazarus demands that year. Almost nobody finishes. In 30+ years, fewer than 25 humans have completed all five loops within 60 hours. Some of the fittest athletes in the world leave broken, lost, or quietly crying into the trees. There are no pacers. No GPS allowed. No sympathy. Just a clock that doesn’t care and a forest that seems alive. At Barkley, running fast means nothing. Being tough means nothing. What matters is stubbornness so pure it borders on delusion. People don’t go there to win. They go there to meet the version of themselves they’ve never met. And most of them never want to meet them again. PS: 2025 had no finishers.

*sips tea* #bm100

@immaggi @keithdunn Some know, some are in denial; all are doomed. #bm100

@BarkleyCourse @keithdunn Do the runners know? Are they now aiming for the Fun Run? I’m still watching.

@keithdunn - Update for immediate release: There will be no #bm100 finishers this year. As such, everyone can return to work and get on with their lives and I will see you all again next year where I hope the runners prepare better. Thanks again for coming out to play!

@MGMondial @keithdunn It's what the old timers call "Barkley math" - to the casual observer it *SEEMS* like it should add up but at #bm100 it doesn't. Hear me now, believe me later if you must.

@BarkleyCourse @keithdunn …? How come? A couple of minutes ago @keithdunn said that 6 runners are still in the race

@ajholt7 @keithdunn That's actually the primary aspect of my #bm100 job description.

@BarkleyCourse @keithdunn

@imalismom @keithdunn I take it you're new in these parts...? 😂

@BarkleyCourse @keithdunn You know… when you tell someone they can’t do something - they tell you to “hold my drink”

People always want to know what it's like out there at #bm100 Hard to describe - you really have to be out there to understand. But I can universally tell when they are in despair and they've had enough when they are openly weeping on the climbs.

@kevin_212 So you're a #bm100 optimist. 😆

Let’s talk loop 2…the slowest loop 2 split to ever finish was 21:13 (but finished with 90+ minutes to spare). Usually 20 hours is the neighborhood you want to be in. Possible? Maybe. But an ~11 hour dark loop after a 9:45 opening daylight loop? 22-23hrs is more likely. #bm100

The #bm100 reports are that is is dark now at FHSP. While this is true and factual, there actually was a not insignificant portion of this year's field that was completely "in the dark" from the very start. True story.

TWSS

@keithdunn Actually, there are multiple quitters currently. Along with some that don't yet grasp that it's over for them. Please be patient, they are all fine but they will be with me for a while more still. Trust the #bm100 process, this is how it all works.

Someone has quit by now. We don’t know who, we don’t know where, we don’t know why. But for sure someone has quit. We’ll find out who/when/why when they get back to camp. #BM100

@KarenDeWindt @keithdunn Looks like I may have to join you. @keithdunn is there too. Follow along with #bm100 over there as well. There's overlap but overall it looks like it's probably a better feed over there so far. But, I'm just a dumb course so what do I know?

I am contemplating creating a Bluesky-account just for the #BM100 . Is there extra news there? I mean, the only news is our dear lord and saviour @keithdunn, but still.

Thanks, Keith. I'll take it from here.

@ajholt7 For barkers, "the day" is *ALWAYS* today. #bm100

Is today the day? #bm100

Leave me alone.

@keithdunn giphy.com/clips/MockoFun…

@BarkleyCourse Shouldn’t you be hiding in shame right now?

Coming down after the annual 60hr unsustainable binge that is #bm100 is always bittersweet...But, it's been a minute since we've heard from @keithdunn ; can someone lay eyes on the lad and report back that he's still breathing?

@mikewardian @runroblarun @hoka @TMobile @bigspooners @NathanSportsInc @GUEnergyLabs 'sup broseph - You talkin' to me? #bm100

Time to try again for the @guinnessworldrecords fastest marathon as a film character, I want Forrest Gump. Time to better is 2:36:28 by my buddy @runroblarun , I was close last year but missed it. There is a saying something about if at first you don’t succeed try try again 😉.