Today, Laz Lake is in the studio talking about the Barkley Marathons. The Barkley Marathons is the most notorious trail race around, and Laz Lake is the semi-evil genius behind it. Runner’s World has described it as “Five Loops Of Death” and “Arguably the craziest race in the world,” and it was even the subject of a full-length documentary called “The Race That Eats Its Young.”
The Barkley Marathons is a five loop, approximately 125 mile race held annually in the Tennessee backcountry, specifically Frozen Head State Park. Over those 125 miles, finishers will have experienced a vertical gain equivalent to climbing Mount Everest TWICE. The cutoff time is just 60 hours. There are no formal course guides or aid stations, and the runners are forced to navigate by their own, hand drawn paper maps. Since 1986 only 20 runners out of more than 1000 have finished the Barkley Marathons.
We talk to Laz Lake about
- The origination of the Barkley Marathons
- How to apply for the Barkley Marathons
- Veterans and virgins
- Laz’s bad habits
- Finish rate of the Barkley Marathons
- Athletic Achievement in endurance sports
- Jasmin Paris’s Completion of the Barkley Marathons
- Other backyard ultra-marathons
Links mentioned in this episode
- Full Documentary “The Race That Eats Its Young”
- Tamara Reynolds Photography
- David Miller Photography
Connect
- Catch up with Hayden on IG, TikTok, and more
- Follow TBM on Youtube, IG, and everywhere else
- Get yer limited-run TBM X Out Yonder Co. merch
Partners
- Special thanks to our partners at Shared Pour! Visit https://SharedPour.com – Use code “BACKCOUNTRY” for 10% off at checkout.
- Special thanks to our patterns at Out Yonder Company! Visit https://OutYonderCompany.com and use code “BACKCOUNTRY15” for 15% off at checkout.
Many thanks to the folks that made this episode possible
- Featuring Laz Lake
- Special thanks to Tamara Reynolds for her photography
- Produced by Andrew O’Neill with Hayden Sammak
- Intro and Animations by Barry Thompson
- Photograph Contributions for Animation by Carver Weeks
- Additional Graphics by Andrew O’Neill
- Production Assistance by John Stock
- “Welcome to the Backcountry” theme song by Logan Roth, Will Brown, Arjun Dube and produced at Treacle Mine Studios, Phila, PA
