“You get people who have gone and done these huge races in Colorado and these other places with enormous mountains, and they kind of come in with this mindset of oh it’s just Tennessee, how hard can it be? But a lot of people really underestimate the terrain here.” Vert prep is crucial for the Barkley MarathonsĪs if planning the logistics of a Barkley attempt isn’t hard enough, there’s then the training for an event which provides no pre-race course map, route details or determined distances to consider.Īnd whilst Tennessee may not be known for its mountains, Kelly was keen to emphasise that without training properly for the constant ascending and descending, you stand no chance of getting round. And so late in the race, you’re not only moving slower, but again, your body is less capable of managing its own temperature.” You really lose the ability to self regulate your body temperature once you get that fatigued. “You’ve got to remember that it’s not just the weather that’s changing, it’s your body. Kelly believes that to combat the changes from one extreme to another, having an up to date weather forecast between each loop is vital, as is having someone at camp who can help you prepare everything you’ll need in your pack for the next 12 hours.Įven with the most suitable gear and an idea of the forecast, however, Kelly adds that the stress of constant running for hours on end makes the task of keeping warm or staying hydrated that much more complicated. Then 12 hours later, on the next lap, at that exact water drop, I was scorching hot, just baking in the afternoon sun.” I remember one year at one of the water drops, the gallon jugs were frozen completely solid in the cold. “In Tennessee, at that time of year, you can have a 30 degree celsius swing in just 12 hours. Whilst Kelly grew up just down the road from the race, which is in Frozen Head State Park in Tennessee, he believes one of the key things to prepare for at the Barkley is the weather. 25 entrants disqualified from 2023 Comrades Marathon for ‘cheating’
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