Barkley Marathons: From ‘sacrificial virgins’ to ‘fun runs’, five things you need to know

Whilst being one of the most secretive races in the world has its perks, the mystery surrounding the Barkley Marathons also often leaves new fans of the race scratching their heads trying to figure out the what, why and who of the event.

Whilst our full race guide gives a greater insight into the history and intricacies of the event, this article aims to highlight the main idiosyncrasies that make the race unique and to give you five examples to share with your training partners of just how bonkers this race is!

The cheapest race you’ll ever enter

One of the most unique aspects of the Barkley Marathons is since its inception, it has managed to remain unaffected by inflation, financial crises and credit crunches to cost just $1.60 to enter.

Newcomers or “virgins” have been said to most recently been asked to pay the entry fee, bring a licence plate from their home state and write an essay titled “Why I should be allowed to run the Barkley”. Doesn’t seem too bad does it? It doesn’t, until you realise the first challenge of the Barkley is figuring out where and when to enter.

Potential competitors must email the race director, on an address not publicly known, on a specific day not made privy to them, for a race entry form that is only provided after your entry is accepted. According to a popular Barkley FAQ page, aspiring contenders shouldn’t get their hopes up that their entry will be accepted anyway.

On chances of acceptance to the race, the page reads: “The entry list and ordered weight list gives preference to those who have a good chance of finishing the race. Nobody has a good chance of finishing the race. One spot is allocated for a sacrificial virgin. That is probably your best hope.”

The sacrificial virgin

No need to worry, the race isn’t quite so crazy that a real human sacrifice is involved! Instead, the term refers to the person who is given the No.1 race number for the event.

In many events, the No.1 bib is reserved for the fastest runner in the field, or the top-seeded athlete. However, bib No.1 in the Barkley is reserved for the athlete who is deemed the least likely to finish the event, with this person referred to as the “sacrificial virgin”.

Race director Gary “Lazarus Lake” Cantrell handpicks the athlete unlucky enough to earn the No.1 bib, with the person chosen for the “human sacrifice” or “sacrificial virgin” tag deemed by Cantrell as unlikely to even finish a single loop of the gruelling course.

No start time necessary

In typical Barkley fashion, the racers are kept in the dark about the start time of the event until the very last second. After arriving at Frozen Head State Park in Tennessee, handing in their race entries (whatever they may be) and setting up camp, the competitors await their fate.

The race can start at anytime between midnight and noon, with Cantrell sounding a conch to signal an hour to go during any moment of that 12-hour period. Once the conch has been sounded, the runners make their way to the start, and one hour later, Cantrell lights a cigarette to signal the start of the race.

Runners begin from a yellow gate at a campground in Frozen Head State Park, with Cantrell’s cigarette signalling the start of a 60-hour countdown, which is the time limit for racers to complete five loops of the course and thus finish the Barkley.

A bookworm’s paradise

At the Barkley, some solace can be taken by competitors in the fact that it’s a great place to catch up on some reading. The route, which naturally is kept a secret, has between nine and eleven books hidden on every lap, with an athlete’s bib number corresponding to a page in a book.

Competitors must bring back their corresponding pages at the end of every lap, if they wish to be deemed to have officially finished the lap and be allowed to continue onwards. Most loops tend to be over 20 miles in distance with plenty of elevation gain, so finding books hidden under rocks, in ravines or halfway up cliffs adds a fun, educational element!

To help them remember the route, Cantrell allows competitors to make notes from his master map at the beginning of each loop, but after that, the runners are on their own to find the books and finish the lap. GPS devices of any kind are strictly forbidden.

The “fun run”

With only 15 finishers, ever, the Barkley is probably the hardest challenge in endurance sport and is widely renowned as the toughest race some of the world’s best ever ultra runners have faced.

Whilst the full five loops may seem out of reach, there is a challenge within the challenge, and that is to finish the “fun run” or three full loops. In 2022, Jasmin Paris became the first woman in ten years to complete the “fun run”.

For the full distance, each loop must be completed in under twelve hours to finish. However, the “fun run” allows a slightly more lenient time limit, with runners attempting the challenge afforded 13 hours, 20 minutes for each loop.

After four events with no finishers, 2023 could be the first time since the pandemic that someone will complete the infamous Barkley. However, with no start list, race date or event information, it’s impossible to know just who or when that might be.