There Are No Finishers at the 2025 Barkley Marathons

The course has won the 2025 Barkley Marathons.

Or really, we should say the winner is race founder Gary “Lazarus Lake” Cantrell. For the first time since 2022, there are no finishers at the Barkley Marathons. Three-time finisher John Kelly completed loop three in 39 hours, 50 minutes, and 27 seconds in the wee hours of Thursday morning, Barkley Marathons Chief Resident Tweeter (or should we now say, Xer?) Keith Dunn reported.

In doing so, Kelly dipped under the cut-off by 10 minutes to earn a “fun run” before tapping himself out. The course, which some believe included a new nasty 45-minute section to this year, was just too hard. Only two other runners made it onto loop three, Tomokazu Ihara (Japan) and Sébastien Raichon (France.) Raichon returned to camp five minutes later without completing the loop. Two hours later Ihara returned, well beyond the cut-off.

While we’re disappointed that we’re robbed from 20 more hours of entertainment, really, we can all breathe a sigh of relief:

The Barkley Marathons can rightfully maintain it’s moniker as “the world’s hardest race.”

It’s the 25th time in 40 years that the Barkley Marathons has no finishers. Only 20 people total have ever done it. The 40th edition is the least “successful” (or should we say most successful?) since 2018, when similarly just one runner, Gary Robbins, completed a “fun run.”

Kelly, who’s on a quest to tie Jared Campbell’s record of four finishes, will just have to come back again next year, armed with even more experience and grit.

Wondering what the Barkley Marathons is all about? Head over to our Barkley Marathons guide to learn about everything the rules, the course, the history and lore, and why an event that sounds an awful lot like orienteering actually isn’t orienteering at all.

Welcome to the 2025 Barkley Marathons

For those in the nichest of niche ultrarunning circles, Christmas came early. At 11:37 A.M. Eastern on Tuesday, March 18, the 2025 Barkley Marathons began.

The start date and time of this race that’s as fabled as it is mysterious change every year. But the third week of March is historically early. Perhaps race founder Gary “Lazarus Lake” Cantrell and his successor, Carl Laniak, were hopeful that pushing the event into the middle of March would bring colder, wetter, windier, and all-around grosser weather. After all, an unprecedented five runners finished the “world’s hardest race” last year. And, ostensibly, they simply can’t let that happen again.

But if they were looking for miserable weather, the weather gods had their own tricks up their sleeves. A cold but clear Monday night gave way to a sunny Tuesday morning with temperatures projected to reach into the high 60s or even the low 70s, according to Dunn. That’s pretty damn perfect, for the runners anyway.

Of course, Laz and Laniak have other curve balls they can throw in the runners’ way. The biggest one, of course, is simply to make the course even harder. While the race is always five 20- to 26-mile loops and runners always have 13 hours and 20 minutes to complete each loop and 60 hours to complete the whole event, the course itself changes every year. But you can always expect a lot of nasty hills, prickly briars, and off-trail shwacking for a total of 120-130 miles and 60,000 feet of gain. No course markings, and no GPS devices allowed. Runners claimed last year’s edition was bramblier than ever, and yet more runners than ever rose to the challenge.

Here are our live updates from the 2025 Barkley Marathons, in reverse chronological order:

40 Hours Elapsed: The Course Wins

Kelly tapped himself out after earning a “fun run.” Raichon returned to camp five minutes later in 39:55, but did not complete loop three, Dunn reported. Ihara made it back to camp two hours later.

Why did Kelly quit? With just 20 hours and 10 minutes left to run the final two loops after finishing loop three, time—and any modicum of sanity—was not on his side. When Kelly successfully finished the Barkley Marathons last year his splits on the final two loops were 14:10 and 13:30, respectively. We have 40 years of data showing the compounding effects of sleep deprivation, exhaustion, and delirium magnify exponentially over the final two loops at this race.

While in past years finishers have had some time to recoup in camp between loops, if they so chose, this year’s particularly brutal course forced runners fast enough to complete a loop in time to essentially head straight back out. Kelly spent less than 10 minutes in camp between loops two and three.

For the first time since 2022 and for the 25th time in 40 years, the Barkley Marathons has no finishers. The course (and let’s be honest, Laz) has won.

39:50 Elapsed: John Kelly Completes a “Fun Run”

Kelly was the first to return to camp. He arrived through the swirling wind and darkness at 3:28 A.M. on Thursday, Dunn said. That’s just 10 minutes under the cut-off for earning a “fun run” (completing three loops in under 40 hours).

Who’s Left in the 2025 Barkley Marathons:

• Tomokazu Ihara (Japan)—on loop three. This is his sixth attempt. Ihara, 47, has run numerous ultras and is a coach and race director. In 2023 he won the “Grand Slam of Ultrarunning,” meaning he had the fastest cumulative time at five 100-milers in one summer: the Old Dominion 100, Western States 100, Vermont 100, Leadville 100, and Wasatch 100.
• John Kelly (U.S.)—on loop three. This is his eighth attempt. Kelly, 40, is a three-time Barkley Marathons finisher, making him the second-most finisher behind four-time finisher Jared Campbell. He also has a Ph.D. in electrical learning and machine learning and is the Chief Technology Officer at Envelop Risk and has set several high-profile fastest known times, including on the Pennine Way and the Long Trail.
• Sébastien Raichon (France)—on loop three. This is his second attempt. Raichon, 52,  has finished Tor des Geants (2019) and set the GR20 FKT last year.

27 Hours Elapsed: Maxime Gauduin Quits

The Frenchman called it quits on loop three with no pages in tow, Dunn said at 2:56 P.M. Eastern. And then there were three.

25:29 Elapsed: 4 Runners Total Have Finished Loop 2

Frenchmen Sébastien Raichon and Maxime Gauduin finished loop two together in 25:29, with an hour and 11 minutes to spare, Dunn said.

Meanwhile, after just 10-ish minutes in camp John Kelly (U.S) began loop three about 90 minutes before the cutoff. Raichon and Gauduin followed suit about 30 minutes later. There are now four runners on loop three, with Tomokazu Ihara (Japan) in the lead.

25 Hours Elapsed: We Have 2 Loop 2 Finishers (Phew)

Tomokazu Ihara (Japan) finished loop 2 in 24:32, and the collective Barkley community took a sigh of relief. He began loop three just 15 or so minutes later, according to Dunn. Three-time Barkley finisher John Kelly (U.S.) finished loop two on 25 hours on the dot (and 40 seconds, but who’s counting). That’s five and a half hours slower than Kelly’s overall split through loop two last year, when he went all the way.

Both Ihara and Kelly split over two hours slower for loop two than loop one, which is pretty in line with the discrepancy between loops one and two in previous years. However, their loop two splits of roughly 12:35 and 13 hours, respectively, are about two hours slower than Kelly’s loop two split last year.

They have until 40 hours elapsed to make it back to the gate in time for a “fun run” (three loops). That means they need to run faster than 14 hours for the third lap. Last year Kelly completed loop three in 12 hours, with the company of Ihor Verys and Damian Hall.

24 Hours In and No One Has Completed Loop 2

With the latest drop (Julien Chable from France), only six runners remain, Dunn reported. They have until 26:40 elapsed to return to the yellow gate and head back out on their merry (or should we say weary) way if they want to have any chance of completing a “fun run” (three loops), much less the whole thing (five loops).

For context, 12 runners completed loop two in under 24 hours last year. The one runner to complete loop two in longer than that (Guillaume Calmettes, France, 26:25) made it to a fun run before tapping out. All five of last year’s finishers finished loop two in under 20 hours. And that includes Jasmin Paris, who finished the whole race with less than two minutes to spare.

Will the runners be able to pick up the pace now that they (theoretically) know the new course? Or will the alternating of loop directions, shifting from daylight to darkness, and compounding effects of sleep deprivation, fatigue, and frustration get the best of them?

We’re hoping for the former, but expecting the latter.

(And side note: the last time no one completed a “fun run” was in 2006!)

21:00 Elapsed: 7 Runners Remain on Loop 2

Chris Fisher (U.S.) and Thomas Calmettes (France) both dropped from loop two at Bald Knob this morning, Dunn reported, noting, “Though seemingly about a hundred yards apart, they did not see each other.” This means at most 7 runners will successfully finish loop two within the time limit and move onto loop 3. That’s down from 13 who finished and 12 who moved onto loop three last year.

13:20 Elapsed: 10 Runners Complete Loop 1 Within Limit

That includes a final runner who finished the loop with under two minutes to spare, according to Dunn. They were able to do one of Barkley’s fastest-ever camp stops and turned it around in time to start loop two before the 13-hour-and-2o-minute cut-off.

Of those 10 runners, nine went on to loop 2, Dunn says. Fourteen runners returned to camp, and a 16 remain out on the course. When they returned they will also receive a DNF and be ceremoniously dismissed from the race with the playing of “Taps” on the bugle.

This means that there was just a 25 percent loop-one finish rate within the cutoff this year. That’s exactly half of what it was last year, when 20 of the 40 entrants finished loop one in time. What’s going on this year?

Some runners may have adopted the old “follow a veteran runner” strategy, Dunn says, maintaining that Laz was “not impressed” by this game plan. We’re also hearing grumblings that Laz added a “very tough section” that could add a whopping 45 minutes to each loop this year.

We’re also receiving reports that there are 16 books that runners must reach on every loop this year. If true, that’s at least one more than the typical 10 to 15.

11:00 Elapsed: Will It Be a Short Barkley This Year?

A third runner finished loop one in 10:20 elapsed, according to Dunn. Laz reassured him that “every loop is easier than the loop before” as he set out for loop two, which per tradition will be run in the opposite direction and also in the pitch black, about 20 minutes later. Ah, Laz, we’ve missed your sense of humor!

Two more runners snuck in under the 11-hour mark in 10:57:32 and 10:57:50, which means only five runners have finished loop one with one hour remaining before all runners left in the race must start loop two. The odds (and what seems to be an especially tough course, given the bluebird conditions today) do not appear to be in the runners’ favor this year.

Dunn confirmed that “Tomo,” otherwise known as Tomokazu Ihara (Japan), is one of the successful handful onto loop two.

9:45 Elapsed: Two Runners Complete Loop 1

They finished the loop in 9:44:55 and 9:44:57, Dunn said. For reference, nine athletes completed loop one in well under nine hours last year. Given that we know of at least one (and we think more) Barkley finisher who was in that group of nine last year, signs are pointing to a very, very hard course this year.

Buckle up.

6:00 Elapsed: The DNFs Start Rolling In

Less than six hours into the 60-hour race and the 2025 Barkley Marathons already has its first drop. The first runner to quit the race returned back to camp on “quitter’s road” in the early evening, Dunn tweeted at 5:21 P.M. Eastern on Tuesday. They faced a rendition of “Taps” played on the bugle horn, and with that their race ended. They made it about five miles in those six hours, Dunn said.

The second DNF followed just over an hour later. They made it about seven miles in seven hours, according to Dunn. An hour later and the DNF rate had doubled.

“The thing is, they are coming back to camp from all directions and in some cases cannot describe where they were,” Dunn said. “This is old school Barkley.”

For the first time, runners must return their race-issued analog watch when their race ends, Dunn said.

11:37 A.M.: The 2025 Barkley Marathons Have Begun

After the classic “brief memorial” in which he cautioned runners to “make your peace with God,” Laz lit the cigarette marking the start of the 2025 Barkley Marathons. Runners have 13 hours and 20 minutes to complete the loop and make it back to the yellow gate marking the entrance to Frozen Head State Park. That means we better see them all back there by 11:37 P.M. so they can begin their first night loop.

Who’s racing? We’ll have to wait to find out until runners finish a loop…or two…or three, otherwise known as a “fun run.” But Dunn outed three-time finisher John Kelly when the conch (eventually) was blown:

“Finally,” Kelly said. “We could have done a loop by now.”

If Kelly, who was one of the five to finish last year, prevails again he will join the exceedingly rarified air of becoming just the second person ever along with Jared Campbell to finish the Barkley Marathons four times.

10:38: A.M.: The Conch Has Been Blown (Finally)

Technology—namely online campsite reservation systems—is making it increasingly challenging for Barkley custodians to keep the start date of this mystical event a secret. And sure enough, online grumblings came to fruition on Tuesday morning. At 10:38 A.M. Eastern after “many failed attempts,” Carl Laniak blew the conch marking one hour until the start of the 2025 Barkley Marathons.

Why didn’t race founder Gary “Lazarus Lake” Cantrell blow the conch?

“Because he’s even worse than Carl at blowing it,” Dunn tweeted (“x”-ed?).

There’s probably at least some truth to that statement. For those who haven’t had the pleasure of trying, cajoling sound out of a big shell isn’t easy. But fans of this cult classic event are also wondering if it’s a sign of changing times. Laz, 69, has slated  Laniak as his successor to overseeing the Barkley Marathons.

We’ll have the next 60 hours to find out. One hour until the race begins.