“If I could trade one of my Barkley Marathons finishes for a Tor podium, I would’ – John Kelly after TOR330 DNF

American ultrarunning legend John Kelly said he would swap one of his Barkley Marathon finishes for a podium at the Tor des Géants after his latest disappointment in the 330km Italian Alps epic.

Just 20 people have finished the notorious Barkley Marathons in Tennessee – and Kelly has done so three times, the latest earlier this year when Jasmin Paris also became the first ever woman to do so.

But the Tor des Géants, which features even more climbing at 24,000 metres, has proved elusive.

‘The race refuses to love me back’

Writing on his Instagram page before this year’s event, which has just finished in the Italian town of Courmayeur, Kelly had said: “The race I love that just refuses to love me back. In 3 attempts I’ve finished around 15th twice, DNF’d once, nearly deliriously wandered into Switzerland, ended up with rhabdo just fifty miles into the race, and had my race saved by a miraculous appearance from @theultrarunnergirl.

“I’ve had a great first day one year, and a great second day last year with @thekingofthecarbs. On all days I’ve seen incredible views, shared the trails with great people, and come away with experiences I’ll never forget. I’m incredibly thankful to be supported now a third time by an amazing valdostani crew led by @marlenejorrioz.

“Hopefully this is the year I can string three good days together and come away with the result I’m capable of. But in any case, I will enjoy these mountains and embrace this experience.”

What went wrong for Kelly?

But despite a positive start, things did not pan out as hoped.

Instead it was four-time UTMB winner François D’Haene who became just the second Frenchman in 15 years to win the overall title.

Explaining what happened on his social media channels, Kelly said: “I don’t think I’ve ever had a more frustrating result. This was the one. After coming up short of expectations at @tordesgeants three times before, this was it. For close to 18 hours I felt unstoppable. I was nailing my planned splits, running at the front, eating well, the weather was perfect for me, and it all felt so unbelievably effortless and fun.

“Then suddenly in the pre-dawn hours I could not stay awake. I was stumbling around trying just to stay on my feet and keep my eyes open. This should be a problem for the 2nd night, not the 1st. A strong, cold wind had also picked up, so I couldn’t safely stop and rest for a few minutes unless I broke out the emergency blankets. While focusing on staying awake and warm I neglected staying fed and hydrated.

“Eventually I made it to a rifugio for a quick nap, still in 5th despite two hours of staggering around like a drunk. In a race as long as Tor time lost like that can be made up, but the bigger problem was the cascading effects of not properly taking care of myself before the nap. My stomach had turned on me, and then my under-fueled legs got destroyed by the 30 km long descent into Donnas.

“I continued for nearly 20 hours trying to turn things back around. @marlenejorrioz was great at keeping me moving, even calling in an assist from @theultrarunnergirl to keep me from quitting early. But eventually, facts are facts. At best I could have walked the rest of the way. That would have accomplished none of my goals, jeopardized future ones, and would not have been fun (not type 1 or type 2 fun).

“My target “success” rate for my big running goals is around 40%. If I’m doing better, maybe my goals are too easy. Worse, and maybe I’m too ambitious. Over time I’ve been pretty close to that, but I do really wish Tor would stop getting the bad roll of the dice every time.

“If I could trade one of my Barkley finishes for a Tor podium, at this point I would.”