The 2025 Barkley Marathons are under way at Frozen Head State Park in Tennessee.
“After multiple failed attempts, the conch was blown at 10:37. The 2025 Barkley Marathons begins in one hour,” posted Keith Dunn on X and Bluesky on Tuesday 18 March to signal that the start of this year’s race.
He followed at 11:37 by saying: “After a brief memorial, laz lit the cigarette at 11:37. The 2025 Barkley Marathons has begun.” That was 15:37 in the UK and 16:37 in central Europe.
It is the latest Barkley start on record, ‘beating’ the mark of 11:23 from 2015, and it means the first loop will finish in darkness for most as sunset is 19:49.
Dunn is the only source of official updates for the infamous event, which last year made global headlines when Britain’s Jasmin Paris became the first woman to finish the brutal 100 miles inside the allotted 60 hours.
‘Camp is very upbeat and ready to go’
The date of the event – usually at some point in March or early April – is kept a secret to discourage spectators from attending due to the delicate nature of the park’s ecosystem.
There’s a 12-hour window from midnight to midday for the start and when the conch is blown, usually by maverick race organiser Laz Lake – but this year by Carl Laniak, who has taken an increasingly lead role. That meant the 40 competitors knew they had that hour to get ready.
In that time they are all issued with a basic watch set to 00:00 and were then sent on their way by Laz symbolically lighting a cigarette.
Dunn added on his social channels: “Camp is very upbeat and ready to go. The last time there was a late start runners were anxious and stressed. None of that this year.”
Dunn’s X feed had gone surprisingly quiet for the previous 48 hours, especially as his favourite English soccer team Newcastle United had won their first trophy in 56 years on Sunday without him even referencing it, bar a repost on Bluesky. Something he later remedied when asked whether he’d celebrated!
Will Barkley bite back?
There have only been 20 finishers in the history of the event – but with a record five last year (when it began at 05.17 local time on Wednesday 20th March) and three in 2023 (after a 09:54 start on Tuesday 14 March) there is speculation that Lake will make the course tougher than ever this time around.
A lot of that will depend on the weather though – and at the moment the forecast is relatively favourable for the runners following what was a challenging weekend. However strong winds are predicted for Wednesday, with the temperatures then dropping markedly on Thursday.
The race, which is widely known as one of the toughest endurance challenges on the planet, features five 20-mile laps, which each have to be completed inside 12 hours.
Who is taking part?
So much of the Barkleys is shrouded in secrecy, not only the start date but also who is taking part.
There had been few clues this year but the headline name at this stage would appear to be three-time finisher John Kelly.
He has been inextricably linked with the event in the last decade and only Jared Campbell can top that hat-trick of completions.
Much more will be revealed soon and here’s who we know so far are taking part, which we’ll keep adding to.
And our live race page will again keep you updated with what’s happening from start to finish.
Why the secrecy?
There’s very good reason that so much about the Barkley – especially the start date – is kept under wraps.
For the delicate ecological status of Frozen Head State Park means that spectators are positively discouraged.
Those covering the race respect this and there’s also the fact that this is pretty much a unique sporting event in the modern age, where the only real official information comes from that X account of Keith Dunn.
All of which adds to the charm – and challenge – of providing those updates!
