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Canadian ultra runner, Gary Robbins spent the weekend and then some running in the infamous Barkley Marathon race only to not finish the race on his fifth and final lap.
It was his second attempt at the 100- mile race.
Early on Monday, April 3rd, Robbins was looking good and keeping step with runner, John Kelly.
At the finish, Robbins was told by race director, Laz (Gary "Lazarus Lake" Cantrell) that he missed the cut-off time by six seconds.
Robbins was devastated that he came so close to finishing and again didn't make it.
Since Monday, the race director, Laz has come out and said he wished he'd never said Robbins was late by six seconds.
The fact that he went off course for the final two miles meant that he was disqualified already, regardless of the time.
I'm glad Laz admitted his "foolishness" #bm100 @gary_robbins #gogarygo pic.twitter.com/NAbrHzNvMt
— Jer Langhans Ⓥ (@majiksourcer) April 4, 2017
The race consists of five 32-kilometre loops from alternating directions through the woods, making it 160 kilometres or 100 miles.
There are no aid stations throughout the course.
No watches, heart rate monitors or digital navigation tools of any kind are allowed and runners have 60 hours to complete the course.
On Tuesday, Robbins tweeted, "Close but no cigarette," with a link to his reflections on the race.
Close, But No Cigarette https://t.co/JpAlUY93tf
— Gary Robbins (@gary_robbins) April 4, 2017
On his blog he writes:
"Regarding my finish yesterday. After collecting my 13th and final book page, having not stopped moving for even a second on my fifth and final lap, the fog had once again set in. As I went over the final bump on the course I knew I would hit a trail, go left, and run down into camp with maybe five minutes to spare, but the math added up, I was going to make it."
However, he was wrong and by the time he saw the reality of his deprived, foggy brain setting in, he felt it was too late to correct the mistake. He had about two miles to go.
"I should have rapidly been heading east, and not south for more then a few seconds.," said Robbins.
However, he ended up reaching a stair case and that's when he realized he was off course. There are no stair cases in the Barkley marathon.
He was then faced with the decision of turning back to correct his mistake and run back over the mountain, or chart a course to the finish from where he was and that's what he did.
Robbins writes:
"In that raw moment however, I see two options, turn back up the mountain and finish over time, or shoot a bearing and find yet one more reserve of energy to get to the yellow gate in under 60 hours. I bushwhacked down the mountain at breakneck speed and I found myself at a large river. The river was maybe fifteen feet wide and absolutely raging from all the rain we were experiencing. I took one step off the river bank and was already chest deep. I would never have made the decision to attempt to swim such waters under anything other than a highly sleep deprived and stressed state of mind."
"I washed out on the other side maybe thirty feet down stream. I continued bushwhacking and quickly spotted the road into camp. I had less than three minutes left till the sixty hour cutoff. I thrashed my way to the road and put my head down and gutted out the hardest three minutes of my life to collapse at the gate, overtime, and from the wrong direction. I did not finish The Barkley Marathons, and that is no one's fault but my own. That one fatal error with just over two miles to go haunts me."
By late Monday morning, the tweets started coming in supporting Robbins' effort and incredibly close finish.
In 20 years Gary Robbins' 6 seconds will be better remembered than most finishes. The greatest failure, gut wrenchingly glorious. #bm100
— Ally Beaven (@AlllllyB) April 3, 2017
The entire ultra community is collectively aching for @gary_robbins while simultaneously celebrating @RndmForestRunnr's amazing run. #BM100
— Doug Hay (@RockCreekRunner) April 3, 2017
In the end, John Kelly was the only finisher of this year's race. He is now the 15th runner to ever finish the Barkley Marathon.
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