Come on Jasmin Paris!!!

[ArabellaScott]

She's on it!!!!!

She's running the infamous Barkley Marathon and she could be the first female to ever finish it!

GO JASMIN!!!!

https://run247.com/running-news/trail/barkley-marathons-2024-loop-four-report

Live updates:

https://run247.com/race-previews/barkley-marathons-2024-how-to-follow-live-tracking-latest-results#follow-live

'The Barkley Marathons is made up of five 20-mile loops with more than 54,000 feet of ascent (that’s nearly twice up Mount Everest).
Each loop starts and finishes at the fabled yellow gate where competitors and support teams make camp and the runners have 12 hours to complete each loop.
The first loop is clockwise and then it alternates until the fifth and final lap. At that point the first-placed runner chooses which direction to go, with any other runners alternating so they are more likely to have to run separately.
In reality – though we don’t know for sure as there’s no GPS allowed – the loops are more likely closer to 26-miles long, meaning that anybody who completes all five will have covered around 130 miles. Any runners who manage to complete ‘just’ three loops inside 40 hours are awarded ‘fun run’ finisher status.
The route changes every year and it is near impossible to review. Roughly 80% of the race is off-trail and there are no aid stations – just two water points.
And the difficulty of each loop can’t be understated, with incredible climbing and navigational challenges and all through thick and sharp briars.
Each competitor has to find books hidden around the course and tear out the page corresponding to their race number. Failure to present a page from every book at the end of each loop results in disqualification. The book titles have become part of Barkley folklore and previously included Death Walks in the Woods, The Valley of Death, Almost Home, The Body in the Woods, Fool, The End, A Week in the Woods, and The Idiot.'

'The full five-loop race has only been completed 21 times by 17 different runners.'

'Cmon Jasmin!

I firmly believe she is going to be the first woman in history to do this, even now she is further into the race than any woman has ever got before 🏅

Very busy thread on the Barkley here: https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/exercise/5020694-the-barkley-marathons-2024-conch-shell-at-the-ready?page=3&reply=133948260

Qualified vet, has given birth to two children, now this. Incredible.

Thanks, Gaspode. I'm in utter awe. Girding myself for a short dog walk which I will complete clockwise in honour of Jasmin.

I cannot say how much I love Jasmin Paris. What an absolute superstar!

Never heard of her or this but completely invested. Please update 🙏 ❤️

Good thinking. I am due to do some sweeping. Circular strokes clockwise, same reason.

I don't think there will be anything to update for hours and hours. Best way to keep up is in the thread I linked or on Twitter, using hashtag #bm100. It's very difficult to explain what's going on, but I've got totally sucked in since it all kicked off on Wednesday. Basically, it's an ultramarathon with 5 loops in the mountains of Tennessee in a National Park. The Park authorities limit the numbers who can compete because of the fragility of the environment, so only 40 people start and most of those will have to give up quite early on. Nobody knows the route except the organisers and the runners. No GPS trackers allowed. Navigation is by map and compass. Minimal media coverage at the base camp, none at all on the route except the odd picture taken at the Fire Station (water point). No spectators, tiny support crews. Next to nothing in the way of on course marshals. Most of it is off trail up and down very steep bushy slopes. It's at least 100 miles long, but probably longer. You have to complete each loop by a cut off time and cut off for the whole event is 60 hours, which ends at 2117 GMT today. No woman has ever made it to Loop 5 before. Jasmin did Loop 4 (mostly in the dark with just a head torch) faster than Loop 3. The woman is superhuman!

Given the wonderful absence of live updates and electronic monitoring, we are free to imagine Jasmin powering up hills, through forests, and across moors (?) like the champion she is, while spending the day doing everything clockwise and enjoying the vicarious exercise <stirs tea widdershins>.

Sorry, deosil!

I put this on the other thread. Brief break between loop 4 and loop 5. If I dropped off in those circumstances, it would take the Last Trump to wake me again ...

They say if all goes well they should be finishing in about four hours.

Do come over to the main thread!!

#smalleuropeanwoman is trending on twitter - she really has got so much support.

But (and this might not make much sense to those unfamiliar with the Barkley marathons) there has not yet been any confirmation that she has reached fire tower/ RatJaw (notorious hill) which is by the only place on the course where authorised supporters and photographers can go.

Ihor Verys (first out on final loop) has gone past. No word on Damian Hall (other surviving UK runner) who went out 3rd or Jasmin (5th) So I'm glaring at my phone, willing it to provide Twitter updates (@ keithdunn is the only authorised information). BTW, the runners who set off 2nd, 4th and 6th do the final loop the other way round. And there is a 7th runner on the loop, but he was only 3 mins within the cut off and about 75mins behind Jasmin.

Other thread also has more info about Jasmin, about the Barkley marathons, and also Nicki Spinks - another British record-breaking fell runner, ultramarathonner and previous Barkley entrant

That's got to be a new slowest time?

Too many threads open about the same thing <skulks off to main thread>

Thank you for using widdershins! I thought I was the only person who actually says it 😄

She's utterly astonishing. She won the Spine (Pennine Way in the middle of winter) in 2019 while stopping to breastfeed her baby. https://nationalrunningshow.com/profile/jasmin-paris I'm so glad she completed the Barkley Marathons this time.

BBC have finally posted a story about her win

Jasmin Paris first woman to complete gruelling Barkley Marathons race - BBC News

And they've just moved it to the main news page
(had been well down on the sports page until a few minutes ago)

SHE WONNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Footage. She celebrates with a wee lie down. 🙂

https://twitter.com/trautsnehcterg/status/1771318128967847977

Also, re #smalleuropeanwoman, if anything she is a #weescotswifie.

Amazing, I'm feeling a bit tearful.

That's the finish marker she's resting under! I was worried something had fallen on her.

The BBC article is currently the No1 "most read" on the BBC News page

@ArabellaScott - there are many other ways she could be described, but the hashtag is the Barkley nn

What a fantastic achievement. Outstanding.
Great to read something positive today.

That's absolutely amazing. I've not heard of her, or the race before and was feeling quite self satisfied that I walked 4 1/2 miles to a market and back this morning, which sort of puts things into perspective!

Wow! I too have never heard of this before but well done Jasmin, brilliant job!