By Davy CrockettDuring April 1879, the same month that the new American Championship Belt race was held in New York City, the second English Astley Belt race, for the “Championship of England,” was put on April 21-26, 1879, at the Agricultural Hall in Islington, London, England. While the Americans were putting up mediocre times and distances, stil…

By Davy CrockettNew book on Barkley historyThe Barkley Marathons course (thought to be roughly 130 miles and about 63,000 feet of elevation gain) at Frozen Head State Park was the brain child of Gary Cantrell (Lazarus Lake) and Karl Henn (Rawdawg). The idea for the race was inspired upon hearing about the 1977 escape of James Earl Ray, the assassin…

By Davy CrockettFrom 1875 to 1879, at least 130 six-day races were held, mostly in America and Great Britain. In 1879, the foot races became the #1 spectator sport in America. During that single year, at least 88 six-day races were held worldwide, with about 900 starters and witnessed by nearly one million spectators. Women played a significant rol…

By Davy CrockettThis is the story of the ultramarathon that was the most impactful of all races in the history of the sport. This race was witnessed by tens of thousands of people in Madison Square Garden and followed by millions in long daily newspaper story updates. It received so much attention that it sparked an ultrarunning frenzy on multiple …

Listen to the audio version. I included my interview on the very good Trail Runner Nation podcast. I recently went on it to talk to the guys about my new book, Classic Ultramarathon Beginnings. We discussed several of the very early ultras in our history.Classic ultramarathons (races longer than 26.2 miles) include the oldest races, the most presti…

By Davy CrockettThe “around the world on foot” craze of the 1890s was first dominated by Americans, but eventually spread to Europeans. Some very interesting individuals, mostly from Germany and France, appeared in New York City claiming to be making a global journey on foot. Most were usually highly educated and impressive. Why would someone leave…

By Davy CrockettMy new book, Around the World on Foot: The Early Globetrotters is available on Amazon. After an introduction to help you understand what in the world was going on, I will share a chapter about the strange tradition of starting in a paper suit.I am pretty proud of this book. I wanted to share some details about what my research found…

By Davy CrockettThis is an encore episode with additions in the article.The Across the Years race, established in 1983, is one of the oldest fixed-time races in the world that is still held annually. The race is always held at the end of the year, crossing over to the new year with a grand celebration. Through the years, it has attracted many of th…

By Davy CrockettNew Book, containing the early history of The Barkley MarathonsWatching sports on Christmas Day is enjoyed by millions of sporting fans. But it also is probably despised by even more of those sporting fans’ families who have other priorities on that special day. While today the events watched are primarily basketball and football, b…

By Davy CrockettNew Book, containing the early history of The Barkley. Get it in your country's Amazon siteGary Cantrell (a.k.a. Lazarus Lake), of Tennessee, was recently inducted into the American Ultrarunning Hall of Fame. Most people recognize him for creating the legendary Barkley Marathons, arguably the toughest trail race in the world. But fe…

By Davy CrockettGet this history in my new bookTrail 100-milers started to be held in Great Britain in 1973, four years before the Western States 100 was established in America. This piece of ultrarunning history is largely unknown to Americans who have been told for decades that trail 100-milers began first in the U.S. In reality, trail 100s were …

By Davy CrockettGet this history in my new bookThe first certified 100 km race in America was held at Lake Waramaug, Connecticut, in 1974. Today it remains as the oldest 100 km race in the country and the second oldest American ultra still held. For many years in the late 1970s and throughout the 1980s, it was the unofficial national championship f…

By Davy CrockettThis part will cover additional stories found through deeper research, adding to the history shared in found in the new book, Grand Canyon Rim to Rim History. Grand Canyon rim to rim hikes and runs become very popular as thousands descend into the Canyon each year. Fastest known times for R2R and R2R2R runs are broken.In 1991, Jerry…

By Davy CrockettThis part will cover additional stories found through deeper research, adding to the history shared in found in the new book, Grand Canyon Rim to Rim History.Overcrowding ConcernsIn 1971, because of overcrowding in the inner Canyon, the Park Service started to implement a reservation system for camping. They shared a situation on th…

By Davy CrockettThis is an encore episode. Spartathlon, an ultra of 246 km (153 miles), takes place each September in Greece, running from Athens to Sparta and with its 36-hour cutoff. It is one of the toughest ultramarathons to finish.In Part 1 of this series, episode 88, the story was told how Spartathlon was born in 1982, the brainchild of an of…

By Davy Crockett. Read, listen, or watchThis part will cover additional stories found through deeper research, adding to the history shared in found in the new book, Grand Canyon Rim to Rim History.Rim To Rim in the 1950sIn 1950, two 15-year-old boys from Los Angeles discovered that hiking rim-to-rim was a lot harder than they thought. While restin…

Recently I went on the "Ultra Running Guys Podcast" with Jeremy Reynolds and Jeff Winchester. This will be a slimmed-down version of their interview with me. Their excellent podcast has also been doing a series interviewing race directors of some of the classic ultras.The Ultra Running Guys said, "Not only was Davy Crockett the 15th person to compl…

By Davy Crockett. Read, listen, or watchThis part will cover additional stories found through deeper research, adding to the history shared in Part 2 of this Grand Canyon Rim-to-Rim History. These stories can also be found in the new book, Grand Canyon Rim to Rim History. By 1927, Phantom Ranch was well-established at the bottom of the Canyon. The …

By Davy Crockett. You can read, listen, or watchIn 1906, David Dexter Rust (1874-1963) established a permanent camp near the confluence of Bright Angel Creek and the Colorado River that they name Rust Camp. They dug irrigation ditches and planted cottonwood trees by transplanting branches cut from trees found in nearby Phantom Creek. The camp was v…

You can read, listen, or watchNo Grand Canyon Rim to Rim History can be complete without mentioning the Kolb brothers, who maintained a photo gallery on the South Rim for decades. The two were among the very first to accomplish double crossings of the Canyon and did more exploring up Bright Angel Canyon and its side canyons than anyone of their era…

You can read, listen, or watch“Prof” Thomas Henry Cureton (1875-1957) of Williams, Arizona, was a significant Grand Canyon rim-to-rim contributor. Through his selfless service in the 1920s, he passed on the love of the inner Grand Canyon to a generation of youth who lived at the doorstep of the Canyon. Over several years, he guided about 50 youth a…

By Davy CrockettYou can read, listen, or watchRunning the Grand Canyon rim-to-rim and back is one of the ultimate experiences for ultrarunners. Before the Grand Canyon National Park was established in 1919, there were several individuals who helped to bring attention to the wonder of the world and set the stage for rim-to-rim travel in the future. …

By Davy CrockettYou can read, listen, or watchRead the full story of Frank Hart in my new book: Frank Hart: The First Black Ultrarunning StarBy late 1892, many of the original six-day professional pedestrians had left the sport, using their winnings to establish other careers, some of them pursuing illegal activities. Frank Hart had another terribl…

By Davy CrockettYou can read, listen, or watchRead the full story of Frank Hart in my new book: Frank Hart: The First Black Ultrarunning StarBy 1888, Hart had competed in about 30 six-day races in nine years. He had reached 100 miles or more in about 40 races and had so far won at least 30 ultras. Perhaps because of his color, he had not been given…

By Davy CrockettYou can read, listen, or watchRead the full story of Frank Hart in my new book: Frank Hart: The First Black Ultrarunning StarFrank Hart’s life in 1883 was at a low point. He had squandered his riches and damaged his reputation as a professional pedestrian. He was viewed as being hot-headed, undisciplined, and a womanizer. His wife a…

By Davy CrockettThomas Joseph Osler (1940-2023) of Camden, New Jersey, was a mathematician, former national champion distance runner, and author. His published running training theories have made a deep impact on distance running for multiple generations. His book, Serious Runner’s Handbook became a classic book on running. He was the first to verb…

By Davy CrockettNew book on Barkley historyThe Barkley Marathons course (thought to be roughly 130 miles and about 63,000 feet of elevation gain) at Frozen Head State Park in Tennessee was conquered for the first time in six years. Laz (Gary Cantrell) blew the conch shortly before 9 a.m., on March 14, 2023, signaling to the competitors that they ha…

By Davy Crockett Both a podcast episode and a full articleGet my new best-selling book about the history of crossing the Grand CanyonThis is an encore episode. The 2023 Barkley Marathons is underway. The Barkley Marathons, with its historic low finish rate (only 15 runners in 30 years), is perhaps the most difficult ultramarathon trail race in the …

By Davy CrockettYou can read, listen, or watchRead the full story of Frank Hart in my new book: Frank Hart: The First Black Ultrarunning StarIn 1880, Frank Hart, age 23, was recognized as one of the top ultrarunners/pedestrians in the world. But after a life-threatening illness, many speculated that he would never return to his dominant form. He ha…

By Davy CrockettYou can read, listen, or watchRead the full story of Frank Hart in my new book: Frank Hart: The First Black Ultrarunning StarFrank Hart, at age 22, broke through racial barriers with his fourth-place finish in the 5th Astley Belt Race in Madison Square Garden, held in September 1879. Despite being black, Hart became a local hero in …

By Davy CrockettYou can read, listen, or watchRead the full story of Frank Hart in my new book: Frank Hart: The First Black Ultrarunning StarIn 1879, just twelve years after the Civil War ended, Frank Hart of Boston, Massachusetts, became the first black running superstar in history, and the most famous black athlete in America. In a sense, he was …

By Davy CrockettYou can read, listen, or watchIn 1882 it was declared, “The six-day walking matches are the sickest swindles gamblers have yet invented for defrauding a virtuous public.” Well, many of both the public and the running participants were not the most virtuous people on the planet at that time, contributing to the wild strange stories t…

By Davy CrockettYou can read, listen, or watchOn a summer morning in 1883 in midtown Manhattan, New York City, a young boy ran down 34th Street, getting the attention of a policeman. He cried out, “A man has killed some folks.” Officer John Hughes ran with the boy to a new saloon that recently opened. There he saw a man, pale, and trembling. He fou…

By Davy CrockettYou can read, listen, or watchDan Brannen (1953-) of Morristown, New Jersey, has made a lifetime contribution to ultrarunning and the running sport in general. His dedicated work, mostly from behind the scenes, helped to establish world and national ultrarunning championships. His efforts have affected thousands of ultrarunners in A…

By Davy CrockettYou can read, listen, or watchUltrarunners/Pedestrians of the late 1800s were a unique breed of determined and aggressive individuals who were in the sport primarily trying to cash in on the huge prize money potential and to get their names in the newspapers as “world champions.” They would gladly endure the torture of running hundr…

By Davy CrockettYou can read, listen, or watchPam Reed, age 61 in 2022, from Jackson Wyoming, and Scottsdale, Arizona, is a 2022 inductee in the American Ultrarunning Hall of Fame, its 21st member. Over the years she has been a prolific, successful runner, especially in desert races in the western United States.Leonard PetersonPam (Saari) Reed (196…

By Davy CrockettYou can read, listen, or watchThe strange story of ultrarunner Richard Lacouse has never been told before. Piecing together his unusual life story was an adventure in itself. He was once a famous, elite, ultrarunner/pedestrian from Boston during the late 19th century, one of the most prolific six-day pedestrians during the early yea…

By Davy CrockettYou can read, listen, or watchWith the great success of ultrarunning (known as pedestrianism) in the 1880s, and the millions of dollars of legal wagering involved, corruption raised its ugly head in the sport. “Match Fixing,” was the most common form of corruption used. This practice made it possible for bookmakers to maximize their…

By Davy CrockettYou can read, listen, or watchPerhaps this is the tabloid episode of 19th century pedestrianism. In the late 1800s, ultrarunners (called pedestrians back then), both male and female spent a prolonged time away from their homes and families as they traveled to compete in races across American and in England. As with other professiona…

By Davy CrockettYou can read, listen, or watchOn April 24, 1897, ultrarunning/pedestrian champion Alice Robison was running in second place on the last day of a three-day race held at the Fifth Street Rink in East Liverpool, Ohio, with five runners. She was very intent on catching her long-time friend who was a few laps ahead of her. Needing a rest…

By Davy CrockettYou can read, listen, or watchBy 1906, when the pedestrian era was over, most of the elite pedestrians turned to legitimate professions to support their families. Daniel O’Leary was traveling for a big publishing house. John “Lepper” Hughes was in the real estate business, Jimmy Albert was a Texas cattleman, Robert Vint was an oil a…

By Davy CrockettYou can read, listen, or watchSteve BrodieThe 19th century ultrarunner was a different breed of athlete compared to those today who participate in the sport. A large number of those early runners were not necessarily the most outstanding citizens. For the vast majority, the motivation for participating was not to see what they could…

By Davy CrockettYou can read, listen, or watchToday’s ultras usually have few disruptions from outsiders or spectators. The most serious disturbances are typically from people who take down course flagging which can cause runners to go off course, potentially putting them in serious danger. But during the era of ultrarunning more than 120 years ago…

By Davy CrockettYou can read, listen, or watchSadly, some professional walkers and runners from the “pedestrian” era, more than 120 years ago, became afflicted by mental and physical illness during and after six-day runs, likely caused by the powerful drugs and stimulants that were used at the time, and also due to mental stress breakdowns. Enormou…

By Davy CrockettYou can read, listen, or watchThe sport of ultrarunning during the 19th century was truly filled with tales of strange things that are unthinkable and shocking to us today. This series of episodes presents a collection of the most bizarre, shocking, funny, and head-scratching events that took place in ultrarunning during a 25-year p…

By Davy CrockettYou can read, listen, or watchOn March 3, 1879, at the Fifth Regiment Armory in New York City, during Peter Van Ness’ attempt to walk 2,000 half-miles in 2,000 consecutive half-hours, one of the most shocking events in ultrarunning history took place. Van Ness, sleep deprived, drunk, and in intense pain, got hold of a gun and shot h…

By Davy CrockettYou can read, listen, or watchMany women participated in six-day races during the 1800s. With the great publicity of the Astley Belt Six-Day races, and the popularity of the new go-as-you-please format inviting running, the six-day race exploded into a craze in America and Great Britain. Of the 850 total starters in 85 six-day races…

By Davy CrockettYou can read, listen, or watch As this concluding part of the Third Asley Belt Race opens, four elite ultrarunners were competing to be the Champion of the World in New York City in 1879, seeking to become the holder of the Astley Belt. The current world champion, Daniel O’Leary had apparently dropped out because of health reasons a…

By Davy CrockettYou can read, listen, or watchBy the end of 1878, at least 41 six-day races had been held in America and Great Britain since P.T. Barnum started it all with the first race in 1875. Daniel O’Leary of Chicago was still the undefeated world champion with ten six-day race wins. He was a very wealthy man, winning nearly one million dolla…

By Davy CrockettYou can read, listen, or watchIn 1878, Daniel O’Leary of Chicago was the undisputed world champion of ultrarunning/pedestrianism. He cemented that title with his victory in the First International Astley Belt Six-day Race in London, defeating seventeen others, running and walking 520.2 miles.The Astley Belt quickly became the most s…