Kiwi runners have the chance to meet the "sadistic" race director - but they need help. Photo / YouTube
Kiwi runners have the chance to meet the "sadistic" race director - but they need help. Photo / YouTube
If you're a keen trail runner, chances are you will have heard the name Lazarus Lake.
The infamous race director, responsible for the Barkley Marathons and the Big's Backyard Ultra, some of the world's most gruelling foot races, is famous worldwide as the man who has catapulted "last man standing"races into the spotlight.
A "last man standing" event, which he is responsible for popularising, is a race with no finish line: runners complete loops of a set course on a trail over and over again until everyone but one person quits.
New Zealand has its own "last person standing" event, the Riverhead Backyard Relaps Ultra, which has its second edition in April 2020.
The event "winner" - the last person standing - gets a golden coin that allows them to enter the original event, in Lazarus Lake's backyard in Tennessee.
Last year, Nelson-based doctor and ultrarunner Katie Wright made history as the first woman to finish a "last man standing" race and, along with Hong Kong-based Kiwi Will Hayward, she represented New Zealand in Tennessee.
And now, New Zealand's own last person standing-type event could count on the attendance of non other than the man himself, Laz Lake (real name Gary Cantrell).
Laz, who starred in the hit documentary about his Barkley Marathons on Netflix, is keen to attend the Auckland version of his event - and New Zealanders are keen to have him here.
There's just a little issue: they need to fundraise $8000 to pay for Lazarus Lake's flights (due to circulation issues, he needs to fly with extra leg room, hence the added cost). The amount would also cover his accommodation while in New Zealand.
Shaun Collins, owner of Lactic Turkey Events which co-organises the Riverhead Backyard Relaps Ultra, says they've managed to convince Lazarus Lake to join them - now they just need to find the money to pay for it.
"Laz Invented this format of running event and now there are Backyard ultras in 35 nations," Collins told the Herald.
"For the 2020 world champs of the format at Bigs backyard in Tennessee, there are 38 events in 24 countries that earn a golden ticket. That means the winner of those events, including the Riverhead one, gets an entry to Bigs backyard Ultra in October 2020."
WOW!! As if wasn't exciting enough with 6 weeks to go till we all meet up in Riverhead for some lapsin ...we present...
"To have such a genius event director come to the event is a privilege - the man is a legend who loves devising events that test the body and mind to their absolute limits," Collins added.
If he makes it to New Zealand, runners will have Lazarus Lake at the Riverhead Backyard Relaps Ultra blowing out the three-minute warning and the hourly start whistle, as well as writing his now iconic hourly updates - a mix of poetry and race report that, every year, has runners worldwide glued to their screens for hours on end.
"To trail runners, Laz coming is like for most New Zealanders when they get the opportunity to meet Buck Shelford or Richie McCaw, except with a massive wild beard and a checkered shirt," Collins says.
On top of the race itself, while in New Zealand, Lazarus Lake will also participate in a number of events, including a live Q+A on April 2, hosted by Eugene Bingham and Matt Rayment, hosts of the Dirtchurch Radio podcast. Tickets for the event will count towards the fundraising.
"The Backyard Relaps has an incredible atmosphere. How much more exciting will it be to see the man who started it all in action? For those attending to spectate, a chance to grab a word or a quick snap with Laz, for those competing, we're sure his presence will drive people past what they thought they were capable of, be that Last Person Standing entrants, or teams," Collins says.
