Every June, hundreds of runners — both man and beast — travel to the Welsh town of Llanwrtyd Wells to take part in the annual Man versus Horse Marathon. What started as an impromptu pub discussion has turned into one of running’s most unorthodox events.
Read More
Just three competitors have ever bested the field of equine athletes — British endurance runner Ricky Lightfoot recently won the 2022 race — proving the merit of this near impossible challenge.
You know, humans, though; the challenge is never enough. What if the Man versus Horse Marathon had, say, a little more power… horsepower.
That’s exactly what activewear brand Ten Thousand has answered in its latest addition to its Feats of Strength series. In a first-of-its-kind endurance race, one of ultrarunning’s most ambitious athletes, Robbie Balenger, sought take on one of the auto industry’s most disruptive brands in the ultimate test of who has the longer range. The project, titled, “Outlast a Tesla,” took place this past April, and finally, Ten Thousand is set to premiere the results of this last man — err, machine — standing endurance event.
Outlast a Tesla — The Competitors
As you can probably infer from the title, Balenger took on a Tesla in this latest man-versus-machine challenge, specifically, a Model 3. The efficient, affordable “electric car for the people” boasts an EPA-estimated 272-mile range in its rear-wheel drive model, which set the benchmark for the event. At a median speed of 65 miles per hour, the Model 3 set off through the hot Texas landscape, clocking 242 miles before its charge ran dry.
With the route set, it was Balenger’s turn, aiming to outlast the Model 3’s 242 range in under 72 hours. “In the ultra community, a respectable time for finishing a 100-mile race is 24 hours, so I was giving myself three times that,” he says.
