Plant-based ultra runner, Robbie Balenger, successfully outlasts Tesla Model 3 in first-of-its-kind endurance race

Man vs machine, Balenger beat the 242 mile distance set by a fully-charged Tesla Model 3 in just under 77 hours.

AUSTIN, TX, April 14, 2022 – On Thursday, April 14, 2022, plant-based ultra runner, Robbie Balenger, successfully outlasted a fully charged Tesla Model 3 in a first-of-its-kind endurance race.

Modeled after Man vs. Horse Marathons, centuries-old endurance races in which human runners attempt to run longer distances than horses across the same terrain, Balenger and the Tesla began at the same starting point approximately 250 miles outside of Austin, TX, and at the same time. The Tesla was then driven at a median speed of 65 miles per hour for the duration of a full charge, which set a race distance of 242 miles. Balenger then followed the exact same route as the Tesla, and was able to beat the Tesla’s 242 mile distance by 100 feet in 76:54:46 hours.

“For many, myself included, Tesla is the most disruptive and exciting thing to happen to transportation since the first horse was broken – so what better opponent for a modern take on the man vs. horse race?” explains Balenger, who in 2021 set the world record for number of loops run around New York’s Central Park and completed the Colorado Crush, a grueling 63 day, 1,200 mile run with over 300,000 feet of elevation gain. “Initially, the goal was to beat the Tesa’s distance in 72 hours – in the ultra community, a respectable time for finishing a 100 mile race is 24 hours so I was giving myself 3x that – however, three straight days of unrelenting 90+ degree weather killed that plan. In the end, I was able to out-distance the Tesla in just shy of 77 hours. It was absolutely brutal, but we got it done.”

Balenger’s record-setting attempt was sponsored by the NYC based men’s activewear label, Ten Thousand, as part of the company’s ongoing Feats of Strength series, a first-of-its-kind editorial series in which a different athlete attempts a new record breaking feat every month.

“Robbie has once again blown us all away,” says Ten Thousand founder and CEO, Keith Nowak. “Between the Central Park world record, the Colorado Crush, and his 2019 Transcontinental Run, during which he ran an incredible 3,175 miles in 75 days, Robbie’s already accomplished so much in his professional running career. And yet, he’s still always on the lookout for a new challenge. I can think of few athletes that better exemplify our ‘Better Than Yesterday’ brand mantra. We are incredibly proud and honored to have played a role in helping him realize this incredible achievement.”

“As a plant-based athlete, I have two key considerations when it comes to my diet: environmentalism and performance – and Tesla excels at both. Outlasting a Tesla has been the longest single effort I have undertaken to date,” adds Balenger. “My hope is that this feat inspires others to leave their comfort zones and embrace innovation, be it by challenging their perceptions of their own physical limits, or making lifestyle changes that can have a positive effect on the planet.”

About Robbie Balenger: Robbie Balenger is a plant-based ultra endurance athlete obsessed with finding sustainable motion through space and time. This obsession leads Robbie to seek out mammoth endurance challenges that span weeks and months. By exploring recovery techniques and honing diet choices, Robbie is investigating how he can keep going… forever.

About Ten Thousand: Ten Thousand is a men’s performance-wear brand dedicated to the daily pursuit of hard fought victories. No BS. No gimmicks. Ten Thousand is committed to making essential gear for men who prioritize function over everything. Every day faster, every day stronger, every day Better than Yesterday.