For the race these days, contestants still have to wear an apron and a headscarf , and carry a frying pan with a pancake in it, just like the housewife in 1445 ! it's difficult enough to run with a frying pan , but contestants must also flip their pancakes at the beginning and the end of the race! The race starts at 11:55 a.m. , and the contestants run about 380 meters. Of course , the Olney contestants compete against each other, but they also compete with a small town in the state of Kansas , in the U.S.A ! They adopted the Pancake Race custom from Olney , and now every year the two towns compete for the fastest time in the racw .A Kansas women holds the record ,and last year , I decided to enter the Kansas race. I didn't win, but it was a lot of fun