Race Across Scotland

Event overview

Race Across Scotland is a coast-to-coast ultramarathon following the Southern Upland Way. The event distance is 215 miles with total ascent of 7218 m. The published 2026 dates are Saturday 8th to Wednesday 12th August. The start venue is Portpatrick Harbour / Portpatrick Community Hub and the finish is Cockburnspath Village Hall. The field is limited to 250 places and there is a strict overall cut-off time of 100 hours.

Logistics, rules and support

The race has 12 checkpoints along the route. Checkpoints provide water and a range of refreshments; some village halls also provide hot food. There are bothy locations on the route where no facilities are available. Runners are self-sufficient between checkpoints and must carry mandatory kit including a hardcopy Southern Upland Way map, waterproof coat and trousers, compass, headtorch, mobile phone, survival/bivvy bag, water purification and emergency food rations (500 kcal). A GPS tracker is provided and must be returned after the event or fees apply.

Entry is by application only. Participants must be at least 20 years old and show prior endurance/ultrarunning experience and basic map-and-compass navigation ability. Support crews are permitted from Checkpoint 3 (Glentrool) onwards subject to restrictions; pacers or unregistered support runners are not allowed. The organiser may implement a low-level route alternative for severe weather and enforces checkpoint cut-offs. Buckles are awarded to finishers by placing tiers. Visit the organization's website for the most recent information.