Utopia Backyard Ultra

Utopia Backyard Ultra - North of 89 Outdoors

Utopia Backyard Ultra takes place June 27-28, 2026 at the Tiffin Centre for Conservation, 8195 8th Line, Utopia. The primary format requires completing one loop every hour until only one finisher remains. The event is marked as sold out.

Several fixed-hour formats are offered alongside the open Backyard Ultra, with start/finish line camping available beginning Friday June 26. On-site services include potable water, snacks, special treat hours, and a bamboo t-shirt. Specific awards are noted: 24 continuous hours or 100 miles earns a 100-mile belt buckle, 100k earns a challenge coin, and the overall finisher receives a bronze coin plus guaranteed entry to the silver coin race.

Course details: the loop must measure 4 miles 880 feet (6.7056 kilometers). The course is mostly crushed gravel with about 2 km of sandier, woody trail on the back quarter, largely runnable and without repeated sections, and with no more than 45 m elevation gain per loop. Markings will include arrows, flags, and reflective markers.

Key rules summary: each loop starts exactly one hour after the previous; competitors must be in the starting corral at the bell; each loop must be completed within one hour to count; no personal aid during a loop and no artificial aids including trekking poles; no non-competitors on course. Backyard fixed-hour races (Backyard 6, 12, 24) are closed formats where participants either finish or DNF. Early registration pricing applied until March 1, 2026 and regular registration closed June 20, 2026. The planned 100 miler and 100 mile relay were cancelled. Visit the organization's website for the most recent information.