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The World's Toughest Backyard Ultra
(made doable)
Now Individual OR
2-Person Team
When: Saturday, June 21st 8am
Where: The Ark (map below)
Why: Because you're nuts!
The "Classic" Individual Last Person Standing Event - Full Loop
The "official" BYU distance is 6.71k, which equals 100 miles in 24 hours.
Unfortunately, given the terrain available at The Ark, 100 miles in 24 hours would only be possible for the world's most elite ultra-runners.
I'm currently working on creating the "flattest" loop possible here, but expect the final distance to be between 5.5k and 6.0k.
The "Kristi Loop" Last Person Standing Event
Kristi and her family have been attending Mad Trapper races from the beginning.
Kristi is a determined, consistent ultra-runner, who simply lacks the speed required to complete a Classic loop in the time required to make it to the corral after a couple of yards.
So to make the BYU more accessible to her, and for so many like her, the "Kristi Loop" was invented. It's almost the same as the Classic Loop but being about 500m shorter, it's much more accessible and doable by the masses.
The Worlds Only 2-Person Team BYU!
As accessible as a shorter Kristi Loop might be, completing 5k on any Ark trail in under an hour is no easy feat! Maybe 2 or 3 loops, but if you are not a seasoned and conditioned ultra runner, 4+ loops is not a challenge most mortals are willing to take on.
So, let's have some fun and make it a 2-person team event. This way, every runner gets to rest for at least an hour before having to lace the up the trail runners again.
Full details for this new event can be found below.
BYU - What you need to know
Race starts at 8am
Choose your "corral" - Full course, Kristi Loop, or Team
Every hour, on the hour, return to the corral
If you're not in the corral when the audio recording yells "Goooooo!", your race is over
The winner is determined by the last person to finish a full loop completely solo.
Prizes for Full Loop and Kristi Loop winners
2-Person Team BYU - What you need to know
2 team categories: Friends and Couples
Runners can race with their own strategy - alternate every yard, every 2 yards, "Bill" runs 1 lap for every 2 "Sue" runs... your choice
Racer DNFs when unable to complete yard in under an hour - they're out, partner is still in
Team continues to race until BOTH racers are out
Yard count is determined by final racers completed, in an hour, yard
Prizes for both Friends and Couples teams
Where We At????
"The Ark"
285 ch. de Farrellton,
Denholm, QC
J0X 2C0
Frequently Asked Questions
Can beginner's or the non "hard core" compete in this?
Trail running is a different beast than road running. It's much more of a full-body workout requiring a much larger mental focus. But if a person can run 10k on the road without walking, completing the Kristi Loop 2 - 4 times in under an hour each time, shouldn't be too much of a challenge. After 4 yards though, 20+km, the wheels start to fall off, and the mind game plays a bigger role. This is where the fun starts. Learning where your limits are and how far you can push past them. With the introduction of the 2-person event, the Mad Trapper BYU is now accessible for nearly all runners.
Can Individuals switch from the Full Course to the Kristi Loop?
Yes. The goal of the Mad Trapper BYU is for racers to really test their limits. If a racer starts on the Full Loop, but at some point realizes they won't be able to complete another Full Loop in under an hour, then they can switch to the Kristi Loop as long as they may make it to the corral in time.
Are there aid stations on the course?
The dietary needs of ultra runners is usually quite specific. One of the first things to "go" for ultra-runners is their stomach. They need to know what electrolytes and food it can handle. But we will have fresh water and an electrolyte drink at the Ark. We usually also provide bananas, pretzyls, and roasted, salted potatoes. Post race we'll have chili, brownies and beer.
Are crew members allowed?
Yes, crew members are allowed in the transition area. No support is allowed out on the course. We do ask that crew members bring their own food and drinks for the day. Unfortunately, we've had it where bored spectators have spent the day at the buffet table, and when the last racers arrived, all the brownies were gone!
Can I prerun the course in advance?
Unfortunately "no" for 2 reasons. 1) My liability insurance only covers us for race day. If somebody is running here, on a non-race day, I'm still responsible for their safety and my insurance does not cover that. 2) The course won't be fully cleared and flagged until just a couple of days before the race. So, when somebody gets lost.... refer to reason #1!
