ST. LOUIS – A Backyard Ultra is not for the faint of heart!
“There is definitely an added extra element of willpower to complete a race like this one,” said one race runner.
On Friday, 57 runners put their mental and physical limits to the test as they set forth to run the first-ever Queeny Backyard Ultra in St. Louis.
“There are currently 142 affiliated Backyard Ultras in 43 countries,” said Shalini Kovach, founder of Terrain Trail Runners and race director of the Queeny Backyard Ultra. When this opportunity presented itself it was a no-brainer, Queeny Park is perfect.”
Organizers say the thing that makes this race interesting is there is no set distance. The winner is the last person standing.
“They will run a 4.2-mile loop every hour on the hour, and each hour the race will start again until one runner is the Last One Standing,” she said.
Once you complete the 4.2-mile loop you can do whatever you want for the rest of the hour. Most runners like to fuel up on water and protein to be ready to go again when the bell rings at the top of the next hour.
But there is nothing simple about this huge athletic challenge in an effort to prepare for many hours of running the champion must use strategy.
“The goal is to maintain a good pace and the brakes between runs…then you keep rocking it every hour, you are basically running 100 miles under 24 hours,” said Kovach.
More information on the Backyard Ultra Series can be found at www.backyardultra.com.
