I took some time off after Sulphur Springs to rest and recover from the effort, though I was hardly away from the race scene! Seemingly, my entire month of June revolved around events, as I either cheered from the sidelines or volunteered every single weekend. A lot of these events were trails races (Rainbow Trail Run, Ribbon 200 and The Whole Enchilada) so I was itching to get back in my shoes and start competing again.
An old friend reached out and asked if I was running at the Utopia Backyard Ultra, as a good friend of his (Tony Albrecht) was competing but he would be unable to attend and cheer him on and was wondering if I’d be there. While I hadn’t initially built it into my recovery plan, the race is less than 30mins from my home and once I started talking about it with my local running crew, a few were interested in taking on one of the timed challenges.
So, when the running crew is in, that makes it a must, right? 😁
Overview: The Utopia Backyard Ultra is organized by North of 89 Outdoors, and offers the proper backyard experience of one lap, every hour on the hour, until there’s only one finisher left. In addition, they offer shorter timed options of 6hrs and 12hrs, for those who don’t wish to commit to the full weekend. Each lap consists of 4 miles 880 feet in length, or the metric equivalent 6.7056 kilometers.
You can run the lap however fast or slow you wish, however you must both complete the lap and be in the corral in time for the start of the next lap or you DNF. In fact, there is only one winner in a backyard race and the remainder of the field technically are all DNF regardless of the distance they run.
Course: The event is held at the Tiffin Centre for Conservation for the second year in 2026, just south west of Barrie in a combination of dense, forested areas and rolling meadows. The park remains opens, so runners could encounter others using the trails but there is ample signage of the ongoing event and I only noticed a few ranger vehicles during the weekend. When you arrive, you can drive in partially to the staging ground to unload your kit, however you will still need to carry your gear about 100m and park your vehicle near the admin center, on the other side of the pond.
On-course Support: With the single lap format, there is only one aid station at the Start/Finish, with ample Thrive hydration and nutrition during the event. There was fresh fruit, granola bars, fruit pouches, fresh coffee and for lunch on the first day, pierogies. Additional hot food would be served at different times during the weekend as well.
Surface: The trails were mostly double wide, with sections of gravel, dirt, sand, and some boardwalk/bridges.
Weather: The weather was clear the entire weekend, with lows of around 13° and highs of 24° reported. In reality on the trails, it was cool in the mornings sitting below 10° in the shade and hotter in the meadows under a cloudless day with the sun beating down.
Atmosphere: Just like an extended family there the entire weekend. While my crew consisted of a group of 4 of us running the 6hr event, I also connected with Tony (who I was asked to go see) and another runner (Ryan Hamilton) I had chatted with previously on social media, who were both chasing 24hr finishes. Adding to that, the organizers are local and host a number of events in the general area, including a trail running clinic which I attended last summer, and one of them coaches a member in my running crew.
Post-lap: As the event just continually loops, you will seen the same people every time you complete a lap and the energy never dropped with those spectators, who were all family or crew of another runner on the course. You return to your homebase/tent/chairs or whatnot, and if you planned well, you’ve got all of your food and drinks ready to go in a cooler. Take what you need, adjust equipment, washroom break, sit and relax but be certain to listen for the warning bells, counting down to the next lap where you’ll go back out and do it all again.
Overall: While the 4 of us (Kathy Bierylo, Ryan Shea, Michael Prates and myself) “only” ran the 6hr event, we all agreed that we wished we had signed up to run a few more laps, as it only felt like it was just getting fun at that point.
• Michael took off like his pants were on fire every single lap, with many asking why 😁?
• Kathy was the most consistent of us, keeping a steady pace for each lap.
• Ryan paced with Kathy up until his final lap, which his coach told him to go for and left Michael a few steps behind.
• I was up and down the day, running with the crew for a few laps but also getting in a lap with Tony Albrecht and his friend Pat Veilleux, as well as getting in a lap with Ryan Hamilton, as I enjoyed the social aspect of this race and getting to understand various strategies for the longer distances.
As my first race back, it was also my first ever experience at a backyard-style race. It was a great choice as I wasn’t racing for pace and only pushing distance over a set time period. Considering that Zachary and I had a few other 5km races planned the following week, as well as a drive to Moncton NB, I needed to save my legs.
While we called it a day in the middle of the afternoon (after watching a few more laps and chatting with crews), I came back the following morning with Zachary to see if we could watch the remaining folks hit their goals. We saw the 25th and the 26th lap but unfortunately, had just missed Tony finish his 24th lap (100miles) and Ryan H. had dropped at 17 laps (112kms!). Amazing results for these two competitors!!!
So yes, I obviously had a DNF result (the winner hit 33 laps!) but it was such an interesting event to be a part of. When you’re done, you bang the gong to signify your ending and sign the post before being presented with your DNF medal and travel mug.
I met a lot of great athletes, had a chance to speak with Michael Rouleau (Team Canada Backyard 2026) who was crewing a friend, cheered on the juggling runner, joked with my friends in the woods for a solid 8 hours and had such a great overall time at this event. I will definitely consider adding this to my calendar again in 2027!
