BACKYARD ULTRA RULES
Miami Backyard Ultra follows the traditional, open-ended Backyard Ultra format. Every runner competes under the same rules.
1. The Course
- Each yard is 4 miles and 880 feet, or 6.7056 km, approximately 4.167 miles.
- A Backyard course may be a loop or an out-and-back. MBU's final measured course map will be published before race day.
2. The Starting Corral
- The starting corral is measured to accommodate the full starting field.
- The corral stays the same size throughout the event.
- Every active runner must enter the starting corral under their own power and be fully inside when the bell rings.
3. Hourly Starts
- Each yard begins on the hour, exactly one hour after the previous yard started.
- Three warning whistles are given three minutes before the bell, two whistles two minutes before, and one whistle one minute before.
- All active runners must start with the field at the bell.
- There are no late starts. You cannot skip a yard and rejoin later.
4. During a Yard
- Complete the entire yard in less than one hour for it to count. This applies to every yard, including the deciding yard.
- No personal aid is permitted during a yard. Crew assistance is only permitted between yards in the designated support area.
- Basecamp aid and crew support are separate from on-course provision. If an on-course station is offered, it is self-service water or electrolytes only: runners fill their own bottles, with no personal handoffs or volunteer bottle filling. Final locations and procedures will be included in the Athlete Guide; no particular on-course aid station is confirmed.
- No non-competitor may accompany an active runner on the course. This includes pacers, crew, spectators and eliminated runners.
- You may not leave the course before completing the yard, except for restroom use.
- Artificial aids, including trekking poles, are prohibited.
- Slower runners must allow other runners to pass.
5. Winner and Results
- The winner completes one more yard than every other runner. If two runners start a yard and only one finishes within the hour, that completed yard decides the race. No additional yard is run.
- If no runner completes one more yard than everyone else, there is no winner.
- All other runners technically record a DNF. Each runner's completed yards remain their official result.
- Individual yard times may be recorded, but running earlier yards faster does not determine the winner.
6. Open-Ended Competition
There is no predetermined yard cap, maximum finishing distance or preset finishing time. Miami Backyard Ultra continues until the Backyard format determines the outcome.
Read the complete rules before registering and review the Athlete Guide for final course, crew and site procedures.
