Last Soul Ultra World Series 2027, Explained¶
Last Soul Ultra is going worldwide.
For two years it was one race in Germany. In 2027 it becomes a season: three qualifying races on three continents, then a final in Germany in August. Every event runs the same backyard format. One 6.706 km loop, about 4.17 miles, every hour, until one runner is left. Each loop is called a yard, and if you are not back at the start when the next hour begins, your race is over.
Here is what was announced, how a place in the final works, and what training for a backyard looks like if one of these has your name on it.
The 2027 Calendar¶
| Event | Where | When | Field |
|---|---|---|---|
| Qualifier 01 | USA | February 2027 | 200 runners |
| Qualifier 02 | United Kingdom | April 2027 | 200 runners |
| Qualifier 03 | Australia, with Dead Cow Gully | June 2027 | 200 runners |
| Final | Germany | August 2027 | Qualifiers only |
The organizers call it Season 3. Season 1 was October 2025 in Bornheim, and Kim Gottwald, who co-founded the race, was the last one standing at 67 yards. Season 2 was August 2026, also in Bornheim, and Mark Dowdle ran his 94th yard alone after Ayyoub El Osrouti stopped at 93. No backyard in Germany had gone past 90 before that week. (What the two of them did on lap 87 is its own story: What Happened on Lap 87 at the Last Soul Ultra.)
The Australian qualifier is at Dead Cow Gully, a backyard on a cattle property in Nanango, Queensland. It is where Phil Gore set the 119-yard world record. The US and UK venues have not been named yet.
How a Place in the Final Works¶
Each qualifier sends two groups to Germany:
- The top 15 overall.
- The top 5 women.
Three details on the official page matter more than they look:
- Ties go through. If several runners stop on the same yard at the cutoff position, all of them qualify. In a backyard, runners often drop out in the same hour, so the real number from a qualifier can be more than 20. It can also be fewer, when women place in the top 15.
- One runner, one place. A woman who finishes in the top 15 overall does not also take a women's place, and the page says places do not roll down to the next runner.
- Getting in is part selection, part luck. Of the 200 places at each qualifier, 50 to 100 are chosen by Last Soul and the rest go by draw. The page has a form to request entry but gives no date for when the draw runs.
Not announced yet: entry fees, the exact US and UK venues, prize money, and how Last Soul chooses its selected runners. The World Series page is where those will land.
A Backyard Has No Distance¶
A backyard ultra is the only race where you do not pick a distance. You pick how long you stay.
Each loop is about 4.17 miles. That puts every ultra distance somewhere on the same course:
| Yards | Distance | Time on the course |
|---|---|---|
| 8 | 33.3 mi, past 50K | 8 hours |
| 12 | 50 mi | 12 hours |
| 24 | 100 mi | 24 hours |
| 94 | 391.7 mi (630 km) | 94 hours, Dowdle in 2026 |
That is why a backyard field is so mixed. A runner there for their first ultra and a runner with ten 100-mile finishes behind them start the same loop at the same bell. Nobody is ahead or behind at the end of an hour. Everyone who makes it back in time starts again, together.
It also means the adversary is only the clock. It restarts every hour and does not care how the last loop went. You do not beat it. You keep answering it until you choose not to.
How to Train for a Backyard Ultra¶
Most backyard advice from coaches lands in the same few places. None of it is exotic.
Train by time, not miles¶
A backyard is measured in hours, so train in hours. A five-hour steady day, a long run-hike mix, or a few hours on a short loop teaches more than chasing a weekly mileage number (RunMotion makes the same point). If this is new to you, Time on Feet vs. Mileage covers why hours are the better unit for any ultra.
Rehearse the hour, not just the loop¶
The skill a backyard asks for is the reset. Run a loop, stop, eat, sit, sort your feet, stand up, go again. Set a watch for the top of the hour and practice it three or four times on a weekend long run:
- Run your loop at a pace that brings you back with 8 to 12 minutes to spare.
- Use the gap on purpose: fuel first, then anything your feet need, then sit.
- Be standing at the start before the hour turns, every time, even when you feel fine.
The runners who go deep are rarely the fastest loopers. They are the ones whose hour looks the same at yard 40 as it did at yard 4.
Practice the fuel you will race on¶
In a backyard you end up eating something almost every loop, a few bites on the trail and more at your chair, for as long as your stomach will take it. Try both in training, with the food and drink you plan to race on. The free ultra fueling calculator will give you carbs, fluid and sodium per hour as a starting point, and your own long runs will tell you what your stomach agrees to.
Get used to the same view¶
The course does not change. Some coaches (CTS among them) suggest doing some long runs on a short, dull loop with no music, so the hundredth time past the same tree is not the first time you have felt that.
Not every backyard loop is flat, though. Some climb every lap, so check your venue's course before you copy a plan built on a flat loop, and train on a loop with similar ground.
Plan for the night and your feet¶
Past the first day, two things end more backyards than fitness does. One is sleep: runners doze off in the chair and miss the start. Decide before the race who wakes you and when, and practice a short sit that ends on an alarm. The other is feet. Pack spare socks and a second pair of shoes, and know which yard you will change them in before you need to.
Keep your legs sturdy¶
You do not need speed for a backyard. You need tendons and hips that will take the same stride for a day or more. Regular strength work and consistent easy running build that better than a few huge weeks.
Where NavRun Fits¶
NavRun is free training for ultrarunners, and it takes the whole list: first 50K, fifth hundred, first backyard.
What it can do for a backyard today:
- Save the race. Add it to your races with no distance, since a backyard has none. Race management keeps the date, your notes and your countdown.
- Build toward an hour count. NavRun's whole-block training plan needs a distance to size the weeks, and it does not yet have a backyard-specific build. Give your backyard the distance you are aiming for, 100 miles for 24 yards, and the plan builds toward that.
- Show your time on feet. Your hours, your long days and your weekly load come straight from Strava or Apple Health, so you can see whether your long days are getting longer.
- Keep your people close. An Out Here link lets family and friends follow along and send voice messages that land the next time your phone catches signal. For a race that can run four days, that matters.
What it does not do yet: plan the hourly reset for you, pace a loop, or tell you how many yards you will run. Nobody knows that before the race starts.
Common Questions¶
What is the Last Soul Ultra World Series?¶
A 2027 season of backyard ultras: qualifiers in the USA (February), the UK (April) and Australia at Dead Cow Gully (June), then a final in Germany in August. The final is qualifiers only.
How do you qualify for the Last Soul Ultra final?¶
Finish in the top 15 overall or the top 5 women at one of the three qualifiers. Runners tied on the same yard at the cutoff position all qualify.
How do you get into a Last Soul qualifier?¶
Each qualifier has 200 places. Last Soul selects 50 to 100 runners, and the rest are drawn from entry requests on the World Series page.
How far is one yard at Last Soul Ultra?¶
6.706 km, or about 4.17 miles, run once every hour. Twenty-four yards is 100 miles.
Do I need to have run 100 miles to enter a backyard ultra?¶
Not usually. A backyard lets you stop at any hour, so many runners use one as their first ultra. Check each event's own entry rules, since Last Soul has not published any for 2027.
Does NavRun cost anything for this?¶
The training plan, your race list and Out Here are free. The paid part of NavRun, the Crew, adds things like a written race strategy and weekly reports, and you do not need it to train for a backyard.
Can I train for a backyard with a normal ultra plan?¶
Mostly, yes. The base is the same: time on feet, long days, fueling practice. Add hourly reset rehearsals, a plan for sleep and feet, and some long runs on a short, repetitive loop.
The Short Version¶
- Three qualifiers in 2027 (USA, UK, Australia), one final in Germany in August.
- Top 15 overall and top 5 women from each qualifier go through, ties included.
- Train in hours, rehearse the reset, eat what you will race on.
Whether you are aiming for the final or for your first 8 yards, the course asks the same thing: be back at the start when the hour turns.
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