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Ultras · US · VA

Grand Canyon of the South Ultras

Inaugural
50K · 50K
Registration open
Race dateSeptember 12, 2026
Duration1 day
Start8:00am
Whenin 21 days
First held2026
Free, and always will be. NavRun makes money from race-day planning for runners who want it, never from this. Ultras change constantly, sometimes the morning of. Always confirm with the race director and the official website before you rely on anything here.
Distance 50K
Climb not checked yet
Descent not checked yet
High point not checked yet
Time limit 12:00:00
Aid stations 2
Started not checked yet
Finished not checked yet
Finish rate not checked yet
The course

Where it goes multi-loop · 2 aid stations

The signature event of the weekend: a 50K using every trail on the Virginia side of Breaks Interstate Park, run as four loops of differing length and terrain from the same start/finish area near Potter's Knoll, including a descent into the canyon early in the course, rock faces, bridge and water crossings, and ladder sections.

Loop count and structure per the organizer's own course-description document: loop 1 goes Start/Finish (Potter's Knoll) - Loop Trail - Towers Tunnel Overlook - Prospectors Trail - Bottom of the Breaks Trail - Mule Skid Cove/Cliff Mines Trails (out and back) - Geological Trail - Overlook Trail - Clinchfield Overlook - Cold Spring Trail - Laurel Branch Trail - Lake Trail - back to Start/Finish. Loop 2 goes out via Russell Fork Trail to Towers, Mill Rock and Lover's Leap Overlooks, Haysi Trail, an out-and-back on Peavey Hook Trail, and Forty Eight Mule Mountain Trail, returning the same way. Loop 3 goes via Cold Spring/Laurel Branch/Grassy Overlook Trails, campground roads B-D, Deer/Beaver Pond, Flatwoods, Mountain Home, Hickory Ridge and Fern Hollow Trails, and Commission Road. Loop 4 is a short final circuit of Commission Road back to the finish. Because the four loops are different lengths and different trails (not repeats of one lap), loop_distance_miles is left null rather than forced to a single figure -- the same non-uniform-loop situation documented for Javelina in this skill's own format matrix. distance_miles (31.07) is an inferred metric conversion of the race's own published "50K" name, not a GPX-measured or race-published mile figure.

The race

What this one is

A four-distance trail race (Morning 10K, Sunset 10K, Double 10K, and 50K) held entirely within the Virginia side of Breaks Interstate Park, a five-mile gorge cut by the Russell Fork River known locally as the "Grand Canyon of the South." All four distances start and finish at the same venue near Potter's Knoll. The 50K uses every trail on the Virginia side of the park.

Inaugural running is September 12, 2026. Founded by Southwest Virginia Running co-race-directors Melissa Londry and Alyx Barnett after Barnett, a competitive distance runner who had run the Arizona Grand Canyon's Rim-to-Rim-to-Rim for over a decade, moved to nearby Damascus, VA in 2023 and discovered Breaks Interstate Park in 2024. Following their Woodbooger 100 launch in Norton, the pair chose Breaks as the site of what they describe as SWVA Running's first 100-percent-singletrack, all-trail race experience. The organizer's stated intent is to expand the event in 2027 with additional distance options.

Getting in

Getting in Entry, lottery and what the race asks of you before race day.

Lottery
No
Lottery opens
not checked yet
Lottery draw
not checked yet
Field cap
not checked yet
Registration
UltraSignup ultrasignup.com
Qualifying
not checked yet
Minimum age
not checked yet
Transfers
not checked yet
Deferrals
not checked yet
Crew, pacers and drop bags

The rules that shape your day Anything marked "not checked yet" is a gap in what we hold, never a no from the race.

Crew allowed
not checked yet
Vehicles per runner
not checked yet
Pacers
not checked yet
Muling
not checked yet
Drop bags
not checked yet
Cupless
not checked yet
Course marking
not checked yet
Night running
not checked yet
Dogs
not checked yet
Headphones
not checked yet
Crew rules
not checked yet
Pacer rules
not checked yet
Drop bag rules
not checked yet
Cutoff philosophy
All four distances share one course-wide finish deadline of 8:00 PM race day, regardless of start time. For the 50K that is 12 hours from the standard 8:00 AM start; runners who want more daylight on the technical sections can simply choose the 6:00 AM early start option at registration. ultrasignup.com
Aid stations

Every stop, and what you get there ● yes   · no   ? nobody has checked

Mile Station Cutoff Crew Bag Pacer Med To next
0.00 Start (Potter's Knoll) ? ? ? ? ? 31.07
31.07 Finish (Potter's Knoll) 8:00pm ? ? ? ? ?
Same race, other lines

Other distances and other years

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