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Ultras · US · KS

Heartland 100 Spirit of the Prairie

26th Heartland 100 Spirit of the Prairie
Heartland 125 Mile · 125M
Registration open
2026 races run Friday Oct 9 (125 Mile and Grand Master 100-Mile early start) through Sunday Oct 11 (Noon cutoff for 125/100/100K). Registration is open and closes Sat Oct 3, 2026 at 11:59 PM CT.
Race dateOctober 9-11, 2026
Duration3 days
Start10:00pm
Whenin 48 days
First held2000
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 125M
Climb not checked yet
Descent not checked yet
High point not checked yet
Time limit 38:00:00
Aid stations 0
Started not checked yet
Finished not checked yet
Finish rate not checked yet
The course

Where it goes out and back

Begins on the original Heartland 100 course, adds a 30-mile detour loop out to Eureka, KS starting at mile 15 (turn at Lapland), rejoining the 100-mile route at Thrall before mile 50. "Graduate Level" format: the Eureka loop has minimal course marking, and runners navigate it from a provided turn-by-turn map. A roving/mobile aid station covers the Eureka loop overnight; reflective gear is required on that section.

The race

What this one is

An out-and-back 100-mile ultramarathon run entirely on backcountry gravel and dirt roads through the Flint Hills tallgrass prairie near Cassoday, Kansas -- rolling hills, open range with loose cattle, near-constant wind, and almost no shade for the whole course. Kansas' original 100-mile race, held annually in October. The same start/finish and road network host a full weekend of distances (4-person relay, 125 Mile, 100 Mile, 100K, Teter Rock 100K, 50 Mile, Cassoday Marathon, Teter Rock 1/2 Marathon), all truncations or extensions of the same out-and-back route.

The inaugural Heartland 100 Spirit of the Prairie ultra began in 2000, directed by KUS members Randy Albrecht and Jim Davis; a 50-mile distance was added in 2001. This is independently corroborated: a November 2003 newspaper account describes that October's race as the "fourth annual," and DUV Ultra Marathon Statistics records the 2009 race as the "10th Heartland 100 Mile Race" -- both consistent with a 2000 founding. NOTE, UNRESOLVED CONFLICT: the race's own marketing counted 2025 as its "25th Anniversary" and Facebook/ATRA material calls the 2026 race the "26th" Heartland 100 -- one year off from what a continuous count from 2000 would produce (2025 would be the 26th annual, 2026 the 27th). Possibly a cancelled/skipped year is not counted in the anniversary number (no specific cancelled year found); recorded as a conflict, not resolved.

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
No ultrasignup.com
Deferrals
Yes ultrasignup.com
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
Yes ultrasignup.com
Vehicles per runner
not checked yet
Pacers
Yes, from mile 67.50 ultrasignup.com
Muling
not checked yet
Drop bags
Yes ultrasignup.com
Cupless
not checked yet
Course marking
not checked yet
Night running
Yes ultrasignup.com
Dogs
Not allowed ultrasignup.com
Headphones
not checked yet
Crew rules
not checked yet
Pacer rules
not checked yet
Drop bag rules
not checked yet
Cutoff philosophy
not checked yet
Same race, other lines

Other distances and other years

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