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Ultras · US · KS

Heartland 100 Spirit of the Prairie

26th Heartland 100 Spirit of the Prairie
Heartland 100 Mile · 100M
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 10, 2026
Start6:00am
Whenin 49 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 100M
Climb 6,000 ft
Descent not checked yet
High point not checked yet
Time limit 30:00:00
Aid stations 23
Started not checked yet
Finished not checked yet
Finish rate not checked yet
The course

Where it goes out and back · 23 aid stations · rust marks a stop your crew can reach

An out-and-back course on backcountry gravel and dirt roads through the Flint Hills tallgrass prairie, with less than one mile of paved surface. Starts at the old high school on the south edge of Cassoday, Kansas, runs out through Lapland, Teterville Road, Texaco Hill, Ridge Line and Matfield Green to a Lone Tree turnaround, then retraces the same roads back to finish at the Cassoday Community Building. Rolling hills, essentially no shade, and near-constant wind exposure across open range; cattle graze loose on some sections.

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
18 ultrasignup.com
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 42.50 ultrasignup.com
Muling
not checked yet
Drop bags
Yes ultrasignup.com
Cupless
not checked yet
Course marking
Fully Marked ultrasignup.com
Night running
Yes ultrasignup.com
Dogs
Not allowed ultrasignup.com
Headphones
not checked yet
Crew rules
"CREW VEHICLES are NOT ALLOWED ON ANY PORTION OF THE HEARTLAND 100 COURSE DURING THE RACE. Except as noted here in these directions." Crew access is available at 9 locations for the 100-mile run (the start, Lapland x2, Teterville Rd x2, Ridge Line x2, Matfield Green x2, and the finish), reached via a fixed set of paved/good-gravel crew roads described station-by-station in the Directions To Meet Runners section. Crews may not be on any section of the course during the race, must not litter, and runners are responsible for their crew's actions. ultrasignup.com
Pacer rules
"Pacers will be allowed for all runners from the Matfield Green aid station (42.5 miles for 100 milers/67.5 miles for 125 milers) to the finish. Each runner may have as many pacers as they like, however only one pacer at a time can accompany the runner." Pacers must be human-powered (no bike, scooter, horse, or dogsled), 18+ or have signed guardian permission, must follow the same rules as the runner, and must identify themselves at aid stations. Runners age 60+ may have a pacer for the entire 100-mile distance. ultrasignup.com
Drop bag rules
All manned aid stations also serve as drop-bag locations (14 of the 22 100-mile aid stations, i.e. the 7 named manned stops in both directions). Bags must be at least double-thick plastic, securely tied, roughly shoe-box size, and labeled with the runner's name, race number and aid station (white tape + black felt marker recommended); liquids must be leak-proof. Drop-off at the Cassoday community center Friday, or Saturday morning before 5:30 AM. All bags must be picked up by the runner at the community center by 12:00 PM noon Sunday or they are donated/disposed of. ultrasignup.com
Cutoff philosophy
Cutoff times are nonnegotiable. Runners must DEPART the aid station by the listed cutoff time (Race Rule 11). The standard field starts 6:00 AM Saturday and has a 30-hour limit (noon Sunday). Two alternate, pre-approved start times shift the runner's own start but not the wall-clock station cutoffs: a 4:00 AM Saturday early start (effectively a 32-hour window; written race-director approval required beforehand) and a Grand Master (age 50+) 10:00 PM Friday start, which carries its own later intermediate cutoffs from Teterville Rd onward and a 2:00 PM Sunday finish cutoff instead of noon. Runners who start early are not eligible for overall awards, and the first aid stations may not be staffed or have their course markings checked for tampering yet when an early starter reaches them, so those runners are responsible for navigating the first ~25 miles without relying on markings or volunteers. 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 Old High School (Start) ? ? ? ? 4.60
4.60 Unmanned (NE 135th) ? · · ? ? 3.60
8.20 Battle Creek 8:20am · ? ? 4.40
12.60 Unmanned (Lapland Rd) ? · · ? ? 4.20
16.80 Lapland 10:45am ? ? 4.30
21.10 Unmanned (Thrall) ? · · ? ? 3.90
25.00 Teterville Road 1:00pm ? ? 6.20
31.20 Texaco Hill 2:45pm · ? ? 5.30
36.50 Ridge Line 4:15pm ? ? 6.00
42.50 Matfield Green 6:00pm ? 5.00
47.50 Unmanned (Towers) ? · · ? 2.40
49.90 Lone Tree 8:00pm · ? 2.40
52.30 Unmanned (Towers) ? · · ? 5.00
57.30 Matfield Green 10:25pm ? 6.00
63.30 Ridge Line 12:20am ? 5.30
68.60 Texaco Hill 2:00am · ? 6.20
74.80 Teterville Road 4:00am ? 3.90
78.70 Unmanned (Thrall) ? · · ? 4.30
83.00 Lapland 6:40am ? 4.20
87.20 Unmanned (Lapland Rd) ? · · ? 4.40
91.60 Battle Creek 9:20am · ? 3.60
95.20 Unmanned (NE 135th) ? · · ? 4.80
100.00 Finish Line (Community Building) 12:00pm · ? ?
Driving your crew

Getting your people there 9 stops with directions the race published.

Lapland mile 16.80 cutoff 10:45am

START/FINISH TO LAPLAND – Proceed north through Cassoday on 177. Make a right turn on Sunbarger and proceed east on the last blacktop road on the north edge of Cassoday for approximately 12 3/4 miles. Make a right turn on G50 Rd (at the transformer) and proceed south for 3.3 miles to the Lapland Aid Station.

ultrasignup.com
Teterville Road mile 25.00 cutoff 1:00pm

LAPLAND TO TETERVILLE ROAD – Turnaround and proceed north 3.3 miles back to the Teterville Road intersection. Make a right turn and proceed east 5 miles to the aid station. Please drive slowly as the last 1 1/2 miles of the road is on the course the runners will be using.

ultrasignup.com
Ridge Line mile 36.50 cutoff 4:15pm

TETERVILLE ROAD TO RIDGE LINE – Turnaround and proceed approximately 17 3/4 miles back to Cassoday. Make a right turn on 177 and proceed north 10 3/4 miles to the town of Matfield Green. Make a right turn at the sign, BOCOOK St, and proceed 1/4 mile into town to the intersection by the old school. Take a right at the sign ROGLER St, for the Ridge Line aid station and proceed 10 3/4 miles to the aid station.

ultrasignup.com
Matfield Green mile 42.50 cutoff 6:00pm

RIDGE LINE TO MATFIELD GREEN – Turnaround and proceed back to the town of Matfield Green. At the intersection by the old school, turn right at the sign BOCOOK St, for the Matfield Green aid station and proceed 3 miles to the aid station. NOTE: the runner passes through Matfield Green twice (mile 42.5 outbound and mile 57.3 on the return from the Lone Tree spur) with no crew-accessible stop in between (Lone Tree has no crew access), so crew can remain at Matfield Green for both passes.

ultrasignup.com
Matfield Green mile 57.30 cutoff 10:25pm

RIDGE LINE TO MATFIELD GREEN – Turnaround and proceed back to the town of Matfield Green. At the intersection by the old school, turn right at the sign BOCOOK St, for the Matfield Green aid station and proceed 3 miles to the aid station. NOTE: the runner passes through Matfield Green twice (mile 42.5 outbound and mile 57.3 on the return from the Lone Tree spur) with no crew-accessible stop in between (Lone Tree has no crew access), so crew can remain at Matfield Green for both passes.

ultrasignup.com
Ridge Line mile 63.30 cutoff 12:20am

MATFIELD GREEN TO RIDGE LINE – Turnaround and proceed back to the town of Matfield Green. At the intersection by the old school, turn left ROGLER St, and proceed 10 3/4 miles to the Ridge Line aid station.

ultrasignup.com
Teterville Road mile 74.80 cutoff 4:00am

RIDGE LINE TO TETERVILLE ROAD – Turnaround and proceed back to Matfield Green. Make a left turn at the old school house BOCOOK St, and go 1/4 mile west to 177. Turn left on 177 and head south 10 3/4 miles to Cassoday. Make a left turn on the blacktop road on the north edge of Cassoday SUNBARGER ST, and proceed east 17 3/4 miles to the Teterville Road aid station. Be careful on the last 1 1/2 miles as you will be on the road with the runners and it will most likely be at night.

ultrasignup.com
Lapland mile 83.00 cutoff 6:40am

TETERVILLE ROAD TO LAPLAND – Turnaround and proceed west 5 miles. Turn left at the signs G50 Rd, and proceed south 3.3 miles to the Lapland aid station.

ultrasignup.com
Finish Line (Community Building) mile 100.00 cutoff 12:00pm

LAPLAND TO FINISH – turnaround and proceed north 3.3 miles to the signs. Turn left and proceed 12 3/4 miles back to Cassoday. Turn left on 177 and proceed back to the Cassoday community building. Parking will be limited around the community building. There will be additional parking in the downtown area of Cassoday that is just west of the community building or at the elementary school that is north of the community building.

ultrasignup.com
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