Comox Valley runners joined others from across the country on July 22 to participate in a unique running event hosted by Comox Valley Road Runners called the Backyard Ultra (BYU).

Beginning every hour on the hour, participants ran roughly 6.706 km on a route through the forests, horse track and riverside trails surrounding the Comox Valley Exhibition Grounds. Sounds crazy, doesn鈥檛 it?

You might ask, 鈥淲hy this strange distance?鈥� Well, in backyard ultra running, 6.706 km is called a 鈥測ard,鈥� and 24 yards add up to 100 miles over 24 hours. The race ends when only one runner, the 鈥渇inisher,鈥� remains! Whether running one yard or many, the day was all about having fun, challenging yourself, and doing something together as a running community in a beautiful setting.

Forty competitors completed a total of 218 yards and a total distance of 1,460.8 km. Natalie Pulsford took the title of 鈥渇inisher鈥� in this year鈥檚 event after running 13 yards (87.2 km). Keith Wakelin, who completed 12 yards, was given credit as the 鈥渁ssist鈥�. He was pushed hard by Candice Wheeldon who completed 11 yards, securing the team title for 鈥淥n Your Mark, Get Set, Prosecco鈥� which included Pulsford, Andrew Brown, Ryan Tutte and Amanda Rideout. Pulsford continued her trips to the podium by also winning the costume competition with partner Brown. One of the other fun awards in the local race was the 鈥楬ummingbird鈥� competition. This award was given to Dan Wilson as the fastest finisher for the sixth yard, otherwise know as the 鈥淔un Run鈥�

The race organizers thank the volunteers as well as sponsors, Comox Valley RV, Extreme Runners, Saucony, Gladstone Brewing, McDonald鈥檚, Foveo Running, Perseverance Trail Run, Benino Gelato, Panago Pizza, The Cumby.

For full results and more information about this unique event go to