The Backyard Ultra – Dorian

Race report and tips for Backyard Ultra, by Trailblazer Dorian Kerckaert

Backyard Ultras keep growing in popularity, and there's nothing better than Tailwind to go ‘One more loop’!

A quick recap of the concept:

– On the hour, every hour, a new ‘loop’ of 6.706 kilometers begins
– All participants have exactly 1 hour to complete this loop
– Participants who don't make the cut-off for a loop, or don't show up at the start corral for a new loop, are out of the race
– The race keeps going until only 1 person remains, the last man standing!
– There is only 1 winner!

This year I got myself ready for this adventure for a second time, and I can already share these findings with you:

– Bring a good tent! Maybe a party tent if you have one, for shelter against rain or excessive sun

– A folding chair to put your legs up between loops, to let your feet ‘de-swell’ a bit
– During the loops: alternate running and walking! Definitely do this, a lot of people make the mistake of running too much, too often

– Change your shoes and socks! It feels great to run in fresh socks, and different shoes give you some different ‘pressure points’ on your feet
– Always try to listen to what your body needs, and don't look at others too much. A backyard is mostly about taking good care of your own body!
– Be well prepared physically, but above all have the mental surrender! You can always do that extra loop… as long as you want to
– Don't set too many goals in advance, or you'll give up more easily once you've reached them. So don't put an exact number of loops too much in your head
– Eating and drinking: don't go overboard on carbohydrates! A backyard isn't an ‘intense’ effort, you'll mostly be burning fat, so you definitely don't need the usual amount of carbohydrates! Your stomach will thank you for this tip!
– Fluids, electrolytes, and salt are really important though! So drinking Tailwind is the way to go! I always took 2 scoops of Tailwind per 0.5L every 2 hours, topped up with some cola and water.

– Preferably solid, ‘normal’ food: bananas, gingerbread, bread with cheese and jam, pasta, omelet, cereal… Above all, choose food that you know you like and can look forward to. It tastes so much better that way!

– Tailwind Recovery?! Oh yes! During a Backyard effort you'll be pushing your limits, and letting your body already start ‘recovering’ during the effort can work well for a lot of people to get through it better.

These tips work for me, but of course everyone has their own preferences! Testing and trying things out is the way to go A backyard is really one big “snack trip”, and you do need to walk a bit along the way too!

Good luck, and above all: enjoy! Cheers,

Lucky Luke
AKA Dorian Kerckaert