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The first weekend of May includes 56 North American ultramarathons on the UltraRunning Magazine race calendar. In this week’s What’s Up in Ultra, we feature events in California, Ohio, Arizona, New York and British Columbia. If you’re a race director and would like your event to be featured in the calendar, register here.
Featured: Miwok (Stinson Beach, CA)
The Miwok 100k presented by The North Face returns to Stinson Beach, California, this weekend. First run in 1996, the classic West Coast 100k event takes runners on a tour of the Bay Area’s most scenic trails, through the Marin Headlands and Mount Tamalpais area, where they will navigate over 11,500 feet of elevation gain on a combination of single-track trails and fire roads offering endless views of the Pacific Ocean.
Participants begin at the Stinson Beach Community Center and will jockey for position on a short stretch of pavement before heading up the Dipsea Trail to Cardiac, then dropping down to Muir Beach and running a loop around the Marin Headlands. Runners will then climb back up Cardiac and complete a long, scenic section to Randall Trailhead before returning and finishing back in Stinson Beach.
Runners have 15 hours and 30 minutes to complete the race and earn their 2027 Western States qualifiers. Read more on the 2026 Miwok 100K race website.
Other West Events:
Pacific
- Wild Wild West Marathon And Ultra (Lone Pine, CA)
- San Diego 100 (Lake Cuyamaca, CA)
- Coyote Two Moon (Ojai, CA)
- Folsom Lake Trail Run – Spring (Folsom, CA)
- Hacienda Hills Trail Run – Spring (San Jose, CA)
- Santa Clarita Trail Race (Santa Clarita, CA)
- McDonald Forest (Corvallis, OR)
- Sisters Country (Sisters, OR)
Mountain
- Greenland Trail Races (Larkspur, CO)
- Collegiate Peaks Trail Run (Buena Vista, CO)
- The Pilgrimage (Mack, CO)
- Colorado Brewery Running Series – Denver Beer Company 50K (Arvada, CO)
- Heavens Gate Ultra (Riggins, ID)
- Salt Flats Endurance Runs (Wendover, UT)
Featured: Outrun 24 (Kirtland, OH)
First run in 2012, the Outrun 24 Hour Trail Race takes place in Kirkland, Ohio’s Lake Metroparks Chapin Forest Reservation, 30 minutes east of Cleveland. Dubbed a “race for beginners and ultra veterans alike,” the event features a fixed-time format where participants run as many 1.00244-mile USATF-certified loops as they can in under 24 hours. Each loop takes runners into the forest on a 93% crushed limestone and dirt path, with 7% pavement, and 65 feet of elevation gain and loss.
Race highlights include running against a backdrop of unique rock formations and through mature woodlands, a fun and supportive atmosphere, great race swag and custom belt buckles for runners who finish 100 miles or more. Read more about the Outrun 24 Hour Trail Race here.
Other Midwest Events:
- Cornbelt Running Club 24 Hour – 2026 (Davenport, IA)
- Hearts Desire 6-Hour Endurance Run (Herrin, IL)
- The Mile (Peoria, IL)
- Heartland 50 (Cassoday, KS)
- Trail Mix (Rockford, MN)
- Maple Syrup Fun Run (Faribault, MN)
- Collegeville Ultra (Collegeville, MN)
- The Big Deal at Great Seal (Chillicothe, OH)
- TutHell 50K (Sioux Falls, SD)
- Wausaultra Backyard Ultra and Double Down (Wausau, WI)
- Prickly Pine 24 Hour Jackpot Solo/Relay (Dousman, WI)
Featured: Cocodona (Black Canyon City, AZ)
The sixth running of one of the world’s premier long-distance endurance events, the Cocodona 250, kicks off Monday, May 4 at 5 a.m. The epic adventure begins in Black Canyon City, Arizona, and links some of the state’s most iconic trails and historic towns, traversing diverse trail systems including the Black Canyon National Recreation Trail, Prescott Circle Trail, Sedona, Arizona Trail and Flagstaff Loop Trail.
The challenging route features 45% single-track, 46% double-track and just 9% pavement, with nearly 39,000 feet of elevation gain and 34,000 feet of loss. Participants will have 125 hours (until 10 a.m. on May 9) to reach Flagstaff and receive their hard-earned Cocodona 250 buckles.
Check out The Cutoff | A Film For The Rest Of Us, a movie about the 2025 Cocodona 250. In addition to the 250-mile race, Cocodona will also host 125-mile, 100-mile, 80-mile and 40-mile events later in the week. Click here for live-tracking and the livestream.
Other South Events:
Southwest
- Pine Trail Run (Pine, AZ)
- Glorieta 12 Hour Endurance Run/Ruck (Santa Fe, NM)
- Sasquatch Shuffle TX (Grapeland, TX)
- The Next Loop: 50 Mile Challenge – Tyler, TX (Tyler, TX)
- The Next Loop Endurance Series – Tyler, TX (Tyler, TX)
Southeast
- Last Person Standing by Flint Creek Endurance (Siloam Springs, AR)
- Sunshine Double (Winter Park, FL)
- The Big 50 (Pine Mountain, GA)
- Carolina Thread 8hr/12hr (Fort Mill, SC)
- Strolling Jim™ (Wartrace, TN)
- Grayson Highlands (Mouth of Wilson, VA)
- Perfect Day 50K – Massanutten (Keezletown, VA)
Featured: Rock the Ridge (New Paltz, NY)
The Rock the Ridge 50 Mile Challenge is a popular event and fundraiser that benefits New York’s Mohonk Preserve, the largest (8,200 acres) member and visitor-supported nature preserve in the state. Back for its 13th season, the race/walk is set in the beautiful Shawangunk Mountains of New York’s Hudson Valley, a region that has been described as “one of Earth’s last great places.”
The 50-mile participants will set off on well-maintained carriage roads that meander through lush forests and over scenic ridgelines with just over 4,600 feet of climbing and descent. Along the way, they have access to numerous well-stocked aid stations and tremendous volunteers cheering them on. Participants have 18 hours to complete the race. Check out a Rock the Ridge race video here, and click this link to learn more about the Mohonk Preserve.
Other Northeast Events:
- Farm Park Challenge (Derwood, MD)
- The Ripper – Sunrise to Sunset (Pocomoke, MD)
- The Blue 2 Blue Challenge (New Haven, CT)
- Riverlands 100 (Turner, ME)
- Big A 50k (York, ME)
- White Lake Ultras (Tamworth, NH)
- Spartan Trail – Bear Mountain Trail Challenge (Tomkins Cove, NY)
- Van Cortlandt Park 50k (Bronx, NY)
- Hills Creek Endurance Challenge (Wellsboro, PA)
Featured: Wild Horse Traverse (Kelowna, BC)
The Wild Horse Traverse is a 50k ultramarathon that takes runners on a point-to-point adventure through the rugged trails of British Columbia’s Okanagan region. The race begins at Bertram Creek Regional Park in Kelowna, BC, and travels north through Okanagan Mountain Provincial Park to the finish line in Manitou Park.
Along the way, participants navigate technical single-track trails, remote canyons, historic railways and 1,896 meters of elevation gain and 1,903 meters of descent. For their efforts, they are rewarded with stunning views and a post-race celebration by the water. Read the official 2026 Wild Horse Traverse race guide.
Read the official 2026 Wild Horse Traverse race guide.
Other Events in Canada & Mexico:
- The Oldman Backyard Ultra (Lethbridge, AB)
- Dirty Feet Kal Park 50 (Vernon, BC)
- Oxbow 50K (Carberry, MB)
- Hanwell Hammering (Hanwell, NB)
- GEI Pure Grit Trail Race (Hepworth, ON)
- Rugged Raccoon Trail Races (St. Marys, ON)
Email corys@ultrarunning with questions about adding your event to the UltraRunning Magazine calendar.