Summary
The World Team Backcountry Championships are currently underway, featuring 69 countries competing in a grueling Backyard Ultra format. Belgium's team has made headlines by breaking the previous record, with two runners pushing the limits of endurance. The Backyard Ultra consists of a 4.167-mile loop run every hour on the hour, continuing until only one runner remains. As of now, the Belgian team is 123 hours into the competition, having collectively run approximately 512 miles each.
The standings show the United States leading, followed by Australia and Belgium, which remains the only team still active in the race. Frank Heelan, a former Backyard record holder, reports live from Belgium's camp, highlighting the team's unexpected success and their determination to potentially overtake Australia for second place. Heelan notes that the camaraderie among the runners has been crucial, as they support each other through the physical and mental challenges of the race.
Heelan shares insights into the team's strategy, emphasizing the importance of pacing and teamwork in achieving their remarkable distance. He recounts the intense experiences of the runners, including moments of hallucination and physical exhaustion. Despite the challenges, the Belgian team remains focused, driven by their shared goal and the support of their crew, which has fostered a familial atmosphere among the competitors.
Show Notes
At the time we recorded this, Belgian runners Ivo Steyaert and Merijn Geerts had been running for 123 hours—five days and three hours—and had each covered about 512 miles. They’d just broken the previous backyard ultra world record, and Belgium was the only team with runners still going in the World Team Championship.
I’ve done two backyard ultras myself: I won one in 2022 and was the assist in another in 2023. The format is simple: run 4.167 miles every hour, on the hour, and keep going until only one runner is left. In this bonus episode, I check in with Frank “the Tank” live from Belgium. Frank has gone more than 100 yards himself and was part of Belgium’s record-setting team. This year, he’s watching from the other side as a crew member and part of the media team.
We talk about how the World Team Championship works, what Ivo and Merijn do in the minutes between loops, how they help each other through rough patches, and why Belgium has become such a force in backyard running. Frank shares stories from the race, including a sleep-deprived runner who thought he was making cash drops, and gives us a close-up look at what it takes to keep going when you’ve already run more than 500 miles.
Then I talk about why the backyard format can be such a useful way to pace a long effort—and why the prospect of doing another one is starting to sound pretty tempting.
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