2.0. Kent Backyard Ultra Series II Pass

Four events. Four different tests. One stronger runner.

A single Backyard Ultra tests the runner you are today.

The Kent Backyard Ultra Series II gives you nine months to build the runner you could become.

Across Vigo, Dover, Sholden and Bedgebury, you will face hills, darkness, winter running, exposed marshland, sleep deprivation and the mental pressure of starting another yard.

Each event exposes something different. Each one gives you lessons to take back into training before the next.

Race. Learn. Train. Return.

The runner who starts at Vigo should not be the same runner who arrives at Bedgebury.

Booking the Series Pass will not make you better on its own. You still have to do the work.

What it gives you is structure, four fixed targets and a reason to keep improving throughout the Series II season.

Four different tests

2.1. Vigo

Friday 16 October 2026
Vigo Rugby Club, Kent
21:00 start

Vigo opens Series II under the lights.

The course brings together hills, trails, darkness and the start of sleep deprivation.

This is not an event you prepare for with running alone. Strength, hill training and the ability to keep moving through the night all matter.

Vigo establishes your starting point and shows you what needs work.

2.2. Dover

Saturday 9 January 2027
Great Farthingloe Farm, Dover
09:00 start

Dover puts your winter training to the test.

Based around the Great Barn at Great Farthingloe, the course sits in the valley above Dover with views towards the Kent coast and France.

This event asks whether you have maintained your training, worked on the weaknesses Vigo exposed and arrived ready to keep moving through a January Backyard Ultra.

2.3. Sholden

Saturday 10 April 2027
Lillyroo’s Glamping, Deal
09:00 start

Sholden is where Series II strips everything back.

The route crosses flat, open marshland with approximately eight metres of ascent per yard. There are no hills to break the rhythm and almost nowhere to shelter from the conditions.

There is nowhere to hide from the distance, the repetition or your own thoughts.

The course is runnable, but that is exactly what makes it so demanding. You must control your pace, maintain your fuelling and keep moving long after the simple act of completing another yard has stopped feeling simple.

Mentally and physically, Sholden is a test of fortitude.

2.4. Bedgebury

Friday 16 July 2027
Bedgebury National Pinetum & Forest
21:00 start

Bedgebury is not simply the fourth event. Its route combines the best elements of the previous three.

It brings together climbing, runnable sections, changing terrain, night running and the mental pressure of repeated yards, all inside Bedgebury National Pinetum & Forest.

You will need the strength developed for Vigo, the resilience tested at Dover and the mental fortitude demanded by Sholden.

By the time the 21:00 start arrives, you will have had three events and nine months to identify your weaknesses and work on them.

Bedgebury is where you bring everything together.

This is the Series II finale and the final test of the runner you have become.

How a Backyard Ultra works

Each event follows the official Backyard Ultra format.

Runners must complete a 4.167-mile yard within one hour. The next yard begins exactly one hour later.

Complete the yard in time and you earn the right to start again.

The event continues until only one runner remains and completes a final yard alone.

There is no set finishing distance.

Your target could be your first ultra, 50 miles, 100km, 100 miles, a new personal best or Last One Standing.

Every completed yard matters.

One series. One cumulative leaderboard.

Your completed yards from all four events are added to the Series II leaderboard.

At the top of that leaderboard is the Black Buckle chase.

The Black Buckle is not earned through one exceptional result. It rewards the runner who can perform, learn, improve and return across the full series.

But the leaderboard is not only for those trying to win.

It allows every runner to follow their total, measure their progress and see what happens when they keep coming back.

Your biggest competition may simply be the runner you were at Vigo.

What the Series II Pass gives you

A single-event entry gives you one Backyard Ultra.

The Series II Pass gives you:

• Full entry to Vigo, Dover, Sholden and Bedgebury through one booking
• A secured place at all four events
• A £65 saving compared with booking each event separately
• The option to spread the cost through interest-free payments
• Discounted coaching through our partner run coaches
• Four fixed targets across nine months
• The opportunity to add yards to your total at every round of the Series II leaderboard
• A complete Black Buckle campaign without missing an event
• Exclusive access to the private Series II Passholders WhatsApp group
• Direct access to the Race Director throughout the series

This is not simply a cheaper way to enter four races.

It is a commitment to the complete Series II journey.

Your Series II Passholders WhatsApp group

Series Pass holders will receive exclusive access to a private WhatsApp group running from registration through to the Bedgebury finale.

The group will be managed by our partner run coaches and previous Kent Backyard Ultra Series winners.

It brings together coaching knowledge with experience from runners who understand what it takes to complete the full series.

The group will give you somewhere to:

• Connect with other runners completing all four events
• Share your training, progress and setbacks
• Ask questions about preparing for each event
• Learn from the experiences of previous Series winners
• Stay focused between one event and the next

I will remain part of the group as the Race Director.

You can ask me questions about the events, your preparation or what comes next at any point during the series. Replies may not always be immediate, but you will have direct access to me throughout your journey from Vigo to Bedgebury.

I cannot complete the training or yards for you, but I will be just as committed to your progression as you are.

The group does not replace individual coaching. It gives you access to knowledge, experience and other runners following the same nine-month journey.

Official event instructions and essential race information will continue to be sent by email. The WhatsApp group is an additional benefit for Series Pass holders.

Who is the Series II Pass for?

You do not need to be an elite runner.

You do not need to believe you can win the Black Buckle.

You need to want a bigger target than one event and be prepared to use each result honestly.

Find the weakness. Work on it. Return stronger.

Some runners will chase the front of the leaderboard. Others will target their first 50 miles, 100km, 100 miles or one more yard than last time.

All of those goals belong in the series.

If you only want to enter one event, individual entries are available.

If you want four different tests, a season-long target and the best-value way to enter the complete series, choose the Series II Pass.

Before you book

The Series Pass covers race entry to all four events. Camping, accommodation and other optional extras must be booked separately where available.

All entrants must be aged 18 or over on the date of the first event.

Save £65. Secure all four dates. Join the Series II Passholders group. Put your name on the leaderboard.

Enter the series. Do the work. Become a better runner.

You Decide Your Story. Earned. Not Given.