Second annual Old Tom Backyard Ultramarathon a success

For 35 hours at a farm near Blumenort, runners from across the province pushed their bodies to the limit in an attempt to win the Old Tom Backyard Ultramarathon July 5/6.

A backyard ultramarathon is a more accessible long-distance format, with runners starting a new 4.167 mile lap every hour, needing to complete it within the 60 minutes before starting again. The winner is the runner who completes a lap on their own after every other runner has dropped out.

Over 50 of the 75 entrants made the 12 hour mark, and six people completed a full 24 hours, meaning they ran 100 miles, including the last women’s runner standing, Natalie Hamm.

Winnipeg’s Aaron Webb came out the winner, completing 35 laps (146 miles) over two days, outlasting Jin Lee to claim the title. Last year’s champion, Justin Davey, only needed 26 loops to become the champion.

The race is organized by Steffan Reimer, an accomplished long distance runner himself and his father Danny, which is hosted on their family farm and surrounding properties.

“Finishing in a half hour isn’t actually what you want, you want to be running slow, that way your heart rate stays down, your not burning as much calories,” Steffan said after a couple days of recovery after the event finished. He stayed up throughout the event to make sure things were running smoothly both in the transition area and on the trails.

“So everyone’s running the same speed, you can see each other, you can encourage each other, it’s such a unique, fun, community event.”

Luckily for the competitors and race organizers, the opening lap took place on July 5 instead of the day before, as temperatures reached highs of 32 degrees with heavy humidity July 4. Temperatures peaked at a cooler 26 degrees over the weekend.

“The weather turned out to be everything you could have asked for,” Reimer said.

“The day before, we would have all been done after probably five hours.”

The race expanded from 50 entrants to 75 for year two, with plans for a more prestigious event next year. The Old Tom Backyard will be one of six “silver ticket” races in Canada, meaning the winner will automatically be awarded a spot on Team Canada for the world championships.

With a spot on Team Canada on the line, Reimer expects some of the best runners from across Canada to be in Blumenort next year. Reimer competed at a silver ticket race himself last year, finishing in the top four at an event in Alberta. All four of the final runners were from outside of the race’s home province.

“It’s going to be a fun mix of locals and people from across Canada next year,” Reimer said.

“We expect 35 (laps) will not stand a chance next year. We’re thinking it will be well into the 40s, if not 50s next year. As race directors we’re going to have to plan our sleep schedule a little better.”

Reimer was sure to shout out the runners’ supporters for helping competitors go as far as they did.

“Seeing so many people have an amazing time while pushing their bodies to their absolute limit, reaching the furthest distance they’ve ever run, it was really awesome,” he said.

“It’s such a unique event, where everyone comes together each hour and everyone starts again… A runner cannot run near as far by themselves as they can with their crew, whoever that might be, a friend or family member.”

The trails used during the event were developed by Danny during the COVID-19 pandemic, and have since become a great spot for runners and mountain bikers to practice in the region. Reimer said some of the neighbours went out to where the trail overlaps their property to cheer runners on over the weekend.

“I love how events like this bring the community together,” Reimer said.

“Whether it be the trail running community, the business community, the neighbourhood. It’s so much fun to bring people together.”

In addition to hosting the Old Tom Backyard, Reimer is hoping to compete at two backyard ultramarathons of his own next year.

For more photos of the event, be sure to check out Carillon Sports Second Shots, published every Wednesday at www.carillon.com/sports.