Event Type : Physical Event

Funds from the Canada Life Forest City Road Races will support TVCC (Formerly the Thames Valley Children’s Centre). The regional rehabilitation centre serves children and young adults with physical disabilities, communication disorders, developmental delays and autism spectrum disorder in Southwestern Ontario.

Ways to Get Involved with Forest City Road Races:

Registration: https://raceroster.com/events/2026/111486/forest-city-road-races-2026

Volunteer: https://www.forestcityroadraces.com/volunteer

Social Media:

https://www.facebook.com/forestcityroadraces

https://twitter.com/ForestCityRaces

https://www.instagram.com/forestcityroadraces/

What would it be like to run a race where the goal is to run away from a location, rather than to a finish line?

What would it be like to run a race where the runners decide their own course?

Who will go the farthest?

The Persistence Racing Run Club presents: The Farthest

How it Works

All runners will start at the same location, at the same time, somewhere within London, Ontario, Canada (this is not a virtual race).

From the common start point, each runner will have 8 hours (4 hours for those doing the half-farthest, and 2 hours for those doing the quarter-farthest) to get as far away from the starting point as possible. The course each runner chooses is entirely up to them.

The runner who gets the farthest away from the start line “as the crow flies” is the winner. It is possible that a runner may run the longest distance, but not be the farthest away from the starting point “as the crow flies.” Yes, this is a test of endurance, but it’s also a test of intelligence and strategy.

Funds raised for this event goes directly to Children’s Health Foundation

We are so incredibly excited and honoured to welcome you to our signature event, the Persistence Backyard Ultra, Ontario’s original affiliated backyard ultra.

Do you have enough persistence to push yourself further than you think is possible? Do you have enough persistence to be the Last One Standing? Find out during the 5th edition of the Persistence Backyard Ultra, beginning on August 1st, 2026.

As a bonus for any Ontario runners, the backyard will be taking place on the August long weekend, giving you an extra day to run, or recover. That will lead to less of those “why are you walking like that?” conversations when you go back to work.

The Backyard is for all runners. Past years have seen a number of runners reach new personal bests, completing their first marathon, ultramarathon, or going further than they ever had. How far can you go?

This year’s event is once again a Silver Ticket event. This means that our winner receives an automatic entry to compete in the World Team Championship!

We are very proud that the 2022, and 2024 events sent two runners, our winners, Amanda Nelson and Justin Wright, and our assists, Brian Bondy and Francois Decelles, to the World Team Championship.

The Persistence Backyard Ultra is an official affiliated race of Lazarus Lake’s Big Dog’s Backyard Ultra.

As with all of our events, a portion of each registration will be donated to the Children’s Health Foundation in support of children and their families in our community.

This ride is an event to raise money for Children’s Health Foundation in London, Ontario. It will cover over 960KM in 6 days, starting and ending at Children’s Hospital – London Health Sciences Centre. We will be visiting the communities of Kincardine, Owen Sound, Collingwood, Oakville, Niagara Falls, Simcoe, and many in between. We are a group of passionate cyclists who want to help in a way we know how. With the generosity of every donation, we are confident we can make a huge difference in these children’s lives.

Register for the ride or donate to the ride – either way will make a huge difference in the lives of children at Children’s Hospital.