10 Road Races with No Route and No Rules

It seems that everyone in their late 20s and early 30s is either getting married or running a marathon. But for many, the art of racing can feel heavy when you’re lost in the throws of a training block. To combat that, many running communities are saying “Goodbye” to structured races and embracing chaos with the dawn of unsanctioned races.

These races are held in secrecy until the very last minute, urging participants to be ready for anything. The feeling of toeing these haphazard start lines can only be described as electric, from the community to the passion of standing beside fellow runners to the thrill of running a race with no designated route. Running an unsanctioned race must be on every runner’s bucket list.

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10 Barkley Marathons

This ultra marathon is the running world’s best-kept secret. The race was created in 1986 by Gary Cantrell, who lived near Frozen Head State Park in Tennessee. Cantrell had heard local stories of a failed prison escape nearly 10 years prior and was unimpressed that the inmate had only covered eight miles during his 60 hours on the lam. Shortly after, Cantrell created the first Barkley Race.

Applicants submit the elusive application alongside a nonrefundable $1.60 application fee; then, they wait to find out if they are one of the lucky 40 participants picked. Participants only receive the crucial information ahead of time: a start date and the location of a campground. Once on site, runners wait around for the sound of a conch shell and a lit cigarette: the official beginning of the Barkley Marathons.

This ultra demands that participants push themselves to their physical limit while navigating dense forest terrain. There is no set route, so participants must use a map and compass to find the checkpoint for each lap. Cantrell has incorporated many obstacles, but one of the toughest is the stipulation that if any runners reach lap five, they must run the route in alternating directions.

However, runners do not have a chance to communicate their direction, so each runner just has to hope that they have chosen the correct way. Over the course of 30 years, only 20 runners have managed to finish the Barkley Marathons. You can learn more by watching the 2014 documentary The Barkley Marathons: The Race That Eats Its Young.^[1]

9 Original Propaganda Athletic Club

Philadelphia’s Original Propaganda Athletic Club—or O.P.A.C. as the Philly running community calls it—offers a competitive environment for runners of all experience and fitness levels. Every spring, O.P.A.C. invites the rest of the Philadelphia run clubs together to participate in their annual road relay. This race takes place on Penn’s Campus in an undisclosed location and pays homage to the long-standing Penn Relays.

While the race participants are volunteers from established run clubs, the route itself is unsanctioned by the city. Runners sprint through the streets of University City in a 4×400 meter relay while their run club families cheer them on with a beverage in hand. It has even been heard that the finish line had to be temporarily moved to allow a passing truck through!^[2]

8 Marathon des Sables

The Marathon des Sables, or “Marathon of the Sands,” was first brought to fruition two years after French concert promoter Patrick Bauer spent 12 days traversing across the Sahara Desert, alone and barefoot. This 1984 feat quickly inspired the week-long ultra marathon.

As the event has gained popularity, it has developed a regulatory committee to ensure that participants and tourists are not harmed by the process; however, the initial years of the race were unsanctioned and less formally organized. Participants are still tasked with carrying their own equipment and supplies across the unforgiving landscape. In 2017, the Marathon des Sables developed two additional challenges: the MDS Trek and the MDS Legendary.^[3]

7 Take the Bridge

The next unsanctioned race is a tough one to track down as it fashions its communication after the more secretive races, announcing registration and details two weeks before each race. Take the Bridge is run in various cities and countries and is always held at night. There is never a structured course, just two to three checkpoints for participants to navigate through before crossing the finish line.

This racing series was founded by Darcy Budworth in 2015 when she was fitting her runs into a hectic commute to and from her Manhattan architecture firm. Budworth loved running over the bridges of NYC and the late-night solitude after a busy work day.

The start is simple: Runners line up against a chalk line drawn across a bridge. The task: run across a specific number of bridges and other checkpoints before meeting at a bar about 6.2 mi (10 km) away. The goal of Take the Bridge is to keep running a fun activity and foster a more community-oriented connection with running.^[4]

6 Rocky Run 50k

Philadelphians sure do enjoy ignoring the rules! The Rocky Run 50k is the snowball result of an article from the Philadelphia Inquirer that decided to map out Rocky’s geographically inconsistent jaunt through the city. Turns out Rocky’s “warm up” is more of an ultramarathon.

Upon reading the 2013 article, Philly native Rebecca Barber put together what’s known as a “Fat Ass” run: no fees, no support, no course markers, no closed roads, no spectator crowds. The route covers roughly 31 miles (50 km) of the iconic East Coast city—making sure that every historic landmark and neighborhood gets its moment to shine.

The winter race hosts a couple hundred runners each year and highlights Philly favorites such as Stock’s Bakery in Port Richmond, City Hall, and the Italian Market in South Philly. Overall, this race has taken over the hearts—and streets—of Philadelphia.^[5]

5 Appalachian Trail

While not an official race, the bravest of thru-hikers turn on their speed and run all 2,190 miles (3,524 km) of the Appalachian Trail in one go. Runners must follow all the same rules and regulations as thru-hikers: obtaining proper permits and following Leave No Trace guidelines, to name a few. The trail is tough enough for thru-hikers to traverse, taking five to seven months to conquer, but runners need to take extra precautions into account.

Running expends significantly more energy than walking—and hiking takes up a LOT of energy! Trail runners must account for the increased caloric expenditure while navigating uneven terrain at higher speeds and preventing injury. The Appalachian Trail Conservancy does not officially promote running the AT, but they are aware that the population of trail runners is growing and have released blog-style articles to help runners prepare.

Currently, Tara Dower holds the speed record for running the Appalachian Trail. She began on August 12, 2024, and finished an impressive 40 days, 18 hours, and 5 minutes later on September 21, 2024. Dower beat the previous record holder, Karel Sabbe (2018 FKT), by 13 hours. Dower depended on the determination and planning efforts of her crew to get her to the finish line.^[6]

4 Going Round in Circles

Just beneath the bustling downtown streets lies the guiding yellow trail of London’s Circle Line. Racing between the lines has become an annual tradition for many Londoners who seek to add some unique memories to their morning commute. The goal of Going Round in Circles, which is run by the Go Beyond Challenge, is for runners to run between all 27 stations of the Circle Line.

Overall, racers can expect to run about 16 miles (25.7km)—or 8 miles ((12.8 km) each for teams of two. Beginning at Volunteer Pub by the Regent’s Park stop, runners must weave in and out of pedestrian tourists and dodge cars at crosswalks. This race does not receive special sanctions from the city, so closing down the streets is not an option, especially when the route mirrors one of London’s most popular transit lines. This race, commonly mistaken for The Circle Line Challenge pub crawl, offers finishers a medal and a drink at a local pub.^[7]

3 The Midnight Half

Tucked down a side street of the city that never sleeps lies the temporary start line of the Midnight Half. This race may be unsanctioned by the city, but it is sponsored by an industry powerhouse. Nike partners with NYC-based run club Orchard Street Runners for local outreach and race management.

Advertisement for the event is nominal, and the entry fee is minimal, just enough to cover basic costs. The rules of the race are simple: runners can run any route of their choosing as long as they hit every checkpoint along the way. This format is known as an “alleycat” race. The checkpoints are strategically laid out so that runners must run at least 13.1 miles (21 km), effectively completing a half marathon.

The secretive race was held for at least ten years but seems to have dropped off the grid after 2022. Perhaps we’ll never know what happened to this midnight jaunt… Or perhaps only those who need to know, know.^[8]

2 Orchard Street Runners

New York City is in the spotlight again with Orchard Street Runners. OSR hosts a flurry of unsanctioned races throughout the year. One such race is the OSR30, an ultra-marathon that sends runners along the perimeter of Manhattan. This 30-mile (48 km) race is also “alleycat” style: Each runner has a personal biking partner for fueling and safety purposes. Together, the team must strategize the shortest route between checkpoints.

Orchard Street Runners also sponsors the annual “Downtown Bread Route Race.” This race series always begins on the streets of NYC at 2:00 a.m. The 7-9-mile (11-14-km) routes are based on the routes that OSR founder Joe Dinoto would take with his father while they were delivering bread in the early mornings of his childhood.

The goal of this race is to allow runners a space to take “ownership over the city, offering participants a chance to experience New York in its rawest, most authentic form.” This race is a scrappy version of some OSR’s other unsanctioned events, but the experience is nonetheless special.^[9]

1 Unsanctioned Athletics, Nottingham

The secretive race movement has spread across the pond to Nottingham, United Kingdom. The Unsanctioned Athletics Club hosts regular races with “no route, no rules.” Each course is different, and runners only have 30 minutes before the start to prepare a strategy. This racing series began in 2023 and has caught on in full force.

Founder Luke Myers was searching for a space to make friends his age and had a tough time finding that in the local run clubs, so he started his own: Embankment Run Club. From there, he developed the concept of an unsanctioned race inspired by the semi-lawless and frenetic races in New York City. The Unsanctioned Athletics racing calendar takes a hiatus in the winter months, but from late spring to early autumn, the races are regular, each one embracing the chaotic beauty of unsanctioned running.^[10]