The Longest Night (50mi – 50k – 26.2 – 13.1 – 10k) 2026 — Greenville, SC

Upstate Race Series The Longest Night Lakewood Nature Preserve · Greenville, SC A backyard elimination race, run from dusk to dawn 🌙 “ A 1.5-mile loop extending from a central barn, run through the longest night of the year, on a lap schedule that requires every loop under 25 minutes. Four laps is a 10K. Nine is a half. Eighteen is a marathon. Twenty-one is a 50K. Thirty-four is fifty miles. It begins at six in the evening and does not care what time you would normally go to bed. Running through the night changes the whole shape of an effort. The loop is short and the trails are wide and grassy, so navigation is never the problem — the problem is the hours between midnight and dawn, when the field has thinned out, the temperature has dropped, and the only thing keeping you on schedule is the fact that you said you would be. The barn is the whole world for the night: packet pickup, the aid station, hot soup and broth, and the place everyone regroups between laps. When you finish, don't disappear into the dark — stick around for music and a post-race hangout where the celebration continues under the stars, with good tunes and good people. Race Day Details What The Longest Night — 50 Mile (34 laps), 50K (21 laps), Marathon (18 laps), Half Marathon (9 laps), and 10K (4 laps) on a 1.5-mile loop When Saturday evening into Sunday, December 19–20, 2026 — 6:00 PM start Where Lakewood Nature Preserve, Greenville, SC — the barn is the start/finish hub Address 220 Lakewood Drive, Greenville, SC 29607 Packet Pickup Begins at 4:30 PM inside the barn, 90 minutes prior to the start. All packet pickup is done right on site, and you pick up your own. Time Limit All runners must adhere to the posted lap schedule, completing each lap in under 25 minutes. The full lap-by-lap schedule is below. Course The course extends 1.5 miles from the central barn on wide grassy trails, run as a loop. All runners must adhere to the posted lap schedule, completing laps in under 25 minutes. View Course Map → Lap Schedule Every lap sets off on the clock below, 25 minutes apart, from six on Saturday evening to a quarter to eight on Sunday morning. There are no early starts — if you finish a lap ahead of schedule, you wait for the next one with everyone else. Your distance ends on its final lap, marked here. Saturday evening Lap 1 6:00 PM All races start Lap 2 6:25 PM Lap 3 6:50 PM Lap 4 7:15 PM 10K final lap Lap 5 7:40 PM Lap 6 8:05 PM Lap 7 8:30 PM Lap 8 8:55 PM Lap 9 9:20 PM Half marathon final lap Lap 10 9:45 PM Lap 11 10:10 PM Lap 12 10:35 PM Lap 13 11:00 PM Lap 14 11:25 PM Lap 15 11:50 PM Sunday morning Lap 16 12:15 AM Lap 17 12:40 AM Lap 18 1:05 AM Marathon final lap Lap 19 1:30 AM Lap 20 1:55 AM Lap 21 2:20 AM 50K final lap Lap 22 2:45 AM Lap 23 3:10 AM Lap 24 3:35 AM Lap 25 4:00 AM Lap 26 4:25 AM Lap 27 4:50 AM Lap 28 5:15 AM Lap 29 5:40 AM Lap 30 6:05 AM Lap 31 6:30 AM Lap 32 6:55 AM Lap 33 7:20 AM Lap 34 7:45 AM 50 Mile final lap Parking Barn parking holds 150 spots, first come first served. Once that fills, use the field lot adjacent to the barn, and after that participants may park along the road. Your registration covers the facility reservation cost to host the event. Aid Stations One central aid station at the barn, which is also the start/finish hub — you reach it every 1.5-mile lap. Available snacks: Hot soup and broth (veggie) Pickles Chips Candy Fig Newtons Hydration: Water Coke Ginger ale Wildly Charged Hydration Cup-less event — please bring your own hydration vessel. What's Included Hot Soup and Broth All Night Veggie, and exactly what you want at 3:00 AM in December. Custom Race Bib Your badge of the journey. Chip Timing & Live Results Track your effort, splits included. Custom Finisher Medal To commemorate the triumph. Custom Race Tattoo Wear the moment proudly. Event-Themed Giveaways A little extra swag for finishing strong. Race Sticker Keep the memory riding shotgun on your bottle, cooler, or laptop. Wildly Charged Hydration Sample A little extra refresh after you've conquered the trail. Post-Race Vibes Complimentary professional race photos capture the grit and the glory — hang around at the finish line and celebrate. Race Awards Finish and You Have Beaten the Night This is a backyard elimination race run against a lap schedule rather than against the field. Every finisher earns a medal. Shirts are ordered and shipped separately. Age Group Awards (Male & Female) The 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place finishers in each of 15 age categories will earn an age group medal — a custom piece to add to your finisher's lanyard at the end of the event. Series Recognition This race counts toward season-long age group recognition in these two series: Upstate Trail Series Upstate Ultra Series Giving Back Every Upstate Race Series event is part of the Upstate Giving Series, which connects our 30 races with 30 nonprofit organizations serving communities across the Upstate. Your registration and any donation you add at checkout go to work close