iPhone · Waitlist open

NextYard · the backyard ultra app

One loop.
Every hour.
Until one
is left.

NextYard runs the clock, the crew and the log. You run the loop and make the corral before the bell. That is the whole deal.

On course

The screen you stare at for 24 hours

Everything that decides whether you start the next loop, on one screen. No scrolling, no tabs, readable by headlamp at four in the morning.

  • 28:25

    Loop time and next bell

    Running loop time on the left, countdown to the next start on the right. You never subtract anything yourself.

  • −11:40

    Difference

    At your current pace, how far ahead of the bell you arrive. Green means you make it, red means you do not.

  • +04:20

    Time bank

    Every second you banked across the whole race, as one number. The thing nobody can work out by hour 19.

  • 7:05

    Live pace

    From GPS, smoothed over a 16 second window, tuned against a Garmin across five field tests so it does not jump under trees.

NextYard race screen showing loop time, next start, distance and pace

The tent

Your crew is in the race

Send one link. From then on the tent sees what you see, live, and can answer without typing a word.

  • Live

    Pace, loop, time bank

    Your crew watches the numbers move on their own phone while you are out on the loop.

  • 18

    Quick messages, both ways

    Need soup. Feet are gone. Socks are ready. Hurry, it is getting tight. One tap, with a push notification, because the crew phone is asleep in the tent.

  • 2

    Crew and spectators

    Crew can write and log. Family who just want to follow along get the same live screen without the noise.

Crew and log screen with nutrition totals and crew list

Before the start

The plan your crew can hold

Target time, nutrition and reminders, per loop or per block of loops. Hold back, this is hour one. Headlamp from loop 9. Soup and cola from loop 5.

  • 48:00

    Target time per block

    Set it in minutes, NextYard shows what that means in pace. During the race the plan sits next to your real loop time.

  • PDF

    One page for the table

    Export the plan, print it, tape it to the table. Whoever takes over at three in the morning does not need your phone.

Plan editor with loop blocks, target times and nutrition

After the bell

Win or DNF, it is written down

A backyard ultra has one winner and a field of DNFs. Both get the same report: every loop time, every stop, every message, the whole track.

20Loops
134.12km official
19:47:19Total time
50:27Avg loop
  • 5

    Milestones

    Marathon, 50 km, 50 miles, 100 km, 100 miles and 24 hours. They land in the log the second you pass them, and on the result card afterwards.

  • PDF

    The full log

    Loop by loop, with crew messages, nutrition totals and the raw event file if you want to check the maths yourself.

  • 1

    A card worth posting

    Your loops, your distance, your route, on a card built for a story, not a screenshot of a spreadsheet.

Result screen showing a win with 20 loops and 134.12 km

Questions

FAQ

What is a backyard ultra?

A 6.706 km loop, started every hour on the hour. Finish inside the hour and you rest until the next bell. Miss it once and you are out. It runs until one runner is left, and that runner is the only finisher. Everyone else gets a DNF, no matter how far they went.

Do I need a watch?

No. NextYard uses the iPhone's GPS and runs in the background with the screen off. If you wear a Garmin, keep wearing it, the two do not talk to each other yet.

What happens when there is no signal?

The race keeps running. Everything is recorded on the phone first, so loops, times and the track never depend on reception. Only the live view for your crew needs a connection, and it catches up once you have one.

Does my crew need the app?

Yes, same app, but they do not set anything up. They open your link, pick crew or spectator, and they are in.

What does it cost?

Not decided yet. The waitlist hears it first, and before anyone else can buy it.

When can I get it?

It is being tested on real races right now. The waitlist gets the TestFlight link first.

Waitlist

Be there for the first bell

One email when NextYard launches. No newsletter, no ads, no drip campaign about hydration tips.