Rebuilt from the ground up with a permanent home for each event and each athlete, the new race registration platform is built for trail running’s biggest registration days.
UltraSignup will open the next generation of its race registration platform to its first events this winter. Rebuilt from the ground up, the new platform is designed to make launching, managing, and marketing a race easier for race directors, and finding one easier for athletes.
Each event gets a permanent home that carries forward from year to year, and each athlete gets a single profile that travels with them. Payments run on Adyen, with clearer change and cancellation policies. Waitlists and lotteries run on the platform from the start. And the platform is built for the sport’s biggest registration days, when thousands of runners enter the same race in the same minute.
UltraSignup will preview the new platform at the US Trail Running Conference, Nov. 5–7 at Nashville’s Music City Center.
“This is the most significant tech investment we’ve ever made, and we’re doing it to anticipate and fulfill the needs of the trail community,” said David Callahan, UltraSignup’s co-CEO. “Trail running is thriving. Our goal is to fuel year-over-year growth for race directors and to help runners discover the races that inspire them.”
For race directors, every event keeps one URL and its full history across years, and renewing an event means carrying last year forward rather than starting over. One dashboard shows entries and money in one place. Athletes can search by distance, terrain, location and season, and carry their race history with them.
This winter’s release is the foundation. Through 2027, UltraSignup will build on it: race-day tools for timing and check-in, multi-event series, payment plans, audience tools for race directors, and programs for timing and brand partners. Events move to the new platform at their next registration opening, and the current site keeps running until they do.
The platform is built to meet PCI DSS, GDPR and CCPA requirements.
Trail Running is Booming
Trail running is the one of the fastest growing outdoor activities in the U.S., growing 6.6 percent in 2025 to 17.2 million participants and up 57 percent since 2019, according to the Outdoor Industry Association’s 2026 Running Report. UltraSignup is at the center of that growth, helping runners discover more than 6,500 races across North America.
The US Trail Running Conference brings together the people building the future of trail running: experienced race directors, new race operators, athletes, brands and the community that lives the sport. The conference will also give registrants an early look at the new UltraSignup platform, with opportunities to demo the technology.
“UltraSignup is the home of trail running — already the platform where runners overwhelmingly come to discover their next race, track their ranking and find all their resources,” said UltraSignup co-CEO Jay Kelley. “By deeply investing in UltraSignup’s platform technology, our goal is to outpace the sport, serving race directors and runners ahead of what they need. And hosting the USTRC means the trail community can stay connected far after the finish line.”
This year’s panels and sessions will engage attendees about race sponsorships, medical guidelines for races, how to increase diversity and inclusivity in the sport, and the future of public lands. Additional topics include marketing and media basics for races, enhancing runner and volunteer experiences, and environmental sustainability. A state of the sport presentation will be a discussion about what UltraSignup’s registration data says about where trail and ultrarunning went this year.
In conjunction with the US Trail Running Conference, UltraSignup is hosting one of its Dirt Circus community trail running events on Sunday, Nov. 8 in Nashville.
“This year we’re welcoming a group of experienced speakers as never before — representing races from 5K to 300 miles — and addressing topics incredibly important to our sport,” said Carrie Meng, USTRC Event Director. “I don’t know another forum in trail that brings together this depth of knowledge and experience.”
About UltraSignup
Founded in 2009 by a trail runner for trail runners, UltraSignup is trail running’s home for race registration, results and rankings — hosting more than 6,500 events across North America, more than any other platform in the sport. Beyond race registration, UltraSignup produces original journalism, video and podcasts through Trailhead Media, tours the country with its Dirt Circus festival events and stewards the U.S. Trail Running Conference. Find your next race at ultrasignup.com.
UltraSignup believes trails are for everyone. UltraSignup exists to bring the trail running community together to push beyond: further than we thought we could, into the wild places worth standing up for, and toward a bigger future for the sport.
About the US Trail Running Conference
The US Trail Running Conference is a gathering for race directors, brands, athletes, media and outdoor industry leaders to learn, connect and shape the future of the sport. Learn more at ustrailrunningconference.com.
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