The Void strips ultrarunning down to its most essential—and unforgiving—form.
There is no scenery.
No variation.
No relief.
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You run from one end to the other, turn around a cone, and go back the way you came.
Again.
And again.
And again.
If you’re looking to be pampered, distracted, or entertained, you are going down the wrong hole.
The Void takes place inside Sideling Hill Tunnel, a Pennsylvania Turnpike relic steeped in unfinished ambition and quiet abandonment. Originally constructed in the 1880s by the Vanderbilt Syndicate to rival the Pennsylvania Railroad, the tunnel was never completed—earning the name Vanderbilt’s Folly. In the 1940s, it was repurposed and finished for the Pennsylvania Turnpike, becoming the longest tunnel on America’s First Superhighway. Abandoned in 1968, it now sits cold, dark, and silent as part of the Old Turnpike Trail.
For this race, the darkness will be maddening.
The Void is a 48-hour, out-and-back ultramarathon run entirely inside the tunnel. Runners will complete 63 out-and-backs through the 1.3-mile corridor, totaling just under 160 miles—a deliberate nod to the nearby Pennsylvania Turnpike. When America’s First Superhighway opened, it stretched 160 miles from Carlisle to Irwin.
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The physical challenge is straightforward and relentless:
160 miles of pavement and an opportunity to quit every 2.5 miles.
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The psychological challenge is where the race earns its name.
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The tunnel has no interior lighting, forcing runners to exist in repeated darkness for two days. There is no variation. No outside stimulus. No escape from the rhythm.
There is no exit.
Only forward. And back.
To reinforce the psychological and strategic nature of The Void, the race employs a Toll Ticket system, inspired by Pennsylvania Turnpike toll tickets. At check-in, each runner is issued a Toll Ticket that governs how often they may leave the tunnel to receive outside support.
Each break from The Void takes its toll.