Camino de Dragones: 300 km from the Pyrenees to Barcelona

Plan your race pace

Vallter 2000 and Parc de la Pau in Sant Adrià de Besòs will be the endpoints of a 300-kilometer relay race between the Pyrenees and the Barcelona area. The second edition will take place on June 12-13, 2027: teams will rotate across 32 legs and face a planned elevation gain of 8,842 meters.

The event is designed for groups of nine to 12 runners, who combine running with vehicle transfers between exchange points. It is neither an individual ultramarathon nor a conventional circuit race: the effort is shared, but the distance, nighttime running and coordination mean the whole team contributes to the result. Registration is scheduled to open on Nov. 8, 2026, at 11 a.m.

From the Pyrenees to the Mediterranean in two days

The start is set at parking area 6 at the Vallter 2000 ski resort, in the municipality of Setcases, and the finish at Parc de la Pau in Sant Adrià de Besòs. The route crosses Catalonia from the mountains toward the coast, creating an unusual image on the race calendar: a sequence of relay exchanges that begins at altitude and ends by the sea, after more than a day of activity.

The advertised distance is about 300 kilometers, divided into 32 legs. Organizers estimate 8,842 meters of positive elevation gain, a figure that puts the challenge in perspective: although each participant runs only part of the route, the team must tackle cumulative climbs and descents throughout the event. The legs combine mountain sections, tracks and paths, along with stretches on roads where particular attention to traffic is required.

The published course is the planned route, not a guarantee that every section will remain unchanged. Municipal permits, health restrictions or weather may require alterations. If a section is affected, organizers have said they will inform team captains once they know about the issue, and the leg may be covered by vehicle transfer, as happened in the 2026 edition.

How a 300-kilometer relay race works

Each team must register between nine and 12 runners. While one person covers the assigned leg, the rest travel to the next exchange point and prepare for the handoff. The event is therefore about more than running: teams must coordinate rest, transport, food and timing throughout Saturday and Sunday, with activity during both daylight and nighttime hours.

The rules state that each runner must complete at least two legs and cannot run two consecutive legs. Legs 15, 16, 17 and 18 are also run in pairs: two members of the same team must start and finish together. The distance distribution depends on team size and the chosen running order, so captains need to plan rotations carefully without placing the burden on the same people every time.

With 12 members, the 36 runner slots — the individual legs and the paired places on the four shared legs — allow the workload to be divided relatively evenly. With nine runners, each person will take on more distance; with 10 or 11, the distribution cannot be identical for everyone. The rules also explain what to do if someone is injured: another runner may continue from the exact point where the injured person stopped, provided the organizers are notified immediately and the ban on consecutive legs is respected.

A team event rather than an individual ultra

The format turns endurance into a collective effort. While one runner is out on the course, the others remain part of the competition: they must reach the exchange, keep the vehicle ready and ensure the next runner knows when their turn is. A traffic delay, an overly long stop or an unrealistic pace estimate can disrupt the team’s relay schedule.

Organizers ask teams to submit realistic times for a flat 10 kilometers. That benchmark is used to assign start waves and estimate arrival times at exchange points. If the declared time is far from the team’s actual pace, its schedule can fall out of sync. The published recommendation is that participants should be able to run 10 flat kilometers in an hour or less, although that guidance does not replace individual preparation or guarantee that every leg will have equal difficulty.

The shared nature of the event does not remove its physical demands. A participant may have to run in conditions unlike those of a typical daytime race, with fatigue building during the team’s waiting periods and hours on the move. Resting when possible, eating regularly and communicating any problem are as much a part of the experience as running pace. In an event this long, logistics also takes energy.

Nighttime running and safety on the course

The race continues through the night, making visible gear and awareness of the terrain essential. Under the rules, anyone running between 7:30 p.m. and 7:30 a.m. must wear a certified reflective garment visible from the front and back, a switched-on headlamp and a flashing red light visible from behind. Runners must also carry a working mobile phone with enough battery for each leg.

Safety requirements apply to more than the runners. Team members who leave the vehicle near a road or at an exchange point during those hours must also wear reflective gear. Drivers must follow the route provided by the organizers, never drive alongside a runner and avoid stopping in unsafe places. If a team provides water, food or encouragement mid-leg, its vehicle must be parked off the road in an authorized location.

On sections open to traffic, participants must follow traffic laws and the instructions of race staff. The rules classify legs on open roads or involving road crossings as noncompetitive: runners do not have priority over other road users. Where there is no sidewalk, runners must run on the left, facing traffic, and in single file; headphones are also prohibited on road sections.

Vehicles, exchanges and team coordination

Vehicles are an essential part of the relay system, but their use is restricted. Each team may use up to three five-seat station wagons or two vehicles with up to nine seats; minibuses, buses and caravans are not permitted. Organizers recommend two cars per team as a practical way to manage exchanges, although the final number must be reported within the deadlines set out in the rules.

At major exchange points, a team may park no more than two cars, and only for the time needed: up to 20 minutes before the runner is expected to arrive. At smaller points, one vehicle is allowed. All vehicles must display the assigned identification card and a visible contact phone number for the driver. Breaking these rules can lead to penalties and can also obstruct access for other participants.

Driving is part of race safety, too. The rules require at least two drivers per car and say that no one may drive for more than three consecutive hours without a 20-minute break. From 11 p.m. to 6 a.m., two people must be awake in every moving vehicle: the driver and a passenger keeping watch. The passenger, never the person behind the wheel, must use the phone; drivers must maintain a 0.0 blood alcohol level throughout the event.

Dates, registration and advertised entry fee

The second edition is scheduled for Saturday, June 12, and Sunday, June 13, 2027. Registration will open on Nov. 8, 2026, at 11 a.m. The sales information reviewed lists an initial fee of 1,080 euros per team, including VAT, and says the price will increase in later waves. The available information does not specify the dates or amounts for those later rates.

The fee is charged to the team, not to each runner. Divided among 12 members, it works out to 90 euros per person; with nine, it comes to 120 euros per participant. That calculation helps put the entry fee in context, but it does not necessarily include each group’s transportation, meals or personal gear for the weekend. The event advertises competition services such as timing, bibs, a team support app and medical assistance on the course.

The rules state that team registration is final and that refunds are not available for voluntary withdrawals, injuries or inability to attend. Teams may transfer the full entry or change members until April 22, 2027. After that date and through June 4, a runner may be replaced only because of injury or illness and after notifying the organizers. If the event is postponed or suspended because of force majeure, specific rules apply to transferring the entry and issuing partial refunds, depending on when notice is given.

Age, requirements and basic rules

The standard age range is 18 to 65 on race day. Participants who are 16 or 17 may take part under special conditions: written permission from a parent or guardian, a medical fitness certificate, that adult’s presence on the same team and participation in daytime legs only. Organizers will not issue a bib to anyone who has not completed and signed the risk-acceptance and fitness declaration documents.

There are also specific rules for relay order, shared legs, withdrawals and behavior at exchange points. If a runner leaves the route, they must return to the point where they left it and resume from there. If someone cannot continue, the team must notify the organizers and say who will finish the leg. In an emergency, the priority is to call 112; notifying race staff does not replace emergency services.

The rules set out penalties that can affect a team’s time or lead to disqualification. Offenses include leaving the route, making an exchange outside the marked zone, using a phone while driving, failing to carry required nighttime gear or failing to help another runner in difficulty. Noise is also restricted between 10 p.m. and 8 a.m. to limit disruption in the communities along the course.

What the event provides and what teams must manage

Information about the event lists a 2027 technical shirt and finisher medal for each runner, bibs, a timing chip and race timing, as well as an app with support for teams. It also includes parking cards and vehicle stickers, staff and volunteers on the route, facilities at the start and finish, restrooms at exchange points and a rest area midway through the course.

Organizers also plan to provide GPX files for the legs and medical services during the race. These resources help teams follow the course and manage incidents, but they do not remove each team’s responsibility to prepare and follow instructions. The required equipment list for vehicles and the final details for each leg should be checked in the current official information before race day, particularly if the course changes.

According to the event announcement, volunteers will mainly support exchange points and the finish area, assisting with runner care, logistics and the atmosphere at the finish. Their presence is especially visible at an event that runs through the night and depends on numerous orderly exchanges. The finish in Sant Adrià is more than the final kilometer: it is the moment when the people who have carried the event together can cross the line as a team.

A planned course that may change

On a route from the mountains to the coast, the course depends on factors the organizers cannot always control. Municipal permits, health restrictions and weather may change the route, and the rules also allow for safety stops or neutralized sections. At temperatures of 36 degrees Celsius or higher, mandatory cooling breaks are planned and exposed sections may be neutralized; if lightning is detected within 10 kilometers, the race stops, and the affected section may be neutralized if the wait reaches two hours.

For that reason, the 300 kilometers and 8,842 meters of elevation gain should be understood as planned figures for the edition, not an unchanging promise about every detail of the route. Organizers will inform captains of changes once they are confirmed. The precise start time for each team and the opening and closing times of exchanges depend on assigned start waves and submitted pace estimates, so they cannot be determined from the overall race dates alone.

The design brings landscape, endurance and coordination together in a single forward-moving route. From the slopes of Vallter to the Barcelona metropolitan area, the challenge is not solved with one long stride but with dozens of small decisions: who runs, who rests, when to drive and how to keep the group safe. That collective dimension defines the event as much as the distance between the Pyrenees and the sea.

The shared finish after the journey

The race’s appeal lies in turning a distance that seems suited to an ultra into a team undertaking. Each runner is responsible for their own legs, but no one can complete the challenge apart from the others: exchanges connect different paces, vehicles bring the next participant closer, and the finish belongs to the team that keeps the chain moving all the way to Sant Adrià de Besòs.

With the date confirmed for June 12-13, 2027, the event combines a long route, nighttime running and detailed traffic and coordination rules. The final course and exact schedules may change for safety or external reasons, while the advertised initial fee is 1,080 euros per team. The proposition is clear: hundreds of kilometers, 32 legs and a group advancing from the mountains toward the coast, taking turns until it reaches the finish together.

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