Name: 8-Hour Dream Endurance Race & Cat Nap 5K
Start: 2026-07-11
End: 2026-07-11
Location: Indianapolis, Indiana

About the Event

Welcome to the 8-Hour Dream Endurance Race — Indiana’s Largest Endurance Running Event!

The Dream is a fixed-duration endurance race with one simple goal: go as far as you can in eight hours. Run, walk, or stroll — every mile counts. Held on Butler University’s iconic campus, The Dream has become the largest endurance running event in Central Indiana and continues to break participation records year after year. In fact, the event has sold out FIVE years in a row, driven by an incredibly high percentage of returning runners.

Spending a full day outside historic Hinkle Fieldhouse feels like a "running tailgate" — part competition, part celebration — all while testing your physical and mental limits. It’s an experience you won’t forget.

The Course
Throughout the day, participants can choose between:

The Long Course (5K)
The Short Course (1.91 miles)

Runners may switch between courses at any time to manage strategy, seek shade, or dial in a target distance. Both courses feature the now-famous Bulldog’s Revenge Hill, a defining challenge of The Dream.

Ways to Participate: There are three ways to be part of the action:

SOLO – Take on all eight hours yourself
TEAM – Share the challenge with teammates
Cat Nap 5K – A single-loop 5K starting at the same time as The Dream, perfect for family and friends who want to join the opening lap with SOLO runners

Team Categories & Divisions include:

Female, Male and Coed
Teams may consist of 3–4 or 5–6 members.

Coed Team Requirements:

3–4 Person Teams:

3 runners → minimum 1 female
4 runners → minimum 2 females

5–6 Person Teams:

5 runners → minimum 2 females
6 runners → minimum 3 females
Specialty Team Divisions

RC Cup is Back: The coveted cup goes to a local running club logging the most miles. Four different running clubs have captured The Cup over the last seven years. Will we have a new club take home the trophy in 2026

Run Clubs must be certified nonprofit running clubs with non-profit status
Require 6-person coed teams (3 males, 3 females)
Running clubs can only enter one team in the RC Cup, but may also enter additional teams in the OPEN division

wb_sunny 20.3° / 30.6°

Wind (km/h)

Humidity (%)

air 9.7 /

water_drop 71.1%

Temp (°C)

Feels Like (°C)

Wind (km/h)

Humidity (%)

thermostat 19.5° / 29.9°

wb_sunny 20.3° / 30.6°

air 9.7 km/h

water_drop 71.1%

About Indianapolis

Indianapolis is the capital of Indiana and also the state’s largest city. Efforts to beautify and modernize the city have brought Indianapolis into the 21st century as a world-class destination for everything from business meetings and trade conventions to backpackers making their way across the States.