The Last Man Standing Lake Placid takes place next Saturday, July 26 at Mount Van Hoevenberg. The race starts at 9 a.m., when runners will be challenged to complete a 4.1-mile loop every hour on the hour. As the name suggests, the winner is the last one standing.

Race organizer and owner of Beastmode Running Company, Anthony Samoraj, said the event could take up to 24 hours or more. It all depends on who shows up, and how long they last.

Samoraj comes from a family of runners — his parents own a running company and put on their own events. However, he hasn’t always been a huge fan of the sport. He preferred running in the context of “real sports” like lacrosse, basketball or football. In college, he finally agreed to run his first marathon with his mom and sister … and got hooked.

Eleven marathons later, Samoraj was ready for the next challenge.

“I got to a point where I was just kind of complacent, comfortable with that distance,” he said.

At his brother’s invitation, he ran his first ultra marathon, in this case a 50-mile race. He said ultra marathons typically start at the 50-kilometer, or 32-mile distance. Then there are 50-mile, 100-kilometer and 100-mile races.

“There’s so much more beyond the physical aspect of it,” Samoraj said. “It becomes mental and then there’s a spiritual component to it. And when you hit these barriers, and you’re pushing through, you kind of become a new person on the other side.”

Last year, Samoraj created Beastmode Running Company, organizing four races that each drew more than 250 runners. A Syracuse native himself, he is excited at the prospect of bringing a new, unique athletic event to Lake Placid.

“Lake Placid has always been one of my favorite spots to visit,” he said. “I love being there, so now I got an excuse to be up there a lot more.”

There are “Last Man Standing”-style events around the country, including one in Maine that was one of the original ones, according to Samoraj. He said a recent race in Austin, Texas went viral after two runners tied after running 235 miles over the course of more than two days. He hopes this event will catch people’s attention in a similar way and plans to make it an annual event.

This kind of race adds extra variables for athletes to plan for — nutrition, pacing, changing temperatures throughout the day and night. There are a lot of different strategies an athlete could use. However, he said some of the excitement for this race comes from the unknown.

“(You are) pushing the limits further than you thought you were going to be able to go that day,” he said. “You don’t know until you show up.”

For more information about the race, visit tinyurl.com/2r667vs6, which is also where athletes can register for the race.