Description
The 4K Drop
Free to enter · No target time · Every pace counts
The 4K Drop is the first of five public Drop Weekends inside RTM 2027—and one of ten distances across the complete RTM year.
For one shared weekend, it is open to everyone.
Run wherever you are. No fixed route. No mass start. Free to enter.
Register for the 4K Drop—or enter RTM 2027 and take on the complete year.
Free Drop entrants have no time to beat. RTM 2027 entrants take on their personalised Machine-issued target as part of the complete year.
🗺️ The RTM 2027 Map
RTM 2027 is a ten-distance race year made up of five flexible Core distances and five fixed global Drop Weekends.
⚫ Core Distances
1 Mile · 5K · 10K · 10 Miles · Half Marathon
Core distances can be completed across the year, including through official races. Choose the performances that matter to you and submit them to The Machine.
🔴 Drop Weekends
4K · 6.66K · 5 Miles · 50 Minutes — How Far Can You Go? · 15K
Drop Weekends happen on fixed dates and bring runners together around one distinctive challenge. The 4K is the first Drop of 2027.
Ten distances. Personal targets. One year.
📅 When It Happens
Friday 1–Sunday 3 January 2027
Run your 4K at any time across the weekend. Results and evidence can be submitted until the following Thursday.
It is one fixed RTM moment: the same distinctive distance, undertaken during the same weekend by runners wherever they are.
🌍 One Distance, Wherever You Are
The Drop opens one RTM weekend to runners everywhere—without requiring everyone to travel to the same start line.
Run from your own front door, on a local route, at a track, on a treadmill. Wherever you run, you become part of the same RTM moment.
💡 What’s Included with 4K Drop Entry
- Free registration for the RTM 4K Drop
- One official 4K attempt
- A place on the shared global results board
- A completed distance that can carry forward into RTM 2027
🏃 Two Ways to Take Part
Register for the 4K Drop — Free
Complete the short registration to confirm that you are taking part. Entry is free and no payment details are required unless you choose to support the growth of RTM Drops.
Run the 4K during the official weekend and take your place on the shared results board.
Enter RTM 2027 — Take On the Complete Year
Take on all ten distances across 2027 including the 4K Drop. Your first result establishes your level; from Race 2, The Machine sets personalised targets shaped by the performances you produce.
Complete any seven of the ten distances to Beat The Machine. Every Drop Weekend is included automatically.
⚙️ How the Drop Works
- Register for the 4K Drop
Complete the short free registration to confirm that you are taking part. - Run Friday 1–Sunday 3 January
Any route. Any surface. One official effort. - Upload your result
Submit your time and evidence by the following Thursday. - Make the board
Your performance is recorded alongside every other finisher.
🤖 Where RTM Takes It Further
Completing the Drop means something in its own right. Inside RTM, the same 4K becomes part of a much larger race.
RTM 2027 gives you:
- Ten distinctive distances across the year
- Five flexible Core distances
- Five fixed global Drop Weekends
- A first result that establishes your starting level
- Personalised targets from Race 2
- Performance scoring against The Machine
- Targets shaped by the results you produce
- Beat The Machine status after completing seven distances
The Drop is one shared RTM moment. RTM is the complete year.
If you enter the Drop first and later join RTM 2027, your completed 4K carries forward as your first completed distance and establishes your starting level.
The Machine then uses that performance to set a personalised target for your next race.
⚡ The RTM 4K Drop
One distinctive distance. One shared weekend. Wherever you are.
I’ll be watching.
— The Machine
#KeepChasing
Are You In?
Register your place for the RTM 4K Drop here.
Entry is free. No target time. No payment details are required.
By registering, you agree to the RTM/X10 Terms of Entry/Disclaimer, including the participant safety requirements.
