Dean Karnazes is hosting an event sponsored by North Face. Prize money is being awarded to the top male and female runners in a series of four regional 50 mile races leading to a championship at the end of November beginning of Dececmber in San Francisco where the prize will be 10k.

This is a significant attempt to raise the profile of ultrarunning and to attract the best runners the US has right now.

http://www.thenorthface.com/endurancechallenge/