Summer may be slipping away but runners are still out with one thing on their minds.

The countdown has begun on the legendary Klondike Trail of '98 International Road Relay, which will start Sept. 10 in Skagway, Alaska, at 7 pm in front of the National Park Service Building. On Sept. 11, walkers, ultra and youth competitors will leave from checkpoint seven, Carcross, starting at 4:30 am.

Registration closes at 11:59 pm on Friday, Aug. 27, on www.klondikeroadrelay.com.

An unprecedented three ultra runners and three youth teams have signed on to test their mettle.

As of Aug. 26, 143 total have signed up.

The route will follow the trail of the Gold Rush Stampeders over the White Pass, through British Columbia and into the Yukon, finishing on Sept. 11 in Whitehorse.

The 176.5-kilometre relay is broken into 10 legs, each of which varies in distance, from 9 to 25.6 kms.

Starting at sea level, the route climbs to an elevation of 1,004 metres in the first two legs and descends to approximately 610 metres towards the finish line.

The 2010 relay will have eight official categories: open, mixed, women, junior, masters open, masters mixed, masters women and corporate. The three special categories are walking, ultra and youth, each of which will leave from leg seven,

Carcross, and finish in Whitehorse.