The Ragnar Trail relay race scheduled for Sept. 18-19 in Hampton, New Hampshire appears headed for cancellation after FitLab-owned Ragnar failed to pay outstanding bills to local police departments and New Hampshire State Parks, according to John Nyhan, President of the Hampton Area Chamber of Commerce.

Hybrid Fitness Media has been reporting on FitLab Inc., parent company of Ragnar, since July, covering vendor nonpayment allegations, delayed employee payroll, a lawsuit over unpaid construction work, and FitLab’s financial picture including federal tax liens and merchant cash advance financing.

Ragnar has run an annual relay race through Hampton and surrounding New Hampshire towns for roughly a decade, drawing an estimated 8,000 to 10,000 runners in recent years, Nyhan said. Vendors associated with the race were paid on time in past years, though some payments were delayed by a couple of months the year before last, Nyhan said. Last year marked a turning point, according to Nyhan.

In February 2026, the police chief of Plaistow, New Hampshire, calling on behalf of multiple police chiefs along the race route from Lancaster to Hampton, contacted Nyhan to say he was unable to reach anyone at Ragnar. Nyhan said the chief told him police departments were owed close to $100,000 combined in unpaid bills from the 2025 race. Nyhan said he separately confirmed with Hampton Police Chief Alex Reno that Hampton was owed $12,000, which Ragnar paid this spring.

New Hampshire State Parks, which issues permits for portions of the race route including Hampton Beach, was owed more than $30,000 from last year’s event and had not been paid as of this reporting, Nyhan said. State Parks gave Ragnar until Friday, August 1, 2026 to pay the outstanding balance and provide a deposit for this year’s permit. Ragnar did not respond by the deadline, and State Parks denied the permit, according to Nyhan.

As of this reporting, Ragnar’s website has closed registration for the New Hampshire event but has not posted a cancellation notice. Nyhan said he has heard reports of registered runners contacting their credit card companies to dispute charges.

“I think it’s too late,” Nyhan said, when asked whether payment now would be enough to save the race. He cited the near year-long delay in paying State Parks and the missed Friday deadline as reasons he does not believe the event will proceed.

Nyhan said Ragnar’s cancellation of its West Virginia event at Big Bear Lake Camplands, roughly a week before that race was scheduled to run, did not surprise him.

Nyhan said he was told, though could not confirm firsthand, that Ragnar’s New Hampshire event was profitable last year but that FitLab, Ragnar’s parent company, took funds from Ragnar to cover its own losses, leaving Ragnar unable to pay its bills. Nyhan described this as secondhand information. Hybrid Fitness Media has not independently verified this claim and is treating it as an allegation pending further reporting.

The cancellation also threatens a longstanding fundraising arrangement between Ragnar and the local Rotary Club, which has earned $5,000 to $7,000 annually in recent years by operating the race’s beer tent, according to Nyhan. The Chamber of Commerce had worked with Ragnar to promote the race among local hotels and restaurants and had secured discounted lodging rates for Ragnar staff, Nyhan said.

“I feel bad for that team that has been running and that has put together a team over every single year,” Nyhan said, noting runners have traveled from as far as New York and Pennsylvania to compete. Nyhan said he was uncertain whether registered runners would be able to recover their registration fees and other costs, such as hotel and vehicle reservations, and suggested team captains consider consulting with an attorney about their options.

*August 7 Update – Ragnar Trail Wisconsin Contract Terminated By County