On an unassuming February day, Saucony filled a secret warehouse deep in Peckham with runclubs from across Europe about to take on one of the running world’s most unusual challenges. Saucony returned The Maze: ZE:RO:HO:UR to London. The event gathered run crews from across Europe for an urban competition that refused to behave like a normal race.
The idea built on last year’s debut in Paris and pushed further into the brand’s fascination with community driven racing. Instead of start pens and chip times, there were briefings, whispers and quick adjustments. Instead of predictable loops, there were sudden turns and improvised decisions. The Maze treated running as a test of nerve as much as a test of cardiovascular health.
London provided the ideal backdrop for the extraordinary challenge. Few major cities demand more from their runners. On the surface it looks like an obstacle course of buses, junctions and impatient pedestrians. But underneath that chaos lives a hidden map known only to people who log serious miles. Shortcuts through estates. Cut-throughs behind markets. River paths that appear and disappear without warning. To train properly here, runners must be vigilant, creative and stubbornly imaginative. The event tapped directly into that mindset.
Crews arrived carrying their own histories and rivalries. Peckham Pacers, The Weekend Project, BRKEDOFF and Grove Lane represented London’s independent scene. Embankment Run Club travelled down from Nottingham. Teams flew in from Milan, Paris, Toulouse, Berlin, Oslo and Gothenburg. Although the training grounds of the crews changed from group to group, their body language stayed the same. Everyone understood the evening was about pride rather than prizes.
For many of them, the motivation stretched far beyond results. As one runner from Berlin explained, “There’s a saying: if you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together. All of us started running by ourselves. Now being part of a community means you always have somebody who pushes you. As a team you can go a lot further and have experiences like this that you wouldn’t have by yourself.”
Inside the venue, the atmosphere felt closer to a motocross rally than a traditional race. Music bounced off concrete walls. Warm-ups happened in tight clusters. Conversations switched quickly between tactics and jokes. Nobody cared about looking polished. These were people used to training before sunrise or long after dinner. The competition respected that reality instead of dressing it up.
Run Crews Are Rewriting the Race
Crews spoke less about personal records and more about shared energy. Members of Berlin’s Run and Rave club summed it up simply: “The best part about running in a community is that it’s not about performance, it’s about supporting each other. At this point we’re a family—we do so much more than just run together.” Another teammate added, “It’s connecting with people with the same passion and creating nice experiences for everybody.”
THE MAZE ZE:RO HO:UR challenged crews to perform under pressure as race rules and course details were revealed only moments before the start. Built on unpredictability, the format stripped racing back to instinct and adaptability, pushing athletes to rely on teamwork, decision-making and resilience as much as speed.
The race followed a live, time-trial format designed to test both endurance and collaboration. Each crew started with four runners, split into two pairs, rotating on track across a series of short, high-intensity running periods. As the race progressed, teams were gradually eliminated, with only the top crews advancing to a final stage. The winning team was determined by the greatest total distance covered over the 60-minute race.
Alongside the race, Saucony used the night to quietly introduce the Endorphin Azura and placed the new shoe directly into the middle of the action. Built around Saucony’s PWRRUN PB super foam and SPEEDROLL™ technology, the shoe delivers lightweight energy return and smooth, forward-rolling transitions designed for fast, everyday performance. A durable XT-900 outsole provides dependable grip, while the plate-free construction keeps the ride flexible and versatile. The Maze offered a brutally honest test. Sharp corners and abrupt accelerations left no room for comfortable marketing promises. The shoes either were there with one job: go big or go home.
The event attracted a new generation of athlete, one less concerned with medals than memories. A member of Berlin’s Fresh Patterns Collective captured the mood: “We’re here to feel the shoes, be competitive, but also soak in the vibes and have an overall good time. The best part of running with a team is doing something together and completing something together. It’s your friends, your family.”
The night unfolded with high-octane energy. Heats appeared and vanished. Teams adjusted on the fly. Small mistakes became decisive. Success depended on calm thinking under pressure and a willingness to improvise. The format stripped racing back to its most basic ingredients.
By the later rounds, fatigue hung visibly in the air, but the coronary of the run clubs meant emotional energy was anything but low. Rival crews shouted encouragement across the floor. Strangers compared wrong turns and lucky recoveries. After a valiant effort, Milan-based crew Milano Track Fanatix (MTF) came out on top, covering an impressive 38.1 kilometres. Second place went to London’s Peckham Pacers with 36.0 kilometres covered, while Beaubien from Toulouse secured third with a total distance of 35.4 kilometres.
The event raised a broader question about where running was heading in 2026. Traditional road races still existed, but they no longer defined the culture. For many younger athletes, running has become something social, creative and visually expressive. The Maze treated that shift as a fact rather than a trend.
For this generation, a run is less a solitary pursuit and more a way of moving through life together. As one participant put it, “The best feeling is starting my day knowing I already did something hard . The rest of the day is easy.” That mindset, more than any finish time, defined the evening.
Saucony did not ask for permission to reshape a race format. They simply created a night that felt honest to the way people actually move through modern cities. In a sport that often clings to tradition, The Maze suggested a different future and ran straight toward it.
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