How to Crew an Ultramarathon

A crew is on-course support. You meet the runner at the aid stations the race lets crews into, and you get them refueled, re-geared, and back out fast. The actual jobs are simple: refill bottles and hydration packs, hand over calories and electrolytes, swap socks, shoes, headlamps, and layers, do basic foot care like taping a hot spot or draining a blister, and keep them positive. But honestly, just as much of the work happens before race day. You read the rules, build a crew sheet of legs and split times, pack labeled bins, and figure out who does what at each stop. The way I think about it, your job is to keep your runner moving and not sitting, and to soak up the chaos so it never reaches them.

Pack in two piles, one for the runner and one for you. For the runner: bottles and pre-mixed drink, a spread of calories (gels, chews, and real food like quesadillas, potatoes, broth, and fruit) in salty, sweet, and bland options, electrolyte caps, several pairs of socks and a second pair of shoes, a blister and lube kit, layers for every condition including a puffy for the night aid stations, two headlamps with spare batteries, and poles if they are allowed. For you: your own food and water, a camp chair, some kind of shelter, warm layers and a blanket for the cold night waits, a power bank and chargers, cash for parking, and the printed crew sheet with a sharpie and Ziploc bags so every aid station stays sorted. And do not overpack. You may have to walk a mile or more from parking.

Every race is different, so the most important thing you can do is read the runner manual and show up to the pre-race briefing. Know exactly which aid stations allow crew, where you can park and set up, and whether any help away from official aid is banned. Hand your runner food, drinks, or gear outside a crew area and you can get them disqualified. A lot of races also hold pacers back, often until after the halfway point or a set distance like mile 50 or mile 60. Do what the volunteers tell you, stay inside the marked crew zone, and be decent to the other runners and crews. And keep this in mind: breaking a crew rule punishes your runner, not you. So treat the rulebook as part of the kit.

Treat every stop like an F1 pit stop. Lay the runner’s gear out before they get there so it is ready, then run the same sequence every time: take their bottles, refill while they eat, swap whatever needs swapping, and push them back out. Keep the talk short and make the calls for them. A tired ultrarunner cannot decide anything, so instead of asking “would you like a quesadilla?” you hand them one and say “here, eat this while we walk.” Get them eating and even walking out of the aid station instead of sitting down. The math is real. If a 100-mile race has 10 aid stations and you sit six minutes at each one, that is a full extra hour gone. Keep most stops to one to five minutes and save the long ones for real foot care or a reset.

Stay loose, positive, fast, and efficient, because your energy goes straight into your runner. Get there early and set up close to the trail only where the race lets you, and do not crowd the official aid tables. Those are for the volunteers and the runners who do not have a crew. Park where you are told, never block the course or emergency access, and pack out every bit of your trash. Be friendly with the other crews too. The best aid stations feel like a family, with crews helping each other fill bottles and set up chairs. Thank the volunteers, who are the backbone of the whole race, and never ask them to do something that is your job. And remember the golden rule: put your own mask on first. A cold, starving, frazzled crew is no help to anyone.

Crew and drop bags do two different jobs. Crew is reactive support at the aid stations you can drive to, and it is best for anything that needs a decision in the moment: a shoe swap, foot care, or talking a struggling runner back onto the trail. Drop bags are fixed resupply the race hauls out to aid stations, including the remote ones your crew cannot reach, so they hold predictable stuff like gels, batteries, and a backup layer. The smart move is to use crew where you have access, drop bags for the stations you do not, and a small backup drop bag at a key crew station in case you get stuck in traffic and miss your runner. One thing to watch: some races, like the Vermont 100, ask crewed runners to skip drop bags at crewed stations so the volunteers are not buried. So always check the race’s specific policy.

Night is when crewing matters most, because that is when runners get cold, sleepy, and low. Have their lights ready before dark: two headlamps, fresh or spare batteries, and a charged backup, so a dead light never strands them. Keep a puffy jacket and warm layers at each night stop to hold body heat the second they stop moving, and have warm food and caffeine ready (broth, coffee, a gel with caffeine). This is also when a pacer earns their keep. If the race allows one after the halfway point, a pacer keeps a foggy runner safe and on pace. And look after yourself too. Pack a blanket or sleeping bag, warm clothes, a hot drink, and trade naps with another crew member so someone is always sharp when the runner rolls in.

Be positive, be prepared, and be decisive. Before the race, build a crew sheet with each leg’s distance, the expected pace, the calories and water needed, and what the runner leaves each stop with, then keep a printed copy and update the arrival estimates as the day moves. At the aid station, see what they need before they ask instead of throwing open questions at them, keep them moving, and fix the small stuff fast (a hot spot, nausea, a chafe). Match your tone to the moment: brisk and businesslike when they are flying, calm and warm when they are hurting. Learn a little foot care ahead of time, because a crew handles a blister better than a busy medical tent. And never make it about you. No matter how tired or bored you get, the day is about getting your runner to the finish.