Crew can make logistics calmer, but they are support people rather than medical decision-makers or pace enforcers. A written plan can show them where gear is stored, how you prefer to be addressed, and when to call race medical staff. It must also state that you can rest, change the plan, or stop at any time.
How to Use This Template
Treat this as a starting document. Edit it for the event rules, course, expected conditions, gear, familiar food, and crew experience. Add an emergency contact, allergies, relevant medical information, medication details for clinicians, and the location of the event medical team. Share sensitive details only with people who need them.
For the broader system, read Crew and Aid Station Strategy for Multiday Ultras.
Core Crew Rules
- Ask what help the runner wants; do not assume that speed is the priority.
- Respect requests to sit, sleep, change the plan, decline food, or stop.
- Offer familiar choices without forcing food, fluid, sodium, caffeine, or medication.
- Do not diagnose symptoms or decide that a medical concern has been ruled out.
- Use calm language and report observations rather than making accusations.
- Contact race medical staff early for warning signs or whenever you are unsure.
Aid Station Script
| Situation | Crew prompt | Appropriate action |
|---|---|---|
| Routine arrival | "What would help: bottle, food, a layer, foot care, rest, or nothing?" | Follow the runner's choice and event rules |
| Plan changes | "Do you want options, quiet, or help reviewing the plan?" | Offer information without pressure |
| Runner wants to stop | "I will support that. Do you want race medical staff or help checking out?" | Honor the decision; do not require another section |
| Concerning change | "Your speech or balance has changed. Let's stop and get race medical staff." | Keep the runner safe and escalate promptly |
Race Phase Checklists
Early Race
- Confirm where familiar food, fluid, lights, layers, and medical information are stored.
- Ask before offering a reminder about the runner's own plan.
- Record changes the runner wants to remember at the next stop.
Night
- Prepare headlamp, backup light, warm layer, gloves, and hat before dark.
- Offer familiar food or a warm layer if the runner requests it.
- Treat confusion, hallucinations, involuntary sleep, or lost coordination as reasons to stop and seek race-medical assessment.
Final Hours
- Ask what matters to the runner now; goals can change or end.
- Do not shorten needed rest or medical care to protect a result.
- Support the runner's decisions without shame or no-quit scripts.
Medical Red Flags
Crew should not diagnose or try to distinguish dehydration, low blood sugar, hyponatremia, heat illness, sleep loss, or another cause on their own. Stop and contact race medical staff for chest pain, collapse, fainting, severe breathing difficulty, confusion, hallucinations, involuntary sleep, loss of coordination, seizure, repeated vomiting, severe headache, an inability to keep warm, or a sudden behavior change. Call local emergency services when the situation appears immediately life-threatening. Do not send an impaired runner back onto the course.
Copy This Template
Add this to your gear checklist and print one copy for each crew shift.
Sources
- Hew-Butler, T. et al. (2015) — Exercise-associated hyponatremia consensus statement. Neurological symptoms require clinical assessment; sodium intake does not make overdrinking safe.
- Guilherme, J.P.L.F. et al. (2026) — systematic review of sleep in ultramarathon running. The evidence does not support one universal sleep protocol.
- Editorial template, reviewed July 20, 2026. It is a planning aid, not a medical protocol or substitute for the event's rules.
Frequently Asked Questions
What should ultramarathon crew instructions include?
Include the runner's preferences, gear locations, race rules, allergies and relevant medical information, emergency contacts, warning signs that require race-medical help, and clear limits on what the crew may decide. Any plan for food, caffeine, sleep, or stopping must remain optional and changeable by the runner.
How much should crew talk during an ultra?
Use calm, brief questions when the runner wants them, then listen to the answer. Fatigue can make decisions harder, but that is not permission to ignore the runner, pressure them to continue, or treat a change in cognition as a motivation problem.
What should crew do if a runner wants to quit?
Accept the request and ask whether the runner wants help stopping, resting, or seeing race medical staff. Crew cannot rule out a medical cause. Never require food, caffeine, a timed wait, or another lap before honoring a competent runner's decision to stop.