10 Don’ts Smart Ultrarunners Avoid
Imagine finally standing at the start of your big race, well behind the pros, amid all the chatter and last-minute announcements, watching all the confident, smiling, laughing runners around you.
You want to belong like they do.
You definitely don’t want to be ‘that’ runner - the one that sticks out as obviously not belonging.
Think about the runners you admire - it’s not just because they’re fast, though that’s awesome. It’s intangible things like attitude, how they approach the sport, trail etiquette, know-how and sportsmanship.
Savvy. No embarrassing mistakes.
You want to feel like you know what you’re doing, same as them.
And you absolutely can.
You know about training, aid stations, and drop bags - the tangible stuff - it’s the intangibles you don’t know…and don’t want to have to learn the hard way.
Let’s get that stuff out of your way.
Here’s a basic list of Don’ts:
Disobey getting pulled. The granddaddy of them all. It doesn’t matter if the volunteers are wrong, you can do the distance and just missed a cutoff…whatever. This can and should get you kicked out of a race for life. Their race, their rules.
This is how you ruin a race for everyone else. Even if you turn your number in and are technically no longer part of the race, you’re still there because of the race and the race could be held accountable.
And don’t second-guess the permit. The permit for the 50k I directed had a daylight limit - we had to be done before dark, so it’s not always number of runners on the trail.
Around mile 70 at WarHammer 100 one year, I somehow got behind cutoff and on the road to the next aid station, met the volunteers as they were driving home. I told them I felt confident about finishing but quietly left the decision up to them. I stood waiting while they conferred by radio with the RD and ultimately decided to let me continue (I finished second female) but I would have accepted their decision either way.
2. Drop without clearly informing the race. The key word here is ‘clearly.’ A good race has an inventory of runners (if it doesn’t, take note) and if their inventory doesn’t total up, someone has to go find you.
I’ve done this AFTER finishing my own 100-mile race. Doing this can endanger yourself, others, and the race.
2. Be rude to volunteers. It’s inexcusable. Thankfully, I see little of this first-hand but I hear more and more about it. I’m not talking crankiness when you’re tired and hungry - believe me, I get that. I’m talking outright insulting them, disobeying them, even intentionally throwing things at them.
And guess what? No volunteers, no race. Be grateful they’re there and they care about our health and safety.
3. Be rude to runners. Around mile 85 in Superior 100 a couple of years ago, clearly wearing a long pink 100-miler ribbon, I got trail-rage yelled at by a 50-miler at 35 miles in his race because I wouldn’t stop and step off the trail to get out of his way. And speaking of passing…
4. Lack passing etiquette. Rude and potentially dangerous. If you want to pass a runner ahead of you on single track trail, it’s your responsibility to do the work to pass (and do so safely), not theirs to step out of your way. They’re trying to finish too.
The simplest way to understand passing etiquette is to think about passing a car ahead of you on a two-lane road. You pick a safe place, signal by saying “Passing on the left/right,” pass around them (they don’t stop or pull over for you), and pull over in front of them a safe distance in front.
5. Litter. I’m not talking about an inadvertently dropped wrapper. I’m talking about piles of it deposited just outside aid stations, near timing mats and race signs, and obviously tossed off trail, especially on loop courses like Javelina 100. Nobody wants to see your trash and the sweeps aren’t your mom. Pick up after yourself.
6. Hang on to other runners. Using them as a defacto pacer. It’s annoying, especially when you aren’t talking with them or didn’t ask.
At No Business 100 a couple of years ago I couldn’t shake a runner doing this, and when I finally stopped and stepped aside to make her pass, she protested with, “Oh, but you were running a great pace!” Not my job and not why I’m at the race.
Plus, it doesn’t serve you in the long run. You only learn to pace by doing it yourself.
8. Ignore race rules. What’s prohibited, drop bag rules, crew rules, pacer rules... The RD wrote them for a reason and it’s another way you can ruin the race for everyone else.
7. Forget about your poles. I’ve been stabbed enough and seen enough near-misses on the trail and in aid stations. None of us needs a serious accident to get in the way of enjoying the race.
9. Cheat. I’m only including this to round the list up to an even ten things because none of you reading this would cheat but I’ve seen it more than once, and by people who know better. It cheapens the sport the rest of us value.
10. Blast speakers. Just no, a million, billion times no (Javelina 100 is a stated exception). It infringes on everyone else’s experience without asking and you can’t hear well.
And when the lyrics are violent or offensive - my experience once at No Business 100 - I have to wonder who I’m sharing trail with. Use an earbud if the race allows or do without, this once.
That’s a basic ten.
If you’re surprised at what you already know, that’s the point.
This list should reassure you. It’s easy stuff and you’re probably doing most of it naturally.
You’re more like those savvy ultrarunners than you believe.
Start seeing yourself that way.
