What you need to know about the organisational side of a Backyard Ultra
In the first 2 parts of this series we’ve looked at the BYU format and pacing. In this installment we’re going to dive into all things crew, kit and tech related.
Your Support Base
Whether you have a tent or camper van pitch, or are using space in the communal area – and whether you are crewed or self-supported – you’ll need a good amount of space in which to set out your ‘support base’. Most events will prioritise uncrewed runners if they need space in the communal area, but you will want to check this out beforehand.
Whether or not you are crewed, it’s a good idea to arrive at camp well ahead of time. This way you can avoid rushing and stress as you get set up. But importantly it will also maximise your chance of getting a good pitch, preferably close to both the corral and to the communal space ad toilets.
Your base should be well-organised and have everything you need to keep you going for longer than you think you can possibly go on for.
A good base will start with a comfy chair for you to rest in, preferably one which reclines, and an easy means of keeping you warm whilst you are there, such as an unzipped sleeping bag. It is also useful to have a small table or box next to the chair where you can place equipment to charge, food etc whilst you are in camp.
The rest of your base should be dedicated to organised storage of everything that you’ll need. Kit, nutrition, tech, first aid kit, should all be contained within clearly labelled, preferably see-through, storage boxes.
Support Crew
Having a crew at a BYU is most defintely an advantage, especially if you’re hoping to go long.
If you have a crew then ensure you make the most of this:
- Plan properly: Your crew needs to understand your requirements, and how these will change over the course of the race. There are different ways of doing this: If you are being crewed by someone you know extremely well or who has done this for you before then you may just need a discussion and a few bullet-points. Otherwise, a spreadsheet, or similar, is the best way of doing things. You can set out what you would like doing during each loop, what you need at the end of the loop etc. Your crew can also use it to record loop times, nutrition, medication, problems etc – which can help both during the remainder of the race and in post-race analysis
- Share your race strategy: Your crew also needs to understand your race strategy and how they can support you with this. For instance, if you have decided that you won’t quit except for certain specified reasons, or that you would be really disappointed if you didn’t complete a certain number of loops then they need to know this. Explain your target loop times and why so that they can keep you on target
- Help them understand you: Talk to your crew about how to best motivate you and how to respond when you get tired, low or are thinking about quitting. Do you respond to tough love, humour, a more caring approach? How do your nutritional needs/ tastes change over the course of a long race?
- Keep them on their toes: Your crew are there to help you and so if something isn’t working, tell them and get them to change it. Plenty of crews will happily respond to unreasonable requests like mid race takeaways too!
- Let them sleep: If you’re in the race for the long haul then you will need to give your crew time to rest too. Plan some time when they can pre-prepare what you need for a few hours and let them get some rest. It’s probably best not to do this in the dead of night when you will really need support.
Self-Supported Runners
I’d be lying if I pretended that participating in a BYU without a support crew is easy. It isn’t. But it is possible, and plenty of people complete high numbers of yards whilst lookng after themselves. Here’s how to make it work:
- Prep like a pro: You will need an easy to follow list of everything you need to do between loops. Your kit should be organised in labelled boxes which you can easily access. And remember to keep things organised as the race progresses
- Nutrition should be prepped beforehand, e.g. making up a couple of litre bottles of your chosen drink so that you can just top up your soft flasks as needed. Nutritional choices need to be largely based around what you can easily grab for yourself between loops. Don’t overestimate the amount of time you will have to prepare a meal or heat something up
- Bring a thermos flask so that you can have something hot (drink or soup) available when you need it
- Grab yourself a spot in the communal area: Whilst you may prefer the idea of a base at your tent, having one in the communal area means that you will be close to toilets and hot water. Make sure you let the race director know that you are uncrewed if it looks like there’s going to be competition for space
- Use your time on the loop: Remember that you can be actively managing yourself even whilst out on the loop. Towards the end of the loop, think through what you’ll need to do in camp. Do a spot check – ‘are my feet OK?’, ‘do I need the toilet?’, ‘does my watch need charging?’. Decide how long you’ll need and what the priorities are. You can also use the final few minutes of a loop to start your fuelling. Walk in to camp eating – this saves time at camp and also allows your body to start processing the food whilst you’re not running
- Take the help!: BYU are usually really friendly places, and the camp is full of support crews with not that much to do between loops. Later on in the race, it will also be full of runners who have dropped out but are hanging round to support others. Most of them will be more than happy to help you. Some may ask you, especially as you get further into the race, and no one will mind you asking them. So if you really want a Pot Noodle at the end of the next loop, or you just need someone to tidy up your base area, then don’t be afraid to ask for help
- Have an emergency vest packed: I would recommend this for anyone, but it’s particularly important if you’re uncrewed. Have a vest packed with the things you would need to keep going for 2 or 3 loops. This should include nutrition, hydration, a powerbank, a waterproof and baselayer, batteries for your headtorch, and anything else you might need like medication. You can grab this bag to keep you going for a couple of loops if you come in too close to the next loop to do anything in camp
Kit
One of the good things about BYUs is the frequent access to as much kit as you want. No hard choices about which trainers to bring and whether or not you need that 3rd pair of socks. But this is only useful if you plan carefully and organise kit so that you can actually find what you need when you need it. I’m not going to attempt to write a list of all the things you might need, but here are a few tips:
- Think carefully about what you bring. Whilst you can afford to have plenty of options, don’t just throw everything in as this will end up being more of a hinderance than a help
- Make sure you have adequate pairs of socks to change into whenever you need to freshen up, particularly if the weather or underfoot conditions are bad
- Have at least 1 alternative shoe choice. It’s usually a good idea to change shoes every few hours just to give your feet a break by changing into a pair of shoes which will distribute weight slightly differently
- Unless the underfoot conditions are likely to be very poor or very technical, comfort is usually the priority when it comes to shoe choice as you can afford to walk over any difficult ground
- Have a list of all the stuff you’ve brought so that you or your crew can easily double check it before starting to dig around for a particular item
- Make sure you have a good first aid kit with you
- Don’t underestimate how cold you (and your crew) may get at night, make sure you have loads of layering options and something to keep you warm whilst you are resting
- It’s a good idea to have several changes of kit available so that you can freshen up periodically, particularly if it’s very wet or very hot
- Keep your base tidy, don’t be tempted to just throw something in a a corner because next time you need it you won’t be able to find it
- As suggested elsewhere, it’s a good idea to have a small race vest packed with enough stuff to get you round a couple of loops. You may also want to have a waist belt or similar so that you can take your phone, water, snack etc out on each lap
Tech
Almost every runner will have some ‘essential’ tech with them – probably smart watch, phone and headtorch. You may also have additional items with you such as headphones, massage gun.
- Make sure you have the right charging cables and sufficient power banks for the duration of your race. Some events will have a few power sockets available in the communal area, but it’s best to assume that they won’t. It’s useful to pack a small power bank that you can carry with you as well as larger ones for use at base
- Consider how you’re going to set up your watch and record the race. There are various options: You could record in one go without any laps. This gives the advantage of needing no admin but makes post race analysis more difficult. You could press the lap button at the stand and end of each loop – this makes analysis easier and allows you to see average pace for the current lap, but you have to remember to do it every loop. If you choose this option, make sure that you have you screens set up to show you the time for your current lap. Finally, you could record each loop as a separate run. This allows you to charge your watch if needed (see above) and reduces the risk of lost data through an accidental wrong button push or battery dying, but you don’t get to see your total mileage unless you go through the process of stitching the run file together at the end
- There are also a couple of apps that you can download from the Garmin/ equivalent store which you can add to your watch to give you a BYU specific activity and settings
- Set your watch up to minimise battery use, for example by turning off wifi, bluetooth and pulse oximeter. Know whether, and how, you can charge your watch whilst recording – which will enable you to charge both on the loop and during your rest period. If you can’t and your watch doesn’t have a great battery life, you may decide to record each loop as an individual run so that you can charge for a few minutes between each loop
- If you’re in it for the long haul, take a spare headtorch so you can leave one on charge at camp
- Bring a dry bag and/or a waterproof phone case in case of rain