An ultramarathon kit list you can actually pack.

Start with the list for your exact event

The most useful ultra kit list starts with a race name, an edition and the organiser’s current instructions. A supported 50K near home and a long mountain event may require different equipment. Even familiar items can have specifications that matter at a kit check.

Save the mandatory list and the final participant guide together. Read any notes about equipment that must be carried from the start, can be collected later, or becomes compulsory under certain weather conditions. If the instructions conflict, ask the organiser to clarify before deciding which version to follow.

Make three columns: required by the race, additional items for your circumstances, and optional comforts. This keeps a compulsory waterproof layer from competing with a spare snack pouch in a last-minute attempt to save space. Cross off an optional item only after you know what job it was supposed to do.

• South Downs Way 100: official 2027 equipment requirements

Check specifications, not just item names

A jacket, a light and a bottle are broad descriptions. The race may specify waterproof construction, lighting output, a backup, or water-carrying capacity. Compare the requirement with the item you own. A familiar product name or someone else’s successful kit check is not confirmation that your version qualifies.

For example, the 2027 South Downs Way 100 page specifies a waterproof jacket with taped seams and a minimum 10,000 mm rating. It also places a particular requirement on a separate dry emergency layer and on lighting from Washington onwards. Those details illustrate why the footnotes deserve as much attention as the shopping list.

• South Downs Way 100: official 2027 equipment requirements

Give every item a place and a job

Separate what you will wear, what stays with you on the course, and what may be waiting at an approved bag point. Then consider the order in which you are likely to need things. Packing by function makes it easier to find an item when you are tired or your hands are cold.

Choose the carrying system after the contents

Lay out the complete load before deciding whether your existing vest or pack has enough space. Include the bulky items, food packaging and any extra layer you might carry. Check usable pockets rather than relying only on the advertised litre capacity.

Adjust the loaded pack, walk and run with it, and practise taking it off and putting it back on. Check whether bottles bounce, straps rub, pockets are reachable and the load shifts as bottles empty. Make a note of the problem before changing the arrangement, so you can tell whether the next attempt helped.

A useful rehearsal finishes with repacking. You need to be able to put a jacket away and close the bag after wearing it, not just produce one immaculate packing job on the bedroom floor. Check zips and fasteners with the gloves you may use.

• Can you retrieve the phone and support details promptly?
• Can you drink, open food and store the empty packet?
• Does the required spare layer still fit when the food pockets are full?
• Can you put on or remove weather protection without losing small items?
• Does the same arrangement work after a refill?

Test the systems that have to work together

Treat drop bags and finish bags differently

A finish bag waits until your race is over. A drop bag is available at a specified point, under the organiser’s rules. Write the location and expected access time beside each bag before moving anything out of your carried kit.

Make a separate list for each permitted bag. Include the required label, size restrictions, hand-in deadline and collection arrangements. Pack items in a way you can recognise quickly, and keep the job at that checkpoint simple. A spare item is not useful if you have sent it to a later checkpoint by mistake.

For an illustrative longer race, one bag might hold replacement food for the next section and another item specifically permitted for collection there. The finish bag might hold dry clothes and travel supplies. Mandatory equipment stays with you whenever the rules require it; a planned bag stop does not create an exception.

Buy to solve a problem you have identified

Check what you own and what you can borrow before making a shopping list. Work from a specific gap: an item does not meet the rule, your pack cannot hold the load, or something repeatedly fails a relevant rehearsal. That gives you a clearer buying decision than collecting everything described as “ultra”.

Avoid solving every small inconvenience with another accessory. More items mean more weight, more charging and more things to find. Equally, reducing pack weight is a poor reason to remove required or necessary equipment. Start with duplicated comforts and unnecessary packaging, while keeping labels the organiser needs.

Keep a short record: problem, change made, and what happened on the next outing. This creates evidence for your own choices without treating another runner’s preferences as a universal kit prescription.

Do the final pack check

Use the checklist after reviewing the final briefing. It records practical checks; it does not certify that your kit complies. Your ticks stay in this open page, and the print button produces a checklist you can keep with the packing list.

Once packed, put race-day items apart from travel-day items. Keep the things needed at registration accessible. Then make one final check for organiser updates close to departure, especially any changes to the course or weather equipment.