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Coach matching
Find the coach who has already run your race
Whether it is your first trail race or your first 200-miler, we will match you with an online trail running coach who specialises in your distance. Tell us where you actually train and what your week really looks like — and we will tell you straight if a coach is not what you need yet.
130,000 athletes
100+ countries
First trail race to 200 miles
How the matching works
Matching a coach is not picking a name off a list. It is the distance you are chasing, the terrain you can reach, and how much of your week is actually yours.
01
The goal
The race you are pointing at — a first trail race, a 50K, 100 miles, a 200, or a backyard that ends when you do.
02
The real week
Where you are based, your work, your family, and the hours you honestly have. Not the hours you wish you had.
03
Your match
The coach who fits your distance, your timezone and the ground you run on — and why we picked them.
Start here
Let's find your coach
A few quick questions. Answer them honestly — the more real your week looks, the better the match.
Not loading? Open the coach matcher in a new tab.
Who you would work with
Real coaches. In their own words.
Every Vert coach is an active trail runner who has raced the distances they coach — from a first trail race to 200 miles. You get one of them, the same person, every week.
Belgrade, Serbia
Zeljko Radovic
"No heroic workouts. One workout doesn't change much for better or worse. Time to be a hero is in the race."
NASM-certified coach who came to coaching the long way round — years as a student of the sport for his own running first. Half his heart belongs to cities, the other half to mountains.
United States
Steve Krenn
"Know your why. Everyone has a reason to run. Know it, own it, and remind yourself of it while training."
UESCA-certified ultrarunning coach. Started running twenty years ago as an out-of-shape teenager with low self-esteem, and has raced everything from 5K to ultras since. Best with runners going further than they think they can.
French, based in Chile
Nico Jego
"A good relationship built on trust is the foundation of effective coaching."
Builds plans that fit around work, family and everything else, rather than pretending those things aren't there. Big on consistency, conditioning, and keeping the enjoyment in it — because that is what makes training last.
Two ways to work with your online trail running coach
Once you are matched, you choose how much of your coach you want. Same coach either way.
VertCoaching
$45
per month
- Your own trail and ultra coach
- A kick-off call to set the season up
- A plan built for your race, adjusted as training goes
- Direct chat with your coach
- Full Vert app, Mountain Index, watch sync
Best if you have a race and you want someone accountable for getting you to the line.
Premium
$99
per month
- Everything in VertCoaching
- A scheduled call every month — your data, your last block, what changes and why
- Season-long planning across your whole race calendar
- Unlimited chat and email with your coach
- Your sessions read and analysed, not just logged
Best if you are racing more than once a year, or the race is big enough that you want someone properly in it with you.
Each coach takes a limited number of Premium athletes, because the monthly call and season planning take real time. When a coach is full, they are full.
What happens next
01
You get your match
The coach we would put you with, and the reason why.
02
Your kick-off call
You and your coach go through your race, your history and your calendar.
03
You train
Your plan lands in the app, and moves when your season moves.
Before you start
Am I fast enough to have a coach?
No such thing here. Our coaches work with people getting ready for a first trail race, people finishing a first 50K, and people deep into 100- and 200-mile finishes. The training changes. The coaching doesn't.
What if I don't live near mountains?
Extremely common, and it is one of the things we build plans around. Where you train and the race you are training for are treated separately. A flat-terrain athlete preparing for a steep mountain race gets different work from someone who can run the climbs out the front door.
Do I need a coach, or is a plan enough?
If your training is going roughly to plan and you mainly need structure, a plan is usually enough — that is what VertPro is for, and it has a 7-day free trial.
An online trail running coach earns their place when your life keeps breaking the plan: shift work, travel, recurring niggles, or a first attempt at a distance where you have no reference for what normal feels like.
Is there a free trial for coaching?
No. You are being matched with a real person who sets time aside for you, so coaching starts when you start. VertPro — the plan and the app on their own — does have a 7-day free trial.
Can I change coach if it isn't working?
Yes. Tell us and we will match you again. It is a working relationship, and sometimes the fit is wrong. Worth fixing early rather than quietly putting up with.
What if my race moves or I get injured?
That is most of what a coach is for. Races move, bodies complain, work explodes. Message your coach and the plan gets rebuilt around the new reality.
Ready to meet your coach?
A few minutes of questions. Then an online trail running coach who knows the distance you are chasing.