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1:1 ultra coaching
An ultra running coach who races what you race
Trail and ultra is where our depth is — it is what our coaches race and where the plans come from. Yours will build your training around your race, the ground you can actually get to, and the week you actually have. Not the week you wish you had.
50K to 200 miles
130,000 athletes
100+ countries
What an ultra running coach is actually for
Fitness is rarely the only thing that decides a long day out. These are the calls somebody has to make for your race, and a downloaded plan cannot make them.
01
Time on feet, not mileage
Two runners can both put 30k in the log on Saturday and have completely different days. We build the week around duration and effort, because that is what your body actually responds to.
02
A race you cannot rehearse at home
Your race profile and the ground outside your door are two different problems. Training for a steep mountain race from somewhere flat is a normal starting point here, not a compromise.
03
When to run long on tired legs
Back-to-backs teach you something nothing else does. Put them in the wrong week and they just make you tired. That is a judgement call, and it is your coach's to make rather than yours to guess.
And the rest of it: practising fuelling at effort, because the stomach ends more races than the legs. Getting ready for the dark, if your race runs into it. Knowing what to do with the bad patch when it comes. And a plan that gets rebuilt when illness, travel or a moved race date shows up — which it will.
Get matched with a coach
Two minutes. No payment.
Distances
What we coach
From a first trail race to 200 miles — 30K, 50K, 100K, 100 miles, backyard, multi-day, and everything on the way there. The number on the entry form is the least useful thing about a race.
A mountain 50K can ask more of you than a flat 100K. One race puts you out in the dark; a longer one somewhere else might not. What shapes your plan is the profile, the cutoffs, the ground and how long you are realistically going to be out there — not the distance category.
And if you are not there yet — a first trail half, a 30K, a step up from the road — that is a coach's job too. Tell us where you actually are and we will be straight with you about whether you need one.
Proof
What their athletes said afterwards
"I was getting off an injury with 8 weeks to go. Steve helped me find out I had it in me. The vert, the pacing strategy, the build and recovery rhythm all made sense on race day. If you're chasing something that scares you a little, this is the right place to train."
Florian Bernodat, coached by Steve
"After a tough 110 km race in 2024, I finally enjoyed myself on the trail. Thanks to my coach Nicolas's support in training, nutrition and motivation, I finished feeling great physically and mentally."
Stevens Poncet, coached by Nico
"I said yes to my first ultra, a tough 50K with 3,200m of gain, and despite setbacks I pushed through nearly 8 hours to finish proud and wanting more. Vert.run was key in adapting my training."
Gonzalo Raddatz, coached by Max
How you get your coach
We match you rather than asking you to pick from a list — on your distance, your terrain, your timezone, and which coach has the room to do the job properly. You meet them on a kick-off call before anything is written. If the fit is wrong, we match you again.
VertCoaching
$45
per month
- Your own ultra coach
- A kick-off call to set the season up
- A plan for your race, adjusted as training goes
- Direct chat with your coach
Best if you have one ultra on the calendar and want someone accountable for getting you to the line.
Premium
$99
per month
- Everything in VertCoaching
- A coach in your training all week
- Unlimited chat and email with your coach
- A video call with them every month
- Your whole race season planned
Best if you race more than once a year, or the race is big enough that you want someone properly in it with you. See Premium
Before you start
How is coaching for 100 miles different from a 50K?
A 50K extends endurance you mostly already have, so the work is sustained aerobic running and pacing. A 100-miler adds problems that are not about fitness: a full day and night on your feet, eating for fifteen hours or more, sleep, crew and aid-station strategy, and keeping moving when the plan falls apart. Coaching for 100 miles spends far more time rehearsing those than sharpening speed.
Do I have to be running ultras to work with a Vert coach?
No. Plenty of the people our coaches work with are nowhere near an ultra yet — a first trail race, a 30K, a step up from the road. Trail and ultra is where our depth is, and the plan library covers shorter and road distances too.
What actually matters is that you have something you are pointing at. Tell us what it is and we will match you, or tell you honestly that a plan would serve you better for now.
Do I need an ultra running coach for my first 50K?
Not necessarily. If your training is going roughly to plan and you mainly need structure, a plan is usually enough — that is VertPro, and it has a 7-day free trial. A coach earns their place when you have no reference for what normal feels like at a new distance, or when your week keeps breaking the plan.
Can I train for a mountain ultra if I live somewhere flat?
Yes, and it is one of the most common situations our coaches handle. Your race profile and your home terrain are treated as separate variables: the plan is built from the race, then written for the ground you can actually reach.
How far out should I get a coach?
Sixteen to twenty weeks before an ultra is the comfortable window. Less is workable — plenty of athletes start eight weeks out — it just changes what is realistic, and a coach will tell you that honestly rather than sell you a plan that cannot land.
Is there a free trial for coaching?
No. You are matched with a real person who sets time aside for you, so coaching starts when you start. VertPro, the plan and app on their own, does have a 7-day free trial.
Find your ultra running coach
Two minutes of questions. Then a real person who has raced your distance.