Runners — frequently asked questions

Open the race page and scroll to the checkpoint list. Each checkpoint shows an icon strip — a water droplet 💧 indicates water is available, a banana 🍌 (or similar food icon) indicates food. If the organiser has published a full aid-station menu, you'll see individual item names listed underneath the checkpoint, along with dietary flags such as Vegan and Gluten-free. Exact carbohydrate and sodium numbers are not shown on the race page — check the organiser's own race information or contact them directly for detailed nutrition data.

A water droplet icon in the checkpoint's facility strip on the race page confirms water provision. If no water icon is shown, the organiser has not flagged it as a water point — assume you need to carry your own to that stage.

Drop-bag checkpoints are marked with a bag emoji 🎒 in the checkpoint icon strip on the race page. The race map also marks these checkpoints separately. If the organiser has set up bag-drop access, those specific checkpoints will be clearly indicated in both the list and map views.

The race start time is shown prominently on the race page header. Each checkpoint also carries its own cutoff time in the list — so you can see the closing time at each gate, not just the overall race cutoff. The race page also shows the total time allowed to finish.

Scroll down the race page to the kit section. The organiser publishes the mandatory kit list here. If the section is missing, the organiser has not added a kit list to Bield — check their own race website or contact them directly.

The race page includes an interactive course map and an elevation profile chart showing ascent and descent across the route. You can also download the GPX file from the race page to load onto your GPS watch or device for navigation during the race.

The race page states the pacing and crewing policy clearly — including which checkpoints pacers may join and which are crew access points. You can also use the Pacers allowed and Crew allowed filters in the race browse screen to find only races that permit support.

The organiser has flagged that checkpoint as a crew access point, meaning your crew is permitted to wait there and hand you supplies. Not all checkpoints allow crew access — this flag tells you exactly where they can be.

Your pacer is permitted to start running alongside you from that checkpoint. Pacers can only join at checkpoints the organiser has designated as pacer join points — they cannot join mid-stage between checkpoints.

Past editions of the race and their results are listed on the race page. Scroll to the results or past editions section to see finisher lists, times and DNF counts from previous years.

If the organiser has set up an external tracking system (for example a third-party GPS tracker), the link appears on the race page as an external link button. Tap it to open the tracker in your browser. Bield also shows a live blue dot on the race map for runners whose team has position sharing enabled — this is separate from the organiser's external tracker.

Tap the star icon on the race card or race page to add it to your favourites. This is a lightweight bookmark — you do not need to tap “Add to my races” or go through consent. Bield will show you a warning banner when a favourite's registration is closing within 14 days.

Yes. In the Races browse screen, use the Near me radius filter — set a distance and Bield will show only races whose start point falls within that radius of your current location. You can also filter by county, region or your declared coverage zones.

Use the distance and elevation sliders in the browse filters. Set a minimum and maximum distance (in km) and a minimum elevation gain (in metres). The map and card list update to show only matching races.

Bield does not process race entries or payments. The Register on organiser's site button on the race page opens the organiser's own entry system (Eventbrite, Enter Now, Race Roster, or their own website). Pay and register there, then return to Bield for everything else.

Add to my races creates your Bield engagement — your planning workspace for that event. You can do this before or after registering on the organiser's site. It is free and does not commit you to anything. Think of it as opening your race folder on Bield. Actual registration and payment are always on the organiser's site.

When you tap “Add to my races”, Bield asks you once to consent to associating your profile data with that specific event. This covers sharing relevant information (such as your bib number and medical data, if you choose to share it) with your committed race team for that race. Consent is per race — you control it for each event separately.

Your engagement moves through four statuses:

• Interested — you've added the race but not yet confirmed you are registered on the organiser's site.
• Registered — you have tapped “I'm registered” on your engagement to confirm you have a place.
• Active — race day has begun (date-driven).
• Completed — the race cutoff window has passed and your result (if any) is available.

Go to Me → My races and select the Running tab. If it's not there, check Me → Your roles to confirm the Runner role is enabled. If you added the race very recently it may take a moment to appear.

Yes. Tap Add to my races any time — before or after registering elsewhere. Your engagement starts at Interested status. When you've confirmed your place on the organiser's site, tap I'm registered on the engagement to move it to Registered.

When a race is full and the organiser has enabled a waitlist, the race page shows a Join waiting list button instead of a register link. Tap it and Bield will notify you if a place becomes available. Joining the waitlist on Bield does not replace any waitlist the organiser may run on their own site — check both.

Open your engagement and tap I'm registered. This moves your status from Interested to Registered and lets your crew know you have a confirmed place.

From Me → Find (or the prompts on your engagement), select your race, then browse the Pacers tab. Filter by pace style (front / middle / back of the pack), night pacing, technical terrain, altitude experience, expenses flag and the areas they cover. You can send a connection request directly from their profile, or reply to any offers they have already posted on your race.

Same path as pacers — Me → Find, pick your race, then the Crewers tab. Filter by area, availability, whether they have a vehicle and how many seats, and whether they are open to expenses. Send a connection request or respond to existing offers.

Go to Me → My coach and use the search — type a Bield handle or name. You can also ask a coach to send you an invite link directly. Once linked, your coach can see your upcoming races and send you pace-plan suggestions.

A helper is a friend or family member on your race team who is not a registered pacer or crewer. From your engagement, tap Invite a helper to generate a personal invite link. Send it to them via any messaging app. When they open the link and sign in (or create a Bield account), they appear on your engagement as part of your team.

• Approached — you or they expressed interest but no commitment yet.
• Willing — they've indicated availability; awaiting your confirmation.
• Committed — both sides confirmed — they are on your team.
• Standby — reserve position; stepped back but not fully withdrawn.
• Declined — either party declined the arrangement.
• Withdrawn — either party withdrew after committing.

Any expenses, rates or terms are agreed directly between you and your pacer or crewer. Bield introduces you — it never handles money. This is entirely between you two as private individuals.

Yes. Pacers and crewers can post offers on race pages. Check your engagement for incoming offers — they appear with the person's profile summary and a respond button. You can accept, decline or send a message.

Enter your bib number on your engagement before race day. Once saved, it is automatically shared with all committed crew and pacers on that engagement. They can see it from their own engagement view for the same race.

There are two types of live tracking on Bield. First, if you or your team enables position sharing, a pulsing blue dot representing your location appears on the race map for your helpers, crew and pacers. Second, if the organiser has set up an external GPS tracking system, a link to their tracker appears on the race page — tap it to open the provider's live map. Both can run at the same time.

Organiser broadcast messages are delivered as in-app notifications. Make sure you have Organiser announcements enabled in Me → Notifications. If push notifications are on, the message also appears as a device push. You can also read all messages from the organiser in the race page's updates section.

Split timing is an organiser-enabled feature where your time at each checkpoint gate is automatically recorded as you pass through. After the race, these splits appear on your engagement alongside your final result. You do not need to do anything — it is recorded by marshals or timing equipment at the checkpoint.

Flag it from your engagement as soon as you know. Marshal posts are staffed by volunteers who can see organiser call-for-help messages in their area. Notify the organiser directly via the race page contact — they can coordinate on the ground. Bield does not have a last-minute pacer matching system for race day.

Committed crewers see which checkpoints are flagged as crew access points on the race. Drop-bag checkpoints are also clearly marked so they know where your bag will be waiting. Share your engagement with your crew before race day so they have the full picture.

When the organiser publishes results, they appear on your engagement page — showing your finish position, finish time and total finisher count. You can also find results on the race page itself under the results section.

Three things must all be true: (1) the organiser has published results; (2) the race has certificates enabled; (3) your result is in the published data.

• Bield member: you receive an in-app notification and push alert. A Download finisher certificate button then appears on your engagement.
• Not a Bield member: if your email address is on the results CSV the organiser uploaded, you receive an email with a download link valid for 30 days.

Check three things: (1) Has the organiser published results — not just uploaded them privately? (2) Does the race have certificates enabled? (3) If you are not a Bield member, is your email address included in the results CSV? If any of these is missing, contact the organiser directly — Bield cannot issue a certificate until all three conditions are met.

Go to your engagement for that race and tap Download finisher certificate. This downloads a PDF. If you received a certificate by email (non-member), click the link in the email — it opens the PDF directly and the link is valid for 30 days.

Email links are valid for 30 days. If yours has expired, contact the organiser and ask them to resend — they can trigger a new email send from the Bield race dashboard. Alternatively, create a Bield account so future certificates come through the app permanently.

DNF (Did Not Finish) means you started the race but withdrew before crossing the finish line. DNS (Did Not Start) means you were entered but did not start. DQ (Disqualified) means you finished but were removed from the results for a rules breach. These are set by the organiser when they upload results — contact them if you believe there is an error.

Approved race photos appear in the photo gallery section on the race page. Scroll down the race page and look for the gallery. Photos are visible to all visitors including people who are not logged in.

Yes. The race photo gallery is public — no account or login is required to view approved photos on a race page.

The organiser controls photo uploads for their race. Organisers (or people they authorise) can upload photos via the race management dashboard. Photos go through an approval step before appearing publicly. If you have race photos you would like added, contact the organiser.

Photographers and spectators use the bield.run/photograph page to send you photos. They simply tag each photo with your bib number and submit — it is one-way: the sender only sees “Sent” and is never told which runner received the photo or whether the bib was correct. Any photo tagged with your bib is then routed to you to review.

Bib-tagged photos arrive in your photo review queue (your race photos triage). You swipe through them and approve the ones you want to keep and decline the rest. Nothing is public until you approve it. For each approved photo you also choose a sharing level — only photos you have (1) approved, (2) set to share with everyone, and (3) not deleted appear on your public profile gallery at bield.run/u/your-handle. You stay in control of every image of you.

From your race photos you can Download race package — a ZIP containing your photos, a metadata CSV (time and location each was taken), and a self-contained gallery.html you can open offline. This download is available to you (the runner) and admins only. Note this is your photo package; the course route itself is downloaded separately as a GPX file from the race page.

Two practical options. (1) The downloaded race-package ZIP includes an offline gallery.html with a self-contained map showing where each of your photos was taken — open it in any browser without a connection. (2) For the course itself, download the race's GPX file from the race page and load it onto your GPS watch or phone navigation app, which work offline on the move. Bield does not currently offer a full offline download of the live race map inside the app.

The cheers wall (bield.run/race/[id]/wall) is a public page where spectators, family and friends can record short audio messages for runners during or before a race. Runners receive these cheers — they are not the ones sending them from this surface.

Cheers sent to your race are collected on the cheers wall. You can also hear them directly within the Bield app — look for the cheers notification on your engagement during the event. Share the cheers wall link (/race/[id]/wall) with friends and family so they know where to record their messages.

As a runner, you receive cheers on the race page — you do not send them from the same surface. Non-runners and spectators send cheers via the cheers wall page. If you want to cheer for someone else, open their race's cheers wall link and record from there.

The cheers wall link is shown on your race page. Copy the /race/[id]/wall URL and share it via any messaging app, social media or email. Anyone with the link can record a cheer — no Bield account needed.

Nobody by default. Your medical and dietary data are only shared when you consciously issue a share pack to a committed race team. Race teams cannot search or filter by this information. You control it per engagement.

Your Bield handle and public profile information are visible to other logged-in Bield users. Your trust score is visible to race teams you interact with — it is not shown publicly on your profile page. Sensitive data (medical, dietary, contact details) are private.

Go to Me → Privacy & data and tap Export my data. Bield delivers a JSON file containing everything it holds about you — your races, engagements, preferences and profile data.

Go to Me → Privacy & data and tap Delete account. There is a 30-day grace period during which you can cancel by emailing privacy@bield.run. After 30 days, your data is permanently removed.

Go to Me → Notifications. You can toggle individual categories on or off, including organiser announcements, pacer and crewer updates, certificate alerts and general Bield notifications. Push notifications can also be managed from your device's system settings.

Core runner features — finding races, adding them, building a support team and receiving results — are available on the free tier. Bield Premium unlocks additional features such as advanced pace planning tools and extended race history. Check Me → Billing to see what is included in your current tier.

Go to Me and tap your units preference. You can set separate units for distance, elevation, weight, temperature and speed. The race page and pace calculator both use your chosen units.

Your trust score (0–200) tells race teams you are who you say you are. It builds from verified background checks (DBS, Disclosure Scotland, AccessNI or national equivalent), coaching or mountain-leader qualifications, first-aid certificates, references from past race contacts and Strava-verified races. Your score is visible to race teams you interact with, not on your public profile.