My home on my back – Photo: Gabriel Pielke
If you were going on a 10 day holiday and had to fit all of your clothes, food, bed, and other essentials into a bag small enough to go on your back and light enough to run with for up to 10 hours a day, what would you take?
When I talk to people about running and they realise that a self-supported stage race involves not just running but also carrying all of the kit needed for the entire race they often ask…”What do you put in your bag?”
I’ve put together a short video of me unpacking the actual bag and contents that I took on The Track last year which is the same as I’ll take on the 5 Continents Challenge over the next 18 months.
Looking through the kit I carried on The Track 2017
Kit List
Shoes
Possibly the most important kit is your footwear…get this wrong and your race could be over before you’re ready to stop.
Inov-8 Race ultra 290
Bag
Raidlight 20l ultra pack
Clothing
1 short sleeve top
1 pair of shorts
1 pair of socks
Compressports calf guards
1 long sleeve thermal top
1 down jacket
2 buffs
1 neckerchief
1 pair of gaiters
1 pair of Inov-8 Race Ultra 290 shoes
1 cap
Sleeping
1 Sea to Summit Spark II down sleeping bag
1 Thermarest sleeping mat (changed to a Sea to Summit Ultralite XS for 2019)
Nutrition
I wrote a blog post about my nutrition, what I carried, why I chose it and how I packed it that you can read here: http://wildonadventure.com/ultra-running-multi-day-nutrition/
Other
1 LifeVenture Titianium Mug
1 Esbit Titianium solid fuel stove
1 Sea to Summit Long handled spoon
2 Black Diamond head torches (Storm, Spot & Spare batteries)
Solar Panel
Garmin Fenix 3 watch
Medical kit
I’d love to hear your thoughts and comments. If there’s kit that you love that ‘s not on the list then please drop me a note in the comments. I like nothing better than learning from other peoples’ experiences.