Understanding the rules around aid stations and support at the UTMB® is essential — and on the subject of support, many first-timers at these distances wonder whether it's actually necessary. Here are the key rules to know and how to practically organise support for your runner.
What does the regulations permit?
Personal support is permitted only at specific points and must be carried out by a single person. It can take place at certain aid stations, in the area specifically reserved for this purpose, upon presentation of a support ticket and at the discretion of the checkpoint manager. This means your supporter must have been pre-registered with the race organisation.
Support may only be provided by one person at a time, without any specific equipment other than a bag with a maximum volume of 30 litres to carry food and clothing. Support provided by a professional team, or any medical or paramedical professional (even a family member), is strictly prohibited. Personal support is permitted at the following checkpoints:
- UTMB®: Les Contamines, Courmayeur, Champex-Lac, Trient, Vallorcine
- CCC®: Champex-Lac, Trient, Vallorcine
- TDS®: Bourg St Maurice, Beaufort, Les Contamines
It is prohibited at all other aid stations as well as at any point along the course outside these designated zones. On the OCC® and MCC®, no support is permitted at any point on the course.
Aid station zone, accompaniment zone, support zone: what's the difference?
The organisation distinguishes 3 types of zones. The aid station zone is reserved for runners only (water, food, medical assistance) — no outside support is permitted there. The accompaniment zone extends over 1 km, 500 m either side of each checkpoint: you can cheer on your runner, walk or run alongside them, but you cannot hand them any equipment. The support zone sits at the heart of this area: it is the only place where the exchange of equipment is permitted, and access is strictly limited to one person per ticket.
How do you obtain support tickets?
When collecting their race bib, the runner receives one support ticket per authorised checkpoint (5 tickets for the UTMB®, one for each point listed above). Each ticket corresponds to one person and one checkpoint: you can therefore designate a single supporter for the entire race, or distribute the tickets among several people according to the checkpoints.
How do you travel between support zones?
Car access to support zones is prohibited (except for families with children under 3 or people with reduced mobility), and parking nearby is very limited. The solution recommended by the organisation is the UTMB Mobility shuttle service: to support a runner across the entire UTMB® course, you need to combine the 3 passes covering the countries crossed (FRA, ITA, SUI), at an official 2026 price of approximately £93 for an adult before any discount (a 10% reduction applies when purchasing 3 different passes, bringing the cost to around £84). Be sure to book these passes well in advance, as sales are time-limited and places are restricted. From 2025, access to the Trient support zone additionally requires, for the UTMB® and CCC®, presentation of the UTMB Mobility Switzerland pass.
To estimate your runner's expected arrival time and avoid turning up too early or too late, the official LiveTrail app lets you track their position in real time. Aim to arrive 30 minutes to 1 hour before the estimated time, bearing in mind that access to the support zone itself is generally only open 10 minutes before. Base Camps are available to supporters holding a UTMB Mobility pass, providing a place to rest between support points.
Is personal support necessary?
There is never a definitive answer to this kind of question — it can come down to personal preference. But it's clear that having support is a real advantage. It allows the runner to offload certain items into the support person's bag (spare clothing, food, drinks…) and avoid carrying too much themselves. It can also provide a genuine morale boost — and sometimes that makes all the difference! But if you choose to have support, they need to be prepared: you can't improvise this role. You'll need to define their responsibilities precisely, study the authorised support points along the course, and work out the best way to travel between them.
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