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How to Survive Your Worst Race Day | A UTMB Story

RunLab

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How to survive your worst race day, from a runner who lived it at UTMB. Everything went wrong 15km in. This is how he still finished.

Elite trail runner Vlad Shatrov arrived in Chamonix for UTMB 2026 fit, prepared and chasing a top-20 finish at the biggest trail race in the world. By the first checkpoint a leg injury from the weeks before had turned an ambitious race into a question of whether he would even make the next aid station. With 150km still in front of him, this is the story of how the day was rescued: not by pace, but by a reset, a crew that kept him in it, and doing the best he could with the cards he was dealt.

Along the way we break down the parts of UTMB that catch people out: the two-hour wait in the start pen, why your appetite shuts down after dark, fuelling and hydrating properly in the cold, protecting your quads on the descents, the new red-light section, and what crewing a 170km loop through three countries actually involves. The sports scientist who crewed Caleb Olson to Western States victory adds the fuelling and hydration advice, and Chris shares what the race looks like from the other side of the tape.

Whether you are building towards UTMB or your first 100 miler, crewing someone who is, or just want to know what to do when your own race goes sideways, this video shows you how to get to the finish on the day everything goes wrong.

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📌 Chapters

00:00 Intro
01:12 Chapter 1: The Day Before
02:36 Vlad's Goals and Dealing With Uncertainty
03:58 Chapter 2: Race Day
05:46 The Problem
07:50 Reassessing the Goal
10:55 Chapter 3: Surviving UTMB
14:24 Chapter 4: Crewing UTMB
16:57 As Long as It Takes
20:53 Chapter 5: The Finish Line
23:12 Thank You

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20 Comments

@DanCross 2 weeks ago

Seeing someone accept that today is not their day, reset their expectations, and finish anyway is an unforgettable demonstration of character.

@spuriousmonkey 2 weeks ago

Easily best utmb video of this year. Respect for Vlad.

@MrGlen 2 weeks ago

Would be really easy not to make this video.... So massive respect for making and sharing something so emotional and raw. Legend Vlad.

@kellybennett3846 2 weeks ago

I was tracking Vlad and saw that he didn’t have the race experience that he wanted and wondered how this video would approach that. OMG. Exactly what Sandrah said, so raw and real. Didn’t think your video’s could get any better, but this one surpassed them all. Thank you for the honesty and emotion. So many front runners drop out when this happens to them. But not “our” Vlad. I don’t even know you guys in person and I did tear up. Thank you for including the expert advice. Loved the ending “I’m thinking about it”……so ultra!! And Chris great crewing.

@sandrah1498 2 weeks ago (edited)

Oh wow that was so real and raw - hard not to cry really - certainly hit a nerve, I couldn’t love this more ❤ thank you for sharing and being so generous and genuine. You all did more than the best you could given the cards you were dealt …you were brilliant ❤🌟❤

@tanmaykumar8995 2 weeks ago (edited)

I cried so hard when Vlad said he was mgoing to do it for as long as he can.

He is like a mate who is genuinely good at what he does and wants you to do better.

I have learnt a lot from RunLab this last year, having started running 2 years ago.

I hope someday when I get to the big stage, I get to see Vlad and thank him for everything in person.

@viCoN24 2 weeks ago

Shoutout to Cheryl for keeping you going not only through this race but also supporting your entire journey!
Insane effort for Vlad and great support from the crew. So proud for what you've achieved despite the hardships and struggle.
Cinematography and B-rolls going insane on this one!

@RunningWestwardHo 10 days ago

I’d been tracking you through the night, an absolute honour to see you finish (you can see me filming you as you are on the finish straight) and meeting you at the end was an honour. Watching this video and seeing how the race panned out makes supporting you feel even more special. Reframe, rebuild, go again. You demonstrated all that out there, and I got to see first hand just how much your crew wanted to see you cross the line and how deeply they care for you.

@brokenbutterfly321 2 weeks ago

Massive grit to finish that! Respect

@CivilWarSteve 2 weeks ago

I was tracking Vlad the entire way. It may not have been the race he hoped for, but he may have found something even better and more valuable than the perfect race with a great finish time. His journey and finish is an inspiration built on determination, grit, and teamwork! So proud of what Vlad and crew accomplished!! Thanks for letting us be part of the experience. Keep up the good work RunLab!

@vitruvianApe 2 weeks ago

Way to get it done! I ran OCC this year and had a very similar experience -
things I couldn't control went wrong - travel delays, showing up to the start line on very little sleep, hottest and muggiest day of the week, my poles were jammed shut for the first 10 miles, cramps started early, headlamp was trash - worst day of the last 9 months of great training
but for me it was a once in a lifetime trip so I changed the focus to beating the cutoff, reminding myself i signed up for hard things, and just enjoyed the beauty around me, talking to strangers that didn't speak my language, anything I could do to get to the finish.
Goal was 10 hours and I finished in 14, and yet couldn't be happier. Chamonix is a magical place

@stevieborne2633 2 weeks ago

Vlad your perseverance when everything in your mind and body was telling you to quit is absolutely inspiring. I’ve watched quite a few videos from UTMB this year and this story is by far my favorite. Thank you for sharing the details of your best/worst race with all of us. You can accomplish anything after completing that race!

@olivierh2617 2 weeks ago

Well done, Vlad! This video turned out to be an inspiration for all those who see their race plans and time aspirations shattered early in a race… you showed how important it is to push on and get through this huge disappointment. For any non-professional runner this would be a very formative experience. Thank you for finishing the race and thank you, Chris for documenting this! Great content 👏💪👊

@JD-uc1zl 2 weeks ago

What an amazing, emotional and important video for the trailing running community. Thank you for sharing ♥️

@melaniesunderland3272 2 weeks ago (edited)

Knowing how hard you work and how committed you are and so graciously accepting it just wasn’t the race you wanted is inspirational Vlad. Bring on 2027! 💪💪Oh and congratulations, great job Chris 👏👏👏

@CarronT 2 weeks ago

So powerful. That race result was Giant. It will mean more than others down the years.Complete respect Vlad. And what magnificent crew. Congratulations team!

@LaMangecailloux 2 weeks ago

I was following Vlad live on the race map and realised something went wrong pretty quickly. What a fantastic effort and great success to finish such a gruelling race through the disappointment . Bravo Vlad, you are inspirational !

@nlfolder9062 2 weeks ago

My most anticipated video of the year and didn’t disappoint; thanks for sharing the real moments, it was inspiring to see the commitment when things don’t go to plan. I can’t wait to see the 2027 redemption arc!

@stace3323 2 weeks ago

Love how you put this together Chris and were able to share this amazing story of strength with us! To Vlad hats off to you, that gives a whole new meaning to 'Do Hard Things'! Credit to you both! 👏👏