Frequently asked questions

PaceKit is a live voice coaching app for runners. It coaches you in real time during your race through your AirPods using hand-researched course data. Your coach knows every hill, aid station, wind zone, and crowd gap before you get there. 112+ US race courses. Six coach personalities. Free on the App Store.

PaceKit is free to download. You get one free coached run to experience your coach. After that, subscribe for $12.99/mo or $99.99/yr to unlock unlimited coaching, training plans, race day course intelligence, and coach memory. Cancel anytime.

An iPhone running iOS 17 or later. That's it. Apple Watch is supported for heart rate and a better audio experience, but not required. Works with AirPods and any Bluetooth earbuds.

Not yet. PaceKit is iOS only right now.

112+ US race courses across marathons, half marathons, 10Ks, and 5Ks. Boston, Chicago, NYC, Big Sur, Nashville, Brooklyn Half, and many more. The full list is in the app. If your race isn't there, email us and we'll try to add it before race day.

Yes. PaceKit provides live voice coaching during your race. Your coach talks to you through your AirPods the entire run. They call out upcoming hills, aid stations, wind changes, and pacing adjustments based on your GPS position on the actual course. No looking at your phone.

Everything a good human coach would say if they'd memorized the entire course. "Half mile to the next aid station, grab water here." "You've got a hill coming up at mile 8, ease off now and save it." "Headwind for the next mile, tuck in and hold your pace." "Crowd thins out through this stretch, stay locked in." The coaching adapts to your pace, your heart rate, and what's actually happening on the course.

A pace chart gives you a target number and assumes the course is flat. PaceKit gives you a strategy for the specific course you're running. It knows where the hills are, where the aid stations are, where the wind hits, where the crowds drop off, and how all of that should change your pacing mile by mile. It adjusts in real time if you're ahead or behind.

Most running apps focus on training plans or tracking your run after it happens. PaceKit is built for race day. We research every mile of your course and program that data into your coach so they can talk you through it live. No other app has course-specific live voice coaching backed by a hand-researched data library.

Yes. Six coaches with distinct personalities. Scott is the hype man. Eric is the hard coach. Raul is the chill buddy. Samantha, Jordan, and Sally each bring their own style. You also set your coaching intensity from vibes to full accountability.

The biggest mistake in marathon pacing is going out too fast. Most runners should aim for even splits or a slight negative split, running the second half just barely faster than the first. But that's a generic answer. The real answer depends on the course. A race with a big hill at mile 8 (like Big Sur) needs a completely different strategy than a flat course (like Chicago). PaceKit adjusts your pacing for the specific terrain, wind, and conditions of the race you're running.

A sub 2:00 half marathon requires roughly a 9:09/mile pace. The key is not going out at 8:50 in the excitement of mile 1 and paying for it at mile 11. Course-specific pacing matters here. If your race has hills in the back half, you need to bank a few seconds early. If it's downhill early, don't let gravity pull you too fast. PaceKit builds a pacing strategy around the specific course you're running, so your coach can keep you honest and on target the whole way.

Course-specific pacing means adjusting your target pace for every section of the course based on elevation, wind, surface, and terrain. Instead of trying to hold one flat pace for 26.2 miles, you run the pace that's right for the mile you're in. Ease off on uphills so you have legs for the downhills. Push when the wind is at your back. Dial it back when you hit an exposed stretch at mile 18. PaceKit does this automatically using seven layers of course data we research for each race.

Negative splitting means running the second half of your race faster than the first. It's the most efficient way to race a distance event because it keeps you from burning glycogen too early. But negative splitting on a hilly course is different than on a flat course. You can't just run the same pace for both halves if one half has all the climbing. PaceKit accounts for elevation and terrain so your pacing strategy is realistic for your specific race, not just a math problem.

The wall happens when you deplete your glycogen stores, usually between miles 18 and 22. The main cause is going out too fast. But course conditions matter too. A headwind section, a long climb, or a hot exposed stretch can accelerate glycogen depletion even at the right pace. PaceKit factors all of this in. Your coach warns you about what's ahead so you can adjust before the damage is done, not after.

Every course is hand-researched across seven layers: route geometry, elevation from DEM data, aid station locations, surface type, shade coverage, wind exposure, and crowd density. We source from official race materials, satellite imagery, and public geographic data. Nothing is scraped or user-uploaded. Every data point has a source.

Yes. Race courses change year to year. Aid station counts change. Routes get rerouted. Construction forces detours. We verify and update every course against the current year's official race information before race day.

Probably. Email us at hello@pacekit.app with the race name, date, and city. We prioritize by race date and community request. If there's time before your race, we'll get it in.

Your run data is safe even if the coach goes quiet. You won't lose your pace, distance, or progress. After the race, email us at support@pacekit.app with the race name, date, and what happened. Screenshots help.

Check that your phone isn't on silent, that PaceKit has microphone and location permissions in iOS Settings, and that your Apple Watch is paired. If audio still doesn't come through, the run data is still being captured. Email us after the race and we'll look at the session.

See the privacy policy for the full breakdown. The short version: your coach memory stays on your device. GPS traces are used in real time and not stored on our servers after your run ends. We don't sell or share your data.

hello@pacekit.app. We usually reply within 24 hours. Faster if it's race week.