Relay Race Management: Team Registration, BIBs, and Timing Without the Headache

Relay races are 2x the operational complexity of individual races

A relay looks simple — a team of runners splits a distance, handing off at designated points. In practice, you're managing multiple data models:

• One team registration (one BIB)
• Multiple individual runners within that team
• Per-runner gear orders (T-shirt sizes)
• Per-runner payment
• Per-leg timing (splits)
• Overall team finishing time

Generic race platforms choke on this complexity. Time-Monkey has purpose-built relay support.

Team structure basics

Relay formats vary:

• Classic marathon relay — 4 runners, each ~10.5km
• Corporate team 5K — 4 runners, 1.25km each
• Ekiden (long relay) — 6 runners over marathon distance
• Ultra relay — 10+ runners covering 100km+
• Pair relay — 2 runners alternating 2km segments

For each format, the team has a name, a leader (captain), and N members.

Registration flow

Team captain registers the team and provides basic info:

• Team name
• Team category (if applicable: Open, Mixed, Corporate, Masters)
• Contact info (captain's email)

Captain then adds team members one by one:

• Runner name, birthday, gender, email
• Runner's leg assignment (1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th)
• Runner's T-shirt size
• Runner's meal preference (if applicable)

Time-Monkey's relay form lets captain save the team as a draft and come back to add runners later. Useful when captain is recruiting.

The payment question

Two common approaches:

Captain pays for whole team. Simple. Captain fronts the cost; splits with teammates externally. Avoids individual payment friction.

Each runner pays individually. Captain invites teammates via email; each pays their own share. More administrative but avoids cash-fronting issues.

Time-Monkey supports both. You set the preferred mode per event.

BIB structure for relays

There's one BIB for the whole team (they share it during the race via handoff). But the BIB carries metadata about all members.

Time-Monkey BIB structure for relays:

• Team BIB: 1001 (unique to team)
• On BIB printout: team name + all member names
• Optional: leg-specific BIB stickers for each runner (1001-A, 1001-B, etc.)

Some events print small leg-stickers so spectators can identify individual runners. Others rely on team-level identification.

Exchange zones and timing

At each exchange zone, a timing mat records the BIB crossing. For a 4-person relay, you need 5 mats:

1. Start line
2. Exchange 1 (leg 1 → leg 2)
3. Exchange 2 (leg 2 → leg 3)
4. Exchange 3 (leg 3 → leg 4)
5. Finish line

Each crossing generates a split time. Time-Monkey records:

• Leg 1 time (runner 1's solo effort)
• Leg 2 time (runner 2)
• etc.
• Team total (sum of legs, or finish time minus start time, matching within ~1s)

Results display

Team results page shows:

• Overall rank and total time
• Expandable team card with each runner's leg time
• Fastest leg per leg category (useful highlight)
• Category rankings (Open / Mixed / Corporate / Masters)

Individual runners can also see their own leg time and leg rank on their personal profile (if enabled).

Common relay pitfalls

Runner swaps. Team says they want to swap runner 3 for someone new the day before. Time-Monkey lets you edit team members up to the registration deadline (configurable).

Missed handoffs. Runner 2 doesn't show up, runner 3 starts without proper timing. This shows in the data as a missing split. Time-Monkey flags it so you can manually resolve (DNF or adjusted time).

One team member didn't pay. Captain thought teammate had paid their share externally, teammate didn't, event day chaos. Solve by requiring all members to be marked "paid" before the team can generate its BIB.

Wrong category. Team registered in Open, one of the four members is under 18. Set category rules and validate on registration: "Open category requires all runners 18+."

Category rules

Typical relay categories:

• Open — any combination of 4
• Mixed — must include 2 men and 2 women (configurable)
• Corporate — all runners from the same company
• Masters — all runners over 40
• Youth — all runners 16-18
• Elite — invite-only

Time-Monkey lets you define these with validation rules on registration.

The relay "first finisher line" moment

At the finish line, ONLY the last runner (leg 4) crosses. The team's time is measured by when that runner crosses. But spectators often don't realize which runner is completing which team — so have:

• Announcer calling out team name as each team finishes
• Relay team T-shirts matching (captain's choice)
• Team-group photo post-finish

Marketing relay to clubs and corporates

Relays are the highest revenue-per-participant format: instead of selling 1 registration, you sell 4. Target:

• Corporate HR departments ("employee wellness + team building")
• Running clubs (multiple teams per club)
• University athletics programs
• Schools (faculty teams vs students team)

Per-team pricing is typically 25-40% lower per runner than individual equivalent, but team volume drives overall revenue up.

Explore Time-Monkey relay features →