# How to Set Up Registration for an Obstacle Course Race: Heats, Teams and Waivers

> By Amit K · Published 12 November 2026 · Updated 13 November 2026 · Event Management · [Read on endurace.pro](https://staging.endurace.pro/blog/how-to-set-up-registration-for-an-obstacle-course-race)

Obstacle course races, usually shortened to OCR, are where a registration problem becomes a physical problem. If too many people start at once, queues form at every obstacle and the day turns into a wait. Entrants also get hurt more often than in a road race, and many come as teams of friends or colleagues. Your registration has to control the waves, handle team entries cleanly, and carry a waiver that holds up. Here is how to set that up.

## Build the day around heats

OCR events almost always start in heats or waves, a fixed group of people released every few minutes. The size of each heat is the most important number you will set, because obstacle throughput decides it. A wave that is too big creates bottlenecks that ruin the experience for everyone behind it.

Give each heat or start time its own ticket with its own capacity. That way a heat closes when it is full, not when the whole event is full, and entrants choose a time that suits them. You can also keep a separate heat, or a separate category, for competitive or elite entrants, with its own rules.

## Make team entries easy

OCR is a team sport for many people. A team captain should be able to register several friends, pay once and invite the others with a personal link, so you end up with each person’s own details and waiver. Set the largest team size per ticket so that one booking cannot take a whole heat. Ask for a team name as a text question so you can group start lists and results.

## Treat the waiver as a core document

Climbing, carrying, crawling and swimming through mud or water carry real injury risk, so the waiver matters more here than at most events. Use clear, versioned text, make every entrant accept it before payment, and keep a record of the exact wording, the name typed and the time of acceptance with each entry. If you change the wording later, entries made earlier should keep the version they accepted.

## Set age and eligibility rules

Most OCR events have minimum ages, and many have a separate kids’ course. Collect the date of birth on every entry so you can check ages against your rules, and state them clearly on the event page. Collect an emergency contact and blood group too, and make sure your medical team can open one list of them on the day.

## Kit and sizes

Most OCR events give a T-shirt and often a finisher item. Collect the size at registration and export the totals when you place your order. Add a tick-box confirming that entrants understand any rule about shoes, mud-safe clothing or personal equipment.

## Waitlists and check-in

Popular heats sell out and teams change. A waitlist that offers a freed place automatically to the next person keeps heats full. On race day, assign a bib number to every person, including every member of a team, and check them in individually from a list you can search and export.

## Common mistakes

- **Heats that are too large.** Obstacles set the real limit, not the number of tickets you could sell.
- **Teams registered by one person.** Each entrant needs their own details and waiver.
- **A thin waiver.** It should be clear, versioned and stored with each entry.
- **No age check.** Date of birth should be collected on every entry.

## Set it up on endurace.pro

- A separate ticket per heat or start time, each with its own capacity, and a waitlist button when one sells out.
- Group booking with one payment, a personal invite link for each team member, and a largest team size that you set.
- Waivers that keep the signed name, the time and the exact wording with every registration.
- Date of birth, T-shirt size, blood group and emergency contact on a mobile form, plus your own questions per category, such as team name.
- A searchable registration list with CSV export, and bib assignment and check-in per person, including every member of a team.

![Summary graphic: seven things to settle before obstacle course race entries open: heats and wave capacity, team entries, a strong waiver, age rules, shirt sizes, waitlist for full heats, and check-in and bibs.](https://cdn.sanity.io/images/42sizs9z/production/dc347e79f4f8a7fc6da4179743281df20289d1ab-2400x3138.png?w=1600)

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