Is 3 750ml bottles of sports drink enough for a 6 hour "race"?



Bigbananabike

Active Member
Dec 29, 2004
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Hi
A friend of mine is doing a 160km "race"(read fun ride that most people take pretty seriously) in Nov. - it'll still be reasonably cold weather where it'll be.
It's likely he'll do it in 5;30 - 6hours.
He's got two bottle cages and can fit another bottle in the back of his jersey(and only wants to carry 3 in total).
So that = 3 x 750ml of sports drink(possibly 2 x sports drink and 1 x water).
He also doesn't want to stop to empty his bladder - presuming he gets in with a good bunch working well.

He's never done anything like this before so doesn't know what to expect hydration wise.
He has been building up his training - up to 140kms ride - and only used 2 750ml drink bottles - which he felt was fine.

Would 3 be enough, should he aim for one more and perhaps have to have a watering the bushes stop along the way?
 
I think he's pushing the limit mostly because of the time not the distance. You should explain to your friend that not having the proper fluids could make that last 40km VERY painful (cramps-muscle fatigue). Another bottle at some point wouldn't hurt.

Also if he's with a small group and everything is rolling along I'm pretty sure everyone in the group could agree on a pee break at one point (same thing with a water break maybe). It happens in the Tour de France so it should happen on his 160km ride.

Bigbananabike said:
Hi
A friend of mine is doing a 160km "race"(read fun ride that most people take pretty seriously) in Nov. - it'll still be reasonably cold weather where it'll be.
It's likely he'll do it in 5;30 - 6hours.
He's got two bottle cages and can fit another bottle in the back of his jersey(and only wants to carry 3 in total).
So that = 3 x 750ml of sports drink(possibly 2 x sports drink and 1 x water).
He also doesn't want to stop to empty his bladder - presuming he gets in with a good bunch working well.

He's never done anything like this before so doesn't know what to expect hydration wise.
He has been building up his training - up to 140kms ride - and only used 2 750ml drink bottles - which he felt was fine.

Would 3 be enough, should he aim for one more and perhaps have to have a watering the bushes stop along the way?