A friend swears by Sponser Competition for their drink mix, so that’s what I’ve been using since last year without any problems. I like that it’s not ridiculously sweet, so even after 5-6 hours, I can still tolerate it. It comes in an isotonic and a hypotonic option, I’m a pretty heavy sweater, so I use the hypotonic.
For solid food I just go with Clif bars. Nice flavor variety, and I like the nut butter filled ones, the hazelnut especially, stays softer and is easier to chew. Do want to try out some other options for the bars though, just to mix it up.
I really like the SIS bars. They go on discount regularly and are pretty easy on my stomach. I can easily have one during a sweet spot/threshold workout if it’s one of the longer TiZ varieties.
Yep. The only sports drink I’ve ever been able to keep down, it has changed my riding completely.
Previously I was eating 2 small bars or a bar & 2 gels an hour. Or paying astronomical amounts for ZipVit.
I was constantly eating and carrying way too much out with me.
I think my favourite drink is Torq but I try to shop around although sometimes I have to settle for what is available. At the moment I have SiS drink.
I’ve just finished my Gels but I usually get SiS there and tend to use them at the start of an effort and not mess with them mid ride, particularly hard just now whilst I wait for post chemo nerve regen. If it’s not a TT I may carry a gel in my pocket but I seldom use it
I nearly pulled the trigger on this last week as it was such a good deal and they were out of fructose. Very low fructose in the mix put me off - iirc only 6 or 7% fructose?
Re: higher carb gels, my favourites for a long time were Zipvit gels, similar to the aforementioned Sponser ones with nearly 60g per gel, and not noticeably less palatable than SIS Isotonic gels, just a bit bigger. Much preferred having one every 45-60mins than 2-3 every hour with SIS now, but Zipvit have since stopped making them. I also use Beta fuel for longer, or harder rides.
This gets me to around 84g/hour. I will also carry a sleeve of clif blocks (48g carbs) in case I get tired of gels or am feeling ambitious on my calorie consumption
I will mix the beta fuel at 50% strength and have two bottles each with two scoops of skratch - giving me four bottles with 40g of carbs in them and will have a further 4 bottles with SiS electrolyte tabs in them so I can balance hydration with caloric intake
I give all this detail to say - in my opinion its hard to pick one brand as the ‘best’ - they all are different and at this point it is much more about your preference and tolerance for flavors and consistencies than anything else
