Got a sportive on Sunday, my first one, so as it is a distance that is longer than i’d normally do i’m stocking up on food to carry with me including Gels. As the instructions on the Gels packets is to aim to have three per hour and catering for potentially unto 6hrs in the saddle, that means i’ll be lugging around about 18 gel sachets with me – maybe a few less if I don’t do three in the first hour. I’m not sure i’ve got pace in my jersey pockets along with other food i’m planning on taking with me and maybe some items of clothing.

So where do people stick their gels?

If you eat 18 gels in one ride, storing them will be the least of your worries. Take proper food.

No one needs that number. Plus your mouth/teeth will feel furry after half that. If it’s a sportive then they’re probably supplying cake and bananas.

Or, just pedal harder. If you can get round at twice the speed you’ll need half the number of gels

Sod gels, eat food. Sandwiches, pork pies, flapjack, bananas, apples, samosas, cold pizza, need I go on?

As above loads of gels is a fast track to bonksville/the twobob bits,proper food and then a gel or two to get you through the last hour.

Don’t. I carry 2 or 3 in a back pocket and see them as emergency food. Just eat properly at each free station and you’ll be fine. Saying that, 18 gels would make you rocket powered…

Stick a couple of cereal bars in your jersey pocket, and just pick up the free food at feed stations… The worst thing about gels is not storing them in the first place, but storing the sticky mess of the empty packets.

Torq are good as you can have any mix of three. One gel, one bar or a drink. or any combination.
Better than just gels in my opinion.

6 hours….I would eat a few banannas in the first hour or two combined with carb powder in your water. Eat whatever is at the feed stations and an energy bar or 2 inbthe next couple and leave couple of gels for the last hour orc2.

For a 50 miler I’ll take maybe 4 gels & a bit if solid food, if not a premade energy bar a peanut butter & choc spread butty cut into squares. Usually come home with some of them too. I prefer just water in my bottles, guts don’t seem to get on with energy drinks.
I’d not take double that for a century, i reckon I’d end up leaking gel if I had that many.
Sportives generally have food stations anyway so unless you’re intending to miss them out you’ll get extra fuel there.

A very well known and sensible piece of advice is that you shouldn’t try anything in an event you care about that you’ve not tried in training.

Have you tried 3 gels per hour for 6 hours in training? Or even for 4 hours? How did it feel?

Have you tried 3 gels per hour for 6 hours in training? Or even for 4 hours? How did it feel?

Most I’ve had was 6 in a day (over about four hours). The results were catastrophic.

My first sportive I went with lots of gels. Didn’t end well.

I say screw these guys! Who do you think k knows more about the gel? Some people on the internet, or the manufacturers? Go for the 18 and take a few more just incase. Just tape them with masking tape over the bike so you can rip them off.

Take photos. And loo roll.

Even xc racing I struggle to eat more than 3 in a race and then have stomach cramps a few hrs later. For a normal ride up to 4hrs wouldn’t bother with any, maybe a flapjack.

GCN do a really good video on what to pack and where for a days riding, but the main gist is tools in the saddle pack, packable jacket and pump in middle pocket, food in side Jersey pockets

And another vote for proper food; sandwiches, bananas maybe a pork pie for protein and variety gels for emergency only. 2x500ml bidons, one water one electrolyte and alternate them

What you need is a storage facility built into your seatpost. I think davidtaylforth does some pretty long rides.

It’s a bit late now, but gels are no substitute for training. I hope you’re not doing the Fred Whitton, that would be a tough sportive to start with. As above, eat proper food and use gels later on, that way, if they have a troubling effect you’ll be nearer home. Enjoy the ride, the scenery and people. Good luck.

I hope you’re not doing the Fred Whitton, that would be a tough sportive to start with

It was my first one, I’m still here now 😉

I’ve had 12+ torq gels in a day along with torq energy drink, stomach was fine. For a sportive (or long ride) I’d probably take a handful of torq gels, some torq energy and grab some cake and sarnies somewhere along the way.

As others have said though, I wouldn’t try something for the first time on a big event.

The amount of gel a energy drink High 5 recommend in an hour is ridiculous. For 100 miles I’d take 4 gels, 1 electrolyte bottle, 1 energy bottle, powder to fill them up once or maybe twice. Then I’d eat proper savoury food at one stop.

simondbarnes – Member
I hope you’re not doing the Fred Whitton, that would be a tough sportive to start with
It was my first one, I’m still here now

Yeah.. We know 😉

If you have a decent breakfast you’ll be fine for 90 minutes or so on nothing. Energy drinks will provide you with most of your recommended 200 – 300 calories per hour.

Alternatively take 18 gels, then wait for the impeding Arse unloading pretty catastrophically!

You might as well stick them up your arse for all the good they’ll do you..

Take a sandwich or two like a normal human being

If you must take the sickly idiot sweets, please pick your wrappers up

So where do people stick their gels?

You might as well stick them up your arse 

http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/anal-rehydration

Round here most people seem to chuck them on the floor…. 🙁

Bought into the whole gel thing and then got sick of finding places to put gooey wrappers. Went back to normal food and didn’t notice any difference. Keep a couple of emergency bonk relief but don’t go out expecting to eat them.

Are you doing the Etape Caledonia this weekend? So am I – not using gels at all. Good breakfast of porridge / fry up / bacon roll / cereal. From then on relying on the food and water stops supplemented with flapjack, jelly babies and tangtastics.
Leave the gels for the gullible who believe the marketing guff.

Having done etape Caledonia a few times and carried food the whole way round, the smart way is a decent breakfast as mentioned, 2 bottles and no food. There are food stations every 20 miles with bananas, cakes and energy stuff. Fill yer pockets to help offset the £60 entry fee … 🙂

Gels are for a last resort as you’ll just use up all the sugars straight away, any you don’t will explode out of your arse. Like others have said take proper slow release food.

I like gels, I feel they have their place – and on a 6 hour ride I’d probably take 3 or 4 with me.
However I would plan to only use them toward the end of the event, and only if I felt I needed them.

If you eat 18 of them in one day they will make you a bit poorly.

I did the TdY Sportive as my first road event and was nervous and wondering about gels.
I had 2, near the end.
My mate had about 12 and it was messy!
I tucked one in my short leg at the feed station, was easy to retrieve and had a jacket covering my jersey pocket. I also tuck the empty wrappers up there too, saves getting the rest of my pocket contents sticky.

I’ve never had any issue with squits using gels – probably more bunged up than anything else.

Eat something every 40 minutes. Alternate between a gel and some real food like a banana or some malt loaf. I store a gel under each leg gripper in races. I also like Cliff bloks. For a sportive, empty a large bag of jelly babies into a back pocket and take ad libitem for a continuous glucose oral infusion.

You won’t need 18 gels.

For Ride London 100 I ate a large risotto the night before, three weetabix for breakfast, took four gels, a banana, and a sis fruit bar. That was for four hours, but probably a similar carb burn.

My first big ride was on gels,drink and bars only.
No bad guts as I ready the instructions. Most gels need water with them to be fully utilised. If not, they sit in your gut and give you the shits.

Sis are nasty, hight 5 are pretty good and torq are nice. I’d say pack what the instructions say and your legs will tell you what you need. If you bring some home, great. If you don’t then there are feed stops.

It’s £20 worth of stuff you can use again on another day.

Enjoy the ride, it’s suppose to be fun.

I’m doing 100k sportive this weekend. I’m taking 2 cranberry & macadamia bars some mixed salted peanuts & cashews & 2 bottles of squash. Will eat fruit or cake st the food stop. Doubt I’ll eat all the above though

Yep as many have said you are looking at too many gels…
The 3/hr is for short races. Fuel properly before, energy in the water is good and some other food, gels if you bonk.

If I’m doing 100 miles+ I’ll take ham sarnies & a pork pie

I must under eat compared to you lot. For a hundred mile ride I’ll have breakfast then have a couple of MuleBars and plenty of water then eat afterwards. I’ll happily ride 50 miles without any food intake.

I still don’t get the pork pie obsession either…

Last time I emptied jelly babies into my pocket it rained. Messy!
Another tip – load your back pocket in reverse layers. I had fig rolls for ‘breakfast’, flapjack for mid morning and jelly babies as a snack and a gel at the bottom for emergency energy.
Little and often though, 3 fig rolls was enough per go. Something like 35g of carbs an hour. Eat 20 mins ahead of when you need it.

That was my strategy and it was great. I managed to ride twice as fast as I’ve ever ridden, kept my pace higher than usual and was still walking around all afternoon.

I’d say hydration and skills riding in a group are more important than food.