I did an impromptu 98 mile ride last summer, set off about 6am with the intention of doing around 40 miles. No money, only a couple of gels, one water bottle.

My wife was down south and heading home that day so I called her up to see when she was leaving and headed south to meet her. So I set off towards Dougles and then down the B7078 which runs parallel with the M74.

Hot day, didn’t pass any houses on the route with anyone around. I’ve never been so pleased to step into a garage and be told that ‘yeh, there’s a water cooler in there with cold or ice cold water’.

I was a bit tired at the end of it.

I have pondered this and never really got a great answer but came up with a few options.

If it is really hot then stop. Just come back from Italy. 4 miles, 400 miles, 30C+ Drank lots, stopped to refill.

In the UK I can do a century on two bottle if I start hydrated and it is not 20C+

For hotter and longer stuff SIS do 1L bottles. They look ugly on the bike but let you carry more water. I also bought a collapsable 500ml pouch. Goes in my pocket. Again not great as it makes the jersey sag and you have really full pockets but once it is gone then it takes up no space. Final option is to take a throwaway bottle for your pocket. Drink it, then bin it when you get the chance.

sometimes run out of water, kept going, haven’t died because of it yet

you mean this a marketing ploy?

I just top my bottles up in a river or stream.

2 500ml bottles for any ride over 75 miles, 1 bottle for any ride under 50 miles is a rule that see to have worked for me. Often come back with water still in the bottle

2 500ml bottles for any ride over 75 miles, 1 bottle for any ride under 50 miles

What about rides between 50 and 75?

I admire the bravery of people who say the fill up at a stream or river (if you live in Britain that is). Sure, some streams will be fairly clean, but as with all open water sources, you should really treat it before drinking it. You may have got away with it so far, but it will not be pleasant when you don’t. Even a small crystal clear stream can have some nasty pathogens in it, or they could be polluted from human activity or contain harmful levels of heavy metals…

Luckily, I’m not in Britain & you can still do that down here.

I filled up from a mountain stream at Brechfa once and got a performance boost by imagining it was elven water.

i never realised it was so complicated

It’s not. I just take a camelbak because, well, I just don’t give a shit. It’s so much easier 🙂

I admire the bravery of people who say the fill up at a stream or river (if you live in Britain that is).

Depends heavily on where you are in Britain.