100TT

markos1963

I was thinking of entering my first 100TT. What I was wondering was what should I do for hydration? I can carry enough food on board in one of those tr&@th)n bags on my top tube but I only have the one bottle boss. I didn't fancy fitting those under seat bottle cages but can't see any other way of carrying enough liquids. What do others do on long TTs?

ju5t1n

Some good info here...

http://www.bikeradar.com/blog/article/h ... ial-22863/

Pross

Support car if possible. Get them to hand up bottles every 25 miles or so. Even if you have to stop very briefly to take one. Otherwise, dare I say it, a double seat mounted cage like triathletes use.

andy_wrx

Multiple laps ?
Clubmates who can mind your bottles and hand them to you each lap ?

SBezza

You could do it several ways, but if you don't want to fit behind the seat bottles, then you are slightly limited.

1: Wear a small camelbak type pack under your skinsuit
2: Work out the course beforehand and place bottles along the route where you think you will need them, and just stop to change them (useful to do if 3 is not an option)
3: Have some support to hand you a bottle

I have 2 bottles on my frame and one behind my seat if I don't have a helper, I also have a Camelbak Racevest which I have used before. I would ideally try and get a helper though, especially if the race doesn't pass the same point a few times. I would also make sure you are hydrated well before starting as this will help you later in the race and hopefully minimise bottle changes.

BeaconRuth

I only ever rode one 100 without a helper handing up bottles. For that one I had a bottle cage mounted behind my saddle but it was pretty much impossible to replace a bottle there once removed, so I ensured I emptied the bottle on my down tube, then threw it onto the verge where I could collect it again later, took the bottle from behind and replaced it in the downtube cage. That way I had two full bottles which was enough on that day as it was freezing cold. Off-topic a bit, but that event was cancelled after 90 miles of racing because of an accident on the road, (unrelated to the race). Talk about a feeling of deflation!

Some people make use of a camel-bak type system under their skinsuits when they don't have a helper - and that could have advantages for aerodynamics too.

Ruth

Edit - Oops, sorry for cross-post with SBezza

markos1963

Thanks for all the responses so far. The course is a four lapper(I think) so maybe the strategically placed roadside bottles might be a good idea. I won't have the luxury of a helper(my Mrs thinks I'm mad enough without roping her in to help as well!!) Perhaps a quick stop to change over bottles might help with aches and pains from such a long race.

danowat

It's 3 laps Markos, and yes, there are plenty of places on course to stash bottles.

If you get stuck, and I am riding,depending on my support you could probably leave them with them

markos1963

danowat wrote:

It's 3 laps Markos, and yes, there are plenty of places on course to stash bottles.

If you get stuck, and I am riding,depending on my support you could probably leave them with them

Thanks Dan, I should have asked you first!

markos1963

What are peoples thoughts on position? I'm lucky enough to have fitted an adjustable stem so I can raise and lower the bars. Should I lift the bars a bit for this race being my first? I am anxious about my neck locking up as it really aches after a 25.

danowat

I tend to leave me position in the same place, from a 5 mile TT, to a 12hr TT.........

SBezza

As above my position stays the same no matter the duration of the event. If you get comfortable in the position you should be fine, but a position that is barely comfortable for a 10 or 25 will be hell in longer durations.

andyrr

I've only ridden 2 100's so absolutely no expert but for me I rode both (in Scotland so not super-hot by any means) without any support.
I had 2 x bottles in cages (my TT bike frame was shaped such that I could only fit a 500ml bottle into the ST cage and that was paired with the larger one on the dt. I also had a camelbak bladder on my back inside the skinsuit. That seemed to work fine for me.
I also used masking tape to stick a amall array of gels onto the top tube as well as carrying a few up legs and arns of skinsuit - I was pleased with that bright idea as these were easy to get at and that tape was sticky enough to hold the gel on but also allowed easy removal during the race.
Camelbak works very well but contents do get a little warm - mm, lovely, warm energy drink. Might be best to have plain water in that and the energy drink in bottles so that is less prone to a temperature rise ?
Having someone to hand up drinks 2 or 3 times would be nice - would save carrying over a kilo or so's liquid at the start.

bexslack

Your hydration needs will obviously depend a lot on the weather. If it's a very hot day you might drink twice as much as normally would.

I've done 3 100s. The first with a helper, the second two without. I find it almost easier to not have a helper to be honest as you tend to get distracted thinking about them. I carry 2 500m bottles behind the saddle and one on the frame. That should suffice in average temperatures although be sure to have a bottle planted at the finish (as you will finish dehydrated with only 1.5l) and a couple out on the course should you need more.

My other advice would be to make sure you use isotonic gels as you don't need to wash them down with fluid and they in themselves help you hydrate. They're also not so sickly sweet.

Oh and another thing, don't use a visor if it's a hot day.....

markos1963

Thanks to everyone's advise and help(especially Danowat and his wife). Race was yesterday in terrible conditions at times. Managed to crawl around in 5h 01m 00s which was gutting as I had hoped for a sub 5h. Even worse was the fact I lost 3m due to my bottle cage coming lose and having to try and unsuccessfully fix it.

danowat

Mate, you should be made up with just getting round, last lap was awful