Energy Gel Multipacks - anywhere that sells them without harvesting your organs?

[katiewlx]

top tip for if worried about carrying sticky gel wrappers, carry a small sandwich bag to put all the rubbish in and carry it stickiness free in your pockets or till you find the nearest bin

 

[sevenfourate]

^^^^And not really riding much over 40 miles generally - the whole fuelling thing isnt such a big thing for me. But with just signing up for the 112 mile Dunwich Dynamo.......and ride home afterwards; getting some energy in as best i can has suddently caught my attention !

So in the same vein - i started ready about Gels last night. Unfortunately perhaps after i'd just bough the 40 above.

Users are suggesting while the more Gloopy ones will still do what you need and give a Carb hit; they may also effectively dehydrate you - and need 'washing' down with some (precious) liquid while you're out on 'that' ride. So i'm happy to have and use the above for all my general riding......

But for the Dynamo have last night also bought a box of High 5 'Aqua' Gels - which are alot more watery; and shouldn't supposedly require any extra liquid to be taken with them. Which i'm sure all of you knew. But i didn't

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/20631158...WfidHPyGAok6plQaFnfo8XOxM=|tkp:Bk9SR7z44P7VZw

To mix it up / compare with the Gels; i've also bought some of the High 5 Gummies (Same amount of Carbs per Gummy as a Gel):

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/37719367...rStIj7MPARlxPbyCMkZFdxzw==|tkp:Bk9SR7Si-v7VZw

And i keep reading about these; all Natural, easily digestable, enviromentally friendly wrapped Guava energy 'wonder blocks': So have bought some of those too. Expensive businesss getting fuelled up consistently. No wonder people are trying to buy cheaply in Bulk

https://luchos.com/shop?gad_source=...Z7KjoAMA4-KMsklKxBpMzNQD2vCsU2zhoCHkAQAvD_BwE

 

[Binky]

top tip for if worried about carrying sticky gel wrappers, carry a small sandwich bag to put all the rubbish in and carry it stickiness free in your pockets or till you find the nearest bin

I always wash my cycling kit after every ride anyway so I just put in jersey pocket. One thing I did do on a sportive though was put a load of sweets loose in back pocket and it rained so that was a horrendous mess post ride . It all washed out OK though.

It's been mentioned before but still always see discarded gel wrappers which is really poor. Just shove in pocket and take home.

 

[Jameshow]

Agreed. I use them on longer (for me) rides, but the empties always go back in my jersey pocket and get taken home. It is no effort at all to do that, I really don't understand why anybody wouldn't.

I would only use them in high intensity races tbh. (Marathons and ultras!)

On a long rides I like to enjoy the scenery and eat proper food. Nothing better than a beer and fish and chips!!

 

[Bristolian]

THat is more expensive than the same packs in Halfruads - £6.49 for one pack = £25.96 for 4.

Plus £5.99 for next day delivery = £31.95 so not so cheap as Amazon where I get free delivery.

 

[Alex321]

Plus £5.99 for next day delivery = £31.95 so not so cheap as Amazon where I get free delivery.

But you can just walk into a Halfords store and buy them. I have two I cycle close to regularly, so it is easy to do that, and is what I usually do when I am out of gels.

And of course, you pay a monthly subscription for your "free" deliveries, though that doesn't work out much per delivery if you order a lot from the big river.

 

[katiewlx]

I always wash my cycling kit after every ride anyway so I just put in jersey pocket. One thing I did do on a sportive though was put a load of sweets loose in back pocket and it rained so that was a horrendous mess post ride . It all washed out OK though.

It's been mentioned before but still always see discarded gel wrappers which is really poor. Just shove in pocket and take home.

well I just assumed everyone washed their kit after a ride

the reason why just shoving in pocket doesnt always work, is its quite easy not to shove it too far in, completely forget about it and before you know it, its broken for freedom because it fell out, or you reached for something else and knocked it out.

 

[katiewlx]

^^^^And not really riding much over 40 miles generally - the whole fuelling thing isnt such a big thing for me. But with just signing up for the 112 mile Dunwich Dynamo.......and ride home afterwards; getting some energy in as best i can has suddently caught my attention !

So in the same vein - i started ready about Gels last night. Unfortunately perhaps after i'd just bough the 40 above.

Users are suggesting while the more Gloopy ones will still do what you need and give a Carb hit; they may also effectively dehydrate you - and need 'washing' down with some (precious) liquid while you're out on 'that' ride. So i'm happy to have and use the above for all my general riding......

But for the Dynamo have last night also bought a box of High 5 'Aqua' Gels - which are alot more watery; and shouldn't supposedly require any extra liquid to be taken with them. Which i'm sure all of you knew. But i didn't

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/206311584757?_skw=high+5+energy+gel+aqua&itmmeta=01KTQYR7GD4MC6TAJE5AGCWPK5&hash=item300920f3f5:g:wxMAAeSwRbFqHBjK&itmprp=enc:AQALAAAA0GfYFPkwiKCW4ZNSs2u11xDpGlAlq5GQ6h9xQ4xsMIF4YJBq1b6n1kBwhTHp1aY4ReqYKo/U1aQbqNj0VHkxGgtxwbMNvDRLxXXz/XCjPYBIxNSGiqbJxauk6p12KluJ6EQsRm+eCd8VZCD3G1AZcHVm/vCS8ZfcUytM67CJMr/y5oLPuXPjFSziRv02PzLcvvalXY9aDAv+Cey9csY1Wb72VKNVEnrmOr7sBoywbvImhyR4LUJnqLLQtmIkpwWfidHPyGAok6plQaFnfo8XOxM=|tkp:Bk9SR7z44P7VZw

To mix it up / compare with the Gels; i've also bought some of the High 5 Gummies (Same amount of Carbs per Gummy as a Gel):

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/377193677211?_skw=high+5+gummy+energy&itmmeta=01KTQYYJ48E1EAWZ7W4J0ZVDHE&hash=item57d27ec19b:g:FZ8AAeSwh5lqC3XQ&itmprp=enc:AQALAAAA8GfYFPkwiKCW4ZNSs2u11xBtLjOTUvDmTwX1K3TunYrh7G/tEjY+jCVI2pk9NAgAdo74RnzsF5513obyq3b4EgeKEqxlbT7OiQXYZNYM315HvqT2hAiaE/uMN9bfw/MztzDV7z+At7InadJZlU/n/zWtaipksIIsBE57+KjNtaocsWBeZRhsS13Pco41Nz1Ujoi1GpWvDD+tzalvNOD7EuYZLh+I8utUlMuZHM4aUnhEt+Y/ecpISqcqEEick7S9X+reu3Y2aocJR1aMLbwwTtNFL9AGUuLWyNZVYlx1c3rStIj7MPARlxPbyCMkZFdxzw==|tkp:Bk9SR7Si-v7VZw

And i keep reading about these; all Natural, easily digestable, enviromentally friendly wrapped Guava energy 'wonder blocks': So have bought some of those too. Expensive businesss getting fuelled up consistently. No wonder people are trying to buy cheaply in Bulk

https://luchos.com/shop?gad_source=...Z7KjoAMA4-KMsklKxBpMzNQD2vCsU2zhoCHkAQAvD_BwE

there are a steady number of food stops on the Dun run, as alot of places you ride through the local pubs or local groups arrange popup cafes/bbqs even in the early hours, I think Sudbury fire station even serves pasta, that generate money to support local charities, so actually fuelling unless you get it horribly wrong by kind of forgetting to eat that x many carbs per hour, you shouldnt need to rely massively on gels or on food you take with you, it becomes more of a just in case/emergency use unless you dont plan on stopping and I get that aspect too as there are going to be queues at some places and youll want to push on, the tea rooms and the pub in Dunwich do open early to cater for everyone at the finish, so you know therell be somewhere at the beach open when you get there.

but the one thing I know I hit on those very long distance rides is actually it gets harder to eat and digest solid food the further you go into the ride, and you kind of have to resort to liquid fuelling, like gels or sports style carb heavy drinks, to keep that energy intake going. as you can lose your appetite to eat, you can also lose your appetite to eat ultra sugary gel things too, so you need a balance of different things.

I would say though dont wait till the ride to try them out, make sure your stomach can handle the stuff youve bought, as some of them can upset the balance of things in your body and produce results that arent what you need on a long bike ride.

and thats part of the water aspect to dilute them down a bit, also makes them easier to absorb in the stomach etc etc, though I think youll naturally want to drink something with them to wash away the taste.

 

[sevenfourate]

there are a steady number of food stops on the Dun run, as alot of places you ride through the local pubs or local groups arrange popup cafes/bbqs even in the early hours, I think Sudbury fire station even serves pasta, that generate money to support local charities, so actually fuelling unless you get it horribly wrong by kind of forgetting to eat that x many carbs per hour, you shouldnt need to rely massively on gels or on food you take with you, it becomes more of a just in case/emergency use unless you dont plan on stopping and I get that aspect too as there are going to be queues at some places and youll want to push on, the tea rooms and the pub in Dunwich do open early to cater for everyone at the finish, so you know therell be somewhere at the beach open when you get there.

but the one thing I know I hit on those very long distance rides is actually it gets harder to eat and digest solid food the further you go into the ride, and you kind of have to resort to liquid fuelling, like gels or sports style carb heavy drinks, to keep that energy intake going. as you can lose your appetite to eat, you can also lose your appetite to eat ultra sugary gel things too, so you need a balance of different things.

I would say though dont wait till the ride to try them out, make sure your stomach can handle the stuff youve bought, as some of them can upset the balance of things in your body and produce results that arent what you need on a long bike ride.

and thats part of the water aspect to dilute them down a bit, also makes them easier to absorb in the stomach etc etc, though I think youll naturally want to drink something with them to wash away the taste

Thank you very much indeed for all the thoughts 🙏

 

[Bristolian]

But you can just walk into a Halfords store and buy them. I have two I cycle close to regularly, so it is easy to do that, and is what I usually do when I am out of gels.

And of course, you pay a monthly subscription for your "free" deliveries, though that doesn't work out much per delivery if you order a lot from the big river.

I take your point but my nearest Halfrauds doesn't stock them and the next local would involve cycling into Bristol, where I don't go due to the p155 p00r driving and number of "accidents" involving cyclists.

My subscription to Amazon Prime pays for unlimited photograph storage, of which I currently use more than 3TB as off-site back-up. Free delivery, access to music and books are a bonus as far as I'm concerned

 

[De Sisti]

I am quite partial to brioche buns, sliced, with honey and jam in the middle. They are very easy to digest. Works for me.

 

[sevenfourate]

^^^^ I gather ‘lots’ of endurance Athletes eat Mashed Potato on the go ? I’ve been following a 66 year old Cyclist called Joe Barr cycle Route 66 - setting an age / time / overall 🤷‍♂️ record - and he’s partial too it. A lady at work does long distance running; and often takes it with her too. As she says do many around her. The right fuel, easily digestible when pre-mashed. Makes sense….