ding ding ding … ring the dinner bell!

What do you eat on the bike? You have preferences?

Let me be more specific – for a short ride? For a long ride?  

I started riding when all we had were bananas and bagels. Both taste great but neither are space efficient, and both have an expiration date.  

Then came PowerBars. I remember mountain bike races where they would cut one into small bite size parts and give them away at the race as a promotion. Then they took over and a category was birthed. Sure, granola bars and breakfast bars already existed, but this was a bit different. Everyone jumped on board. The original PowerBars were an extruded thick paste and chewy. Designed for activity. Much too hard to eat if cold or even room temperature. But, pull it out of your jersey pocket where it was stored and that warmth resulted in the correct level of softness. Then, PowerBar decided they wanted to sell to the general public as an energy bar, so they made them softer so that those in suits could grab one and eat it at their desk. Put that in your back pocket and when you pull it out that bit of extra heat made it a gooey mess. That is only one reason the original Power Bar faltered. 

About the same time Cliff Bar jumped in the fray with ingredients you could see. I liked that. Not a homogeneous paste extruded but this one had chunky ingredients in it. The energy bar industry has completely evolved since those days. I now eat a bar (Larabar) that is made up of real ingredients that you can see and taste. There are many good options now. I like my choice, but it can get gooey in summer (because my favorite is peanut butter chocolate chip) so I also eat fig bars. The old standy that predates PowerBars. Maybe the original cyclist’s energy bar.  

Regardless, these bars have their place. They have long expiration date, they do not get damaged if you fall on them (unlike a banana), they are compact, they provide energy, they can make it through the washer if you leave it in your pocket and many actually taste good. I use these as primary for many of my short to medium rides and have them on every ride – just in case.  

Energy Gels? No thank you. I can see the usefulness in a race. I do not race. In the past I kept one for emergencies. Then I realized that I am not ever going to be in that big of an emergency.

Many years ago, I was riding my mountain bike with friends. I was in Colorado, and we were riding a trail on Monarch Pass. Our route for the day was shorter than the previous day (which I had missed since I arrived a day late). My friend wanted me to do the previous day’s ride, but alas we were on another route with his friends, and it would have been rude for him to ditch his friends to take me on the other ride.

We were stopped at a trail intersection to drink, snack and check the map when two guys passed by and turned on the route my buddy had completed the prior day. He said to me, “Give me your keys. Now!” I looked at him stunned. He said, “Give me your keys and go catch them, they are riding the route I want you to ride. Go ride with them. I will make sure your vehicle is at the trailhead where you end.” I trusted my buddy and handed him my keys and took off to catch those two that passed us. I caught them, introduced myself, confirmed the route they were taking and asked if I could join them. They welcomed me and off we went. The ride just changed. Now I am on a ride much longer than I planned in ride prep. Good thing I am still young. Well, maybe youngish?

At some point we stopped to snack. I pulled over and grabbed an energy bar and took a swig of what was probably some type of sugar water from my CamelBak. They propped up their bikes, sat on a log and pulled out real food. A nice looking sandwich plus more. Ding ding ding – the bells went off in my head. I was forever changed.  

It brought back a memory from a past mountain bike ride. Friends, 2 weeks of riding, Colorado, mountain bikes … today they told me a short 2 hour ride – ended up being 5. I bonked. Not ‘dead in my tracks’ bonking but no energy and tired/struggling. We popped out in a town and stopped in a restaurant to eat. Yes, a sit down and eat a real meal stop. I had no money because I thought it was a short ride (lesson learned there – in two ways). Buddy bought my meal – changed my ride. Should have learned then. Guess I was too young and not ready … I was still racing.  

Back to the trail where my new riding buddies shared real food with me. This was a long ride; greater than 5 hours. I was still shedding old race mode actions. They were living life. New choices! If it is a long ride, bring energy bars but also bring real food. And sit down and relax and eat real food. I do that now and it changes everything. Literally. Allen Lim (of Skratch) is a proponent of real food – but this was long before he started Skratch and long before I heard him speak. I still live by his statement of, “Eat your nutrition and drink your hydration.”

After that, my significant other would make me this spectacular black bean turkey burger each ride we (or I, if she were working) did that was long. After a couple of hours in the saddle we would stop, relax, eat real food and then onward. Ahhh – joy.  

Even now, on long rides I am known for bringing a bean burrito. Black Beans (not out of a can, but that would work also) and cheese … that is the standard model.  But, often meat, egg, potato, rice, peppers – many things make an appearance.  The important part is that it is real food, and I like it. It is also easy to eat.  I do not stop for long (old habits). But I do usually stop and eat. I could roll and eat, but why? I am not racing. Enjoy a moment.  

Friends showed up to a dirt ride of mine. They are always cautious when I tell them I have an adventure planned. That is another story (or many) entirely. I had made some bean burritos and offered them to those that showed up. All declined and Eric commented in a manner which expressed his thought of it being a bad choice and not ride food. I think his actual words were, “that is so big it looks like a life jacket.” I responded as I usually do. No persuasion. I just smiled.  

Well into the ride (it was a long one) we stopped and I pulled out my burrito. Eric looked at it longingly; his eyes showed regret in his pre-ride decision. I was verbal. I said, “Eric, you rethinking your earlier decision?”  He responded emphatically, “I will never refuse anything you offer me in the future.” I think I shared my burrito with him just as those two on the ‘ride that changed my food thinking’ did with me so many years before on Monarch Pass.  

Alas, that was not the first time I was ridiculed or rejected for my choice of foods for an athletic endeavor. Once I brought a baked potato (along with other things) on a hike up a fourteener (Long’s Peak). They laughed at me as I made and packed it in those early morning hours. They said something like, “How are you going to eat that, like an apple”? To which I replied, “yes”. At the top – guess what? Yep. They were salivating and staring at me eating that baked potato. Again, I just smiled. I do not think there was sharing going on there… it predated the Monarch Pass ride by more than a decade.  

I took a long time to say it but here it is –  Real food is good. Try it. Energy bars are great in their own way. They are useful and a welcome addition. Real food is still good. If you are going on a really long ride, try some real food. I know, gastric stuff. If the ride is that long, you are not going at that high of an intensity. Or at least not that high of an intensity the entire time. You know what your body can manage. I am not saying gorge at any point. That is always bad.  

I have other stories about food choices, but for now I want to hear from you.  

What is your GOTO ride food? For short rides? For long rides?  Do you eat real food? If so, what? And Why?