+1 on infiniT. the taste is fairly neutral and not overly sweet. you can choose a race distance mix or concoct your own. experiment with it in training, but a bottle on the bike should get you to the run where you can switch to water.

If you race near or at over exertion you may need to include a gel or 2 during the race to maintain energy stores. Plenty of threads here on gels. Try a few kinds to see what works best for you.

I find gatorade from a mix to be slightly less sweet than the pre-made stuff. (The mix uses sugar, the premade uses HFCS as a sweetener). Plus you can dilute it a bit if you want.

I prefer to keep short-course nutrition as simple as possible, but I still use gels for many races.

For a sprint, I will drink some gatorade during the bike from an aerobottle. The amount will vary depending on ride distance, temperature, etc. I usually do not take anything on the run, because nothing you ingest during a 5k is going to help beofre the end of the race. For a relatively longer sprint (like a 16-20 mile bike versus the traditional 12 or 13), I may also take 1 gel with water during the bike.

For Olys, I'll eat 1 gel with water about 5 miles into the bike and another a few miles before the end of the ride. During the rest of the bike ride, I sip gatorade as needed. On the run, I'll take a mouthful of whatever is on the course as needed, especially early on and if it is hot outside.

I put nuun in my water if I just want electrolytes (it has a bit of flavor, but not sweet), if I also want calories I put some carbopro as well. However, I try to keep my hydration and nutrition separate -- even if both are liquid, they have different schedules and roles and backup plans.

Lots of people here are saying infinit -- do you use it for nutrition, or hydration? From what I've read, it's more for nutrition than hydration.