First HIM
13
Member
48 days
cuds posted 1 week ago.
Wow... that's a lot of questions for this late at night. Hopefully you will have some replies by the time I check again in the morning cuz I can't possibly dive into all that right now lol.
517
Member
839 days
gfd posted 1 week ago.
I put 2 bottles of my liquid carb/high calorie mix on the back of the bike. Gatorade Endurance on the front, which I replace twice with gatorade provided by the race. You have to slow down and drop your bottle while aceepting a bottle that is handed off by a volunteer. Any gels or food I put in my shirt pockets.
For the run, it is easy enough to have a few gels waiting in T2 that you can take along for the run. Better to always be prepared with more than you need rather than not enough. It's probably a good idea to contact the race director and find out what energy drink and nutrition will be provided so you can practice with it.
I didn't see anybody getting off the bike during the HIM. There are usuallly one or two stations every 20 miles or so with port-o-lets and trees work also work well.
Good luck.
351
Member
240 days
Sully800 posted 1 week ago.
Most people won't be stopping to stretch, but if your goal is simply to finish and you think it will help then don't be ashamed to stretch out. Similarly, a lot of people train themselves to be able to pee while riding, because it saves a lot of time in comparison to stopping all forward progress to go to the bathroom. If you are not extremely worried about time, then getting off the bike and using a tree will not be much of a problem.
As for bottle exchanges, I've never gone through one myself but keep in mind that the bottles you drop will not be returned. I think some people prefer to use cheap plastic water bottles with a sports cap instead of a traditional bike bottle since they are meant to be disposable anyway. Something like this: 
Also, one of the most important things is to practice your nutrition plan before the race. So figure out how much fluid you should be consuming (and that should be adjustable based on the weather, more water for hotter days) and how many calories you will need per hour. Then during your long bikes and brick workouts, try out the nutrition strategy so you can adjust it before race day. This will help to solve problems before the race, and it will give you confidence that fuel should not be an issue.
439
Member
685 days
tsilcyc posted 1 week ago.
1. Hydration - I always carry what I need and then drop bottles if I see the race is well organized.
2. The Run - I carry what I need and might grab some water from the aid stations. It's faster than trying to negotiate the aid stations and the people running into them.
3. Bottle Exchanges - People on both sides of the road handing you bottles while you're riding through at 20mph. You might want to practice catching a bottle being handed off to you. Truthfully it's not that difficult but pay attention to what's going on, it gets tricky sometimes. You drop your empties here... either before or after but not in the middle.
4. Bike Leg - Most will ride non-stop, you can do whatever you need to do in order to complete the event successfully. It's better to stop and stretch than to stop forever.
5. Potty Breaks - Personally, I pee on the bike. You can search this forum and find several posts where I discuss urinating on myself. You'll find answers across the board on this one. Perhaps you could go potty while you're stretching.
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64
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942 days
NotAsFast posted 1 week ago.
Buy a trailer for you bike to carry your supplies and a big backpack for the run. Then you can pack extra and not forget anything. :) Here is one that can be changed from a trailer to a runner.
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+1 to all of the above, but most importantly, train with what you are going to use for hydration and fuel so you know how it effects your body. That is the number one killer of any race strategy. Gastonomical distress from nutrition.
24
Member
14 days
azmojo804 posted 1 week ago.
I have taped the "gu" packets to my bike frame before. Usually on the top bar so it's just a quick reach down and then rip, it's already then opened and I just swallow. No need to slow down, take hands off the bar, etc. Pretty nice method, especially since I don't have a bike shirt/jersey, so I don't have those pockets.
And, I've never planned on using what the race provides. I've had a couple of plain run races that said they'd provide something (like Gatorade) but when I got there, all they had was water and I really wanted Gatorade. So, I pack what I want, and use when I want. I use the water at the stations to cool myself off usually.
439
Member
685 days
tsilcyc posted 1 week ago.
You can stash gu underneath the legs of your shorts. It will remain there while running as well.
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8 days
aschwick posted 1 week ago.
Thank you all for your suggestions. I appreciate your time.
I will be doing my first HIM this year. Have done sprints before and did fine with getting enough fluid and gel during transitions.
Now I am wondering how to keep myself hydrated and fueled enough during the longer tri. Do you carry everything you need on your bike during that leg? Or are the aid stations stocked well enough to accomodate everyone?
And during the run, do I need to carry everything I will need for the entire 13.1 miles? Can I trust the aid stations to be stocked? I'm slow, but I'm confident I will finish.
The event I am planning to do is using Hammer gel, I am training with those as well. It also says the race aid stations will have carbs, but I don't know exactly what so I don't want to chance it and rely on what they have if I haven't trained with their selection.
The event info. says they will have bottle exchanges. Exactly how does that work?
Another question(s), during the bike leg do people ride the entire time without stopping or stop and stretch when desired?
How about if you need to use the restroom along the routes, what do you do?