Make your bike lighter and faster by carrying less fuel

In the perpetual pursuit to make your bike as light as possible, aid stations offer a solution for carrying less fuel on race day.

The fewer bottles you can carry on your bike the lighter your set up will be. Water and liquid fuel can quickly add up to several pounds and diminish the returns on those expensive carbon wheels you invested in.

Strategizing on how to best use what’s available at aid stations during a race can save you time on the bike. By reducing the amount of bottles, gels and solid foods you pack on your person and your bike, the faster the miles will speed by. Less weight makes climbing hills on both the bike and run easier and faster. You will expend less energy grinding it out and have more in the tank for a sprint finish.

Relying on aid stations can be tricky. They must have options that are tried and true for you to ensure no surprise gut issues that can derail your day. Getting enough calories and carbs from aid stations requires precision planning. Nailing that plan will allow you to carry only what you need in between refuels. That amounts to a hefty savings on bike weight.

The first step is determine what fuelling options will be at your next event. Race organization websites usually offer a list of what will be at each aid station and how far apart they are spaced.

Take that list and start practicing. On hard and long bike and run sessions test out the various products available to you on race day. It’s important to start testing these products as far out from competition as possible. It can takes weeks or months to train your gut to absorb types of ingredients and amounts of carbohydrates. Practice will reveal which products work for you and which are off the table.

Calculate the distance between each aid station and plan to take enough at each to provide you with 200-35o calories and hour containing 60-90 grams of carbohydrates, and 500 to a 1000 milligrams of sodium, on average. Take enough water or electrolyte drink to get you to the next top up.

Big name races like Ironman offer high-quality fuelling options like Maurten Gels and the newly introduced Mortal Hydration. At the price of a Maurten gel, one of the more expensive gels on the market, you will save money on top of weight if you can plan to use the product and get it on course.

Whipping through an aid station on your bike while grabbing the essentials is possible, especially with a little experience. As you slow down you can reach out and grab each item without stopping. If you choose to stop, the short break can pay dividends later on in the race, especially on the run.

Enlisting a friend or family member to simulate riding through and aid station and grabbing bottles and gels is a fun way to practice. Neglecting skills development in favour of ‘getting in the miles’ is a common mistake, and is a great way to break up the monotony of training.

On the bike it is never safe to stop in the middle of the aid station. Ride on through and pull over at a safe spot. Walking the aid stations on the run is a popular strategy and offers a brief reprieve, especially in hot weather. It worked for 2022 Ironman World Champion Chelsea Sodaro in her surprise win as a newcomer to the event!

Every aid station has a garbage zone so you don’t have to lug any wrappers or empty bottles unnecessarily. Swap out an empty bottle for a full one and empty gel packets for fresh stickiness on your bar tap.

To successfully leverage aid stations you must be diligent about calculating precisely how much you need to take at each to meet your hourly nutrition and hydration targets. If you aren’t a planner, than it might be best to carry it all on your bike and not risk bonking.

The benefits of a light bike and light travel on the run could earn you a PR on your next race without having to work any harder. Swapping extra effort in training for time to plan your aid station fuelling strategy could be your next one per cent.