Vegas to Reno - Hydration tips

[MX813]

Fellow Nevada TTer's...

Three of us are coming down for the Vegas to Reno race next month with great anticipation. Bike is fully prepped - XR650 (pretty much new everything except for three 35 year old riders!)

The 3 of us of ride primary long Hare Scrambles in a semi-desert environment with quite bit of desert riding thrown in as well year round. Eastern Washington hits around a 100 degrees during the summer, nothing in comparison to the Southwest.

So back to the title topic, what do you guys do in the summer to stay healthy during longer rides of up to 2 hours? We realize that we need to switch riders around every 2 hours during this event. Hydrate the week? 2 Weeks? Month? prior to the event? Sit in a sauna w/no steam and full mx gear? We are all ears (eyes) for your input!

Thanks,

Mike (mx813)

Team Sick Fast Slow Guys #531

[RichieGoatGruff]

I drink a lot of water, every day....

[Red_Barney]

Start drinking lots of water a couple of days out, stay away from caffeine and alcohol. When you are riding drink before you are thirsty.

Good luck Sick Fast Slow Guys!

Whoop!

Paul

[Bill]

A rule of thumb for an athlete should be .6 ozs for every pound of body weight, per day. This is when not excercising. When you start to excercising...not sweating or feeling thirsty (to late by then) start pounding the water. During the race you may want to mix gatorade at 50:50 with water. Get the biggest hydration pack you can comfortably carry and drink, drink, drink. Remember Camelback supports the seirra club and it would be a cold day in hell before I gave them my money.

Good luck

Bill

[Senior29]

Remember Camelback supports the seirra club and it would be a cold day in hell before I gave them my money.

Good luck

Bill

I didn't know that!

My wife got me a new Camelback this summer.

No point in throwing it out, but I won't get another one. Thanks for the info.

[RichieGoatGruff]

This statement has been debunked....camelbak is OK.

[Senior29]

Well Rich you certainly have more initials and acronyms following your name than I do, so I'll accept your statement and continue to suck water from my Camelback with no guilty feelings and recommend that the boys from Washington State do the same. Thanks.

[Doug.]

As far out as possible, drink LOTS of water everyday and avoid sugary drinks and alcohol. Good nutrition bars along with a healthy diet go a long way too, I'm told.

Doug

[MX813]

oh the boys from WA will be sucking down water and cytomax to stay healthy.

Giving that each of us will be doing 70 - 90 miles stints during the race, we figure that carrying two 70 oz bladders, one filled w/ice should last each section. Ice filled one will be closest to body to keep overall body temp down.

one month to go...whoop!

mx813

[Grizzly600]

Now theres a race I'd like to do!

[kyle18x]

The race honestly wont be that bad. Once you hit Tonopah its start to col off dramatically and most of the race is run around 5000 feet. Only the first couple of sections will be realy hot but they are run early. I am doing Vegas to Reno as well and to get ready I try and run 4 or miles a day here in Vegas when its hot out. Also along with water and nutrition bars during the race, drink something like pedialyte. It is an electrolyte rplacement drink like gatordade but a lot less sugar than gatorade. Anyway on the 650 you should never get hot as seeing it can do like 125 mph. Anyway good luck and maybe I will see you out there. I will be the KTM 525 number 377.

[MX813]

Good luck Kyle...us from WA have a goal to finish and check it off our "to do before we die" list....next up, Baja???

We have been checking the weather reports along the course and temps are around 85-90 this week. Ideal for some good riding.

For those who have done the race or been in the vicinity of the course, how dusty does it get? I don't mind everything else, but when visibility goes to pits...ugghhh I know, just suck it up and ride!

mx813

[kyle18x]

Its really dusty....I have been racing desert down here in Vegas for a year or two and its all dust and rocks. Hopefully there will be a slight breeze to blow the dust away...you were right too about the weather....it has been super nice down here these past few days....I try and ride everyday after work and lately its been really nice.....From my experience with the BITD races, there is a lot of high speed littered with rocks and its all really really dusty....hope to see you guys down here and hope you got your entry in for the drawing of starting postions so you dont have to start in the back.....

[HawkGT]

On long rides through the desert I'm almost constantly sipping water (seems like it anyway). I don't make my self drink--I drink cause I'm sweating and thristy. Problem is sometimes I feel like I've got to "go" every 20 minutes or so. Am I drinking too much? When I do "go" it's not huge volumes either... ?

Anyone else experience that?

[MX813]

Its really dusty....I have been racing desert down here in Vegas for a year or two and its all dust and rocks. Hopefully there will be a slight breeze to blow the dust away...you were right too about the weather....it has been super nice down here these past few days....I try and ride everyday after work and lately its been really nice.....From my experience with the BITD races, there is a lot of high speed littered with rocks and its all really really dusty....hope to see you guys down here and hope you got your entry in for the drawing of starting postions so you dont have to start in the back.....

Yup, we got our application in awhile ago and just received our rider packet from BITD. Will be looking through it to see what starting position is and hopefully times.

mx813

[kyle18x]

Just got my packet and we are startin 2nd in our class.....by the first pit im gunna have my team in 1st....

[robr54]

What class are you running Kyle?

[vtownrida]

we got our packet in late, but we will be there 06yz450 in open expert, i don't know our #

[nscmj3]

anybody gonna carry a gps with them to route the course? I'd be interested to see where it goes this year!

[vtownrida]

there is a map posted on the bitd website