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• There are foil packs of tuna that would hold up well in your bag - they don't have any water in them, so you can just tear it open and eat it with a fork. I'm training for a half marathon and have used the GU packets. There are a couple flavors w/o caffeine and they taste alright. I also eat whole and natural foods and cook just about everything from scratch, but (at least for me) there comes a time when it makes more sense to just do what's easiest and convenient rather than trying to cook up my own home-made goo, you know? If you want to try cooking something yourself, consider a breakfast cookie sort of thing. Include dried fruit, nuts, and a whole grain like oatmeal. I really like the Alton Brown lentil cookies - they sound weird, but are moist and delicious and actually have some protein. I put coconut, walnuts or pecans, dried cranberries, chocolate chips, and rolled oats in them. http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/lentil-cookies-recipe/index.html Whole Foods also sells a more natural alternative to Gatorade or other "sports drinks" called Recharge. It's in bottles in the juice aisle and isn't bad. The tropical flavor tastes like fruit punch, but it's basically 50% juice and 50% water with some salt thrown in and no added sugar or HFCS. I've used it on my long training runs and it has been great - I haven't felt sick or had any gastrointestinal distress. Emily Steed answered in Food & Drink 7 months ago | Report 1 0 1 comment by RM… The lentil cookies recipe is actually PERFECT. Thank you! My mom used to make her own version of Recharge, just mixing honey and lemon with salt in water. I might just stick with that, as honey has been my best bed for dealing with asthma while riding... although on that note maybe just those plastic honey straws are my best bet. RM commented 7 months ago | Report Enter your comment or ask a new question preview THIS IS A PREVIEW: Click "Post" to submit it or "Edit" to make changes. edit Please wait… This could take a minute if the tubes are clogged.

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  Before - Pasta is a solid choice. Load up on carbs the night before. Pasta sauce or pesto will treat you right. Also, don't forget to hydrate before you ever start to sweat. It's a good idea to drink plenty of water in the days leading up to the ride so that your muscles are already well-watered. Vitamin I (Ibuprophen) is good to have in your system before the exertion if you're grampsy at all. Get a good night's sleep. During - Power bars and gatorade (or that whole foods electrolyte water) will treat you fine. You'll be able to feel yourself running out of fuel along the way so you'll know when to eat. It's pretty simple, keep eating and rehydrating. Baked potatoes, bananas, peanut butter -- all good. Keep the food mild while you're exerting so you don't upset your stomach. Also, I've heard said that pot is a great ally for both mental clarity and minimization of the aches and pains of sitting on the bike, as well as lessening the monotony of the songs that will get stuck in your head for miles and miles on end. Kevin answered in Food & Drink 7 months ago | Report 2 0 2 comments by RM and RM… I think the timing of what to eat when it sort of throwing me off. I'm a light eater- and since this doesn't start until after 9 pm and goes until 5 am- my whole schedule is going to be thrown off. Since I'll probably be out and about beforehand- I'm trying to find myself a good place to eat. My boyfriend works at an Italian restaurant in Fremont though- so that may very well be the perfect choice. RM commented 7 months ago | Report Oh- and the pot thing- my worry is that I generally only smoke when I'm having trouble sleeping- mostly because it just knocks me out. I'm afraid it might have the same affect while riding... hah! Although "beer legs" are one of my favorite things. Your legs can't hurt if you can't feel pain! RM commented 7 months ago | Report Enter your comment or ask a new question preview THIS IS A PREVIEW: Click "Post" to submit it or "Edit" to make changes. edit Please wait… This could take a minute if the tubes are clogged.

• As far as the weird foods go, I'm a big fan of Lara bars. I use them for cycling and hiking and find they work great. You do need water to eat one though. Getting into the more weird foods, some of the goo packs aren't bad, You have to be pretty hungry to eat them, but generally the chocolate, vanilla, plain, citrus and mango flavored ones are decent. The goo packs are best at or around body temperature so keep them in a pocket if that's possible. I've never had a berry flavored one that was anything other than horrible. Clif Shot Blocks I find to be phenomenal - the cola and margarita flavors are probably my favorite, but I haven't found a flavor yet that I didn't like. Bananas and peanut butter sandwiches are great. Bagels with cream cheese are also up there. Tuna fish sandwiches also work well. Salami, cheese and bread is phenomenal as a power food, that's probably my favorite. Any sort of jerky mixed with dried fruit is also very good; my favorite is beef jerky and dried blueberries and you can throw in some nuts to get a better balance. I've not tried them, but the powders for water are supposed to help greatly. A bottle of regular water and a bottle of some sort of athletic powder mix. Mostly though, I'd say be sure to bring a few different things. Performance athletes like road racers or endurance runners spend years figuring out what they can eat and continue eating for 8 hours at a time and not throw up. Being able to "eat well" is a big part of being able to finish something like that. As you don't have years to figure this out, bring a few different high energy foods you already know you like. Lilting Missive answered in Food & Drink 7 months ago | Report 2 0 2 comments by RM and Lilting Missive… Probably should have mentioned that I'm veggie/pescatarian :) I live off of Lara bars half the time, and for some reason hadn't even thought to bring them. Good call! I've never tried any of the gels or shot blocks, but I'm thinking this is probably the best time to do so. Luckily this is a ride, rather than a race- but it's still going to brutally kick my ass. I'm worried about tuna in my bag, but it would be ideal... maybe salmon jerky? RM commented 7 months ago | Report I've not tried salmon jerky and dried fruit, but I know salmon jerky is damn tasty. Mixing it with some dried fruit would, I think, have the same nutritional punch. Maybe cranberries and mango? You can also do what the Native Americans did and grind it into a paste, then you could form bite sized nuggets for easy eating. Lilting Missive commented 7 months ago | Report Enter your comment or ask a new question preview THIS IS A PREVIEW: Click "Post" to submit it or "Edit" to make changes. edit Please wait… This could take a minute if the tubes are clogged.

• Peanut butter sandwiches and bananas. Easy to digest and full of energy. Gummy bears are good for snacking as well. Lukeiscool answered in Food & Drink 7 months ago | Report 2 0 1 comment by RM… I wish I could stomach bananas. In my mind they're perfect- but my gag reflex won't allow me to eat them. Mental block from a traumatizing babysitter experience as a child. Pbj and gummy bears for sure though. RM commented 7 months ago | Report Enter your comment or ask a new question preview THIS IS A PREVIEW: Click "Post" to submit it or "Edit" to make changes. edit Please wait… This could take a minute if the tubes are clogged.

• baked potatoes are super-yummy, not too hard to digest, and will help fill you up. gu and bars are good for getting the energy fast, but on a ride that's that long, you need something to make you feel full! make yourself some potatoes, cut them up into cubes, and pack them in foil for your ride! a little bit of seasoning, and it will fell a lot less like you had to skip a meal. Brian Schroeder answered in Food & Drink 7 months ago | Report 1 0 1 comment by RM… I just found a site for "natural energy bars" and two things they suggest are salted and baked potato wedges, and a combination of mashed up banana/peanut butter/honey mushed up together and spread between two whole wheat tortillas. Knowing me I'll probably have ten pounds of food on my back for this thing... but at least I'll have a lot of friends :) RM commented 7 months ago | Report Enter your comment or ask a new question preview THIS IS A PREVIEW: Click "Post" to submit it or "Edit" to make changes. edit Please wait… This could take a minute if the tubes are clogged.