CTR 2015 Planning

[Rorr]

What food do you guys pack for 3 or 4 days, just curious. Thanks

[joeydurango]

Jerky, cheese, mini bagels, tuna, peanut butter, nuts, dried fruit, energy bars, pop-tarts... aside from the pop-tarts and tuna, things I eat all the time anyway.

[Woodland]

Granola w/powdered whole milk & nut butters, tortillas w/ pepperoni & shelf stable cheese, honey stinger waffles, gummi bears, snickers, kind bars, larabars...

[Woodland]

Cliff shot blocks, honey stinger gels, hostess apple pies, Skratch hydration mix in individual servings, Sunkist Fruit snacks, sunflower seeds, dried fruit, and whatever the hell you can shove in your mouth at a gas station/restaurant along the way

 

[THE LONG RANGER]

Gotta start making my peanut butter power cookies!

[Woodland]

I think the real key though is making sure you are getting as many calories as you can per ounce. I've gotten my daily food regimen down to about 140 calories/ounce which is pretty good, and means I carry a little over 2 lbs of food per day (4800 kcal) This is enough for me...with the expectation that I supplement that with a big greasy meal somewhere in the mix.

You also don't want food that is hard to eat - one of my favorites is the granola, with powdered milk and nut butters, but it's a substantial meal to get down the hatch. So I usually plan on it being one of my camp meals (preferably at night, when you need to restock your fat reserves) During the day, on the move, I eat my bars and gels and candy.

I break up my day into 6 'meals'...and spread them out throughout the day.

I was never good at just buying what I needed at gas stations...so the above is assuming you are pre-packing food at the start, or shipping food along the way.

[Rorr]

I found this precooked bacon that didn't need refrigeration at the City Market in BV on last years CTR travels well roll it up in a tortilla with mayo (little packs from a CS) and your good to go!

[krefs]

I've been experimenting with different diets during ultras recently. For the past two editions of the Arizona Trail 300, I carried all my food from the start, tried to reduce the number of calories I took in from sugary, high-glycemic foods, and I tried to increase the diversity of my diet.

What did this look like? I planned for 320 calories per hour, so for an anticipated 48-hour ride, I carried 15,600 calories. Roughly 3,400 calories came from nuts, 1,800 from meat products, 1,200 from coconut products, 600 from potato chips, 1,700 from fruit/nut bars, 3,300 from cookies/candy, 1,300 from CarboRocket recovery drink, and 1,600 from sucrose/dextrose-based drink powder.

My stomach felt great the entire time both years, my energy levels seemed more consistent, I had food that sounded good all the time, and the inside of my mouth didn't get nearly as sore as when I ate more candy bars and sugary, sticky snacks.

[Matt Schiff]

Kurt, I would agree with your blood sugar stabilization program. Dried fruit instead of gummy bears, fruit and nut bar instead of nutrigrain. I almost felt like a woke up with a hangover after scarfing down a few nutrigrain knockoffs and fruitsnacks before going to bed.

But wait, this is the CTR forum? I've been curious who is participating this year and perhaps I'll start the rumor mill, but I heard yourself, Jay P, Jefe, and Jessie may all be in on the mens side of things as well as other yet to be discovered star superiders, sleep deprivations enthusiasts, and those seeking a break from reality (or their family and spouses). Confirm or deny!   

[krefs]

Yeah, Matt, those rumors are true, at least regarding my participation. Unless plans change, I'll be there! I'm excited since I haven't done the CTR yet...just a fast-tour of the route a few years ago. Are you going to be there again, Matt?

As far as the sweet side of things goes, I've also been trying to minimize the amount of dried fruit I consume, too. The concentration of sugar in a lot of dried fruit (especially sweetened dried fruit, which is quite common) is incredibly high. But I'd sure rather have that than gummy bears...

[joeydurango]

Yes, who's in?  Curious what the field will look like this year.

I'm out.  Yet another crazy summer at the bike shop.  Also nursing a knee issue brought on by trying to go fast in the AZT this year with, oh, approximately 20 hours of training beforehand.  Worked fine for the AZT, but two weeks later I had trouble walking after a 115-mile gravel grinder.  Since then I've been almost completely off the bike, no rides longer than three hours.  At this point I'm not even going to start the DDC or other 100-milers.  2016 looms large in the imagination...

I will of course be there at the VC start to see you all off!  And maybe I'll show up at Kennebec or something to cheer everyone on.

[SlowRide]

I'm in.

[Bob Loblaw]

I'm in, although I will most likely be starting an ITT from Durango the day before the group start.

[Biggs23]

Yup,Going to try this again

[THE LONG RANGER]

Still trying to make it work, most likely going to ITT it a bit before the mass start. I gotta be home the before the 1st of August - getting some clarification on that with my living situation, but it doesn't seem I can weasel out of it. Sigh.

@joeydurango - can I send a packed bike out to your shop, or how would you suggest mailing a bike out to Durango? Gotta stand in the back I can utilize to put it all together?

Pizza place recommendations?

[joeydurango]

PM sent, Justin!

Oh, and for pizza places - Fired Up is awesome thin-crust, wood-oven-fired deliciousness.  For chunkier, greasier 'Merican pizza, Homeslice will hit the spot...

[Matt Schiff]

Kurt, I've considered riding again this year, and not to put a damper on everyone else's enthusiasm, but I'm afraid around day 3 I'll be asking myself, "what's the point?". I don't want to start half motivated.

[Rorr]

It's a beautiful ride and hike and a
Great adventure, for me anyway,that's the point. Oh yeah, I'm in!

[mtbordie]

I'm giving it a try again this year and hoping to start on sat for my itt. Still sorting things out though. Has anyone flown down with a bike.

[Roland Sturm]

Looks like a big crowd in Durango, so I'll ride against the traffic again rather than adding to the congestion in Durango.  See most of you on the way!

 I plan to add some 14ers to my route, though, which will add a few days.  

My last attempt on the Colorado Trail in 2012 was not successful because I punctured my lung with a late night tumble. Was a rough night and to add insult to injury, a mouse crawled into my sleeping bag and bit me. The next day was a very, very slow crawl back to civilization (climbing speed was down to 300 feet an hour and that with a 180 pulse), but at least most was downhill. Eventually I spent more time tethered to a wall in the Mercy Medical Center than on the trail.