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Hydration in the Dairyland

Start of the Dairyland Criterium, text "Hydration in the Dairyland"

Kristen Arnold, RDN, LD, MS domestic-elite racer for Velo Classic p/b Stan’s NoTubes, and registered dietitian, gave us the inside scoop on the hydration strategies of some of the best crit racers in the world from the 2016 Tour of America’s Dairyland, one of the midwest’s premiere road racing events.

 
Late June in Wisconsin, features the Tour of Americas Dairyland Criterium Race with race temperatures in the High 90’s, high humidity, hot pavement, and a real feel of close to 110 degrees at the start line. In a race with conditions as brutal as these and racers going all out for the majority of the race, hydration is a major key to success at the TOAD.  Racers from around the world come to compete in this legendary ten-day racing event.
 
Tour of America’s Dairyland (TOAD) is a legendary 10 day criterium race series surrounding Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Racers travel from all over the world to compete against the best criterium racers in an effort to take home the pink cow-print leader’s jersey. Criterium races, or "crits" for short, challenge racers to a timed race on a short course. Racers perform dozens of laps at blistering pace on the frequently technical and tight courses.
 
While crits vary slightly in length, all TOAD races were 60 minutes of racing on a range of courses. Each day the event travels to a different city or town, implementing a different set of city streets, including four to eight corners per lap. Courses ranged in difficulty level and could be flat or hilly, roads could be narrow or wide, bumpy or wet, and turns ranged from hair-raising, tight u-turns to wide-open and sweeping.
cyclists racing on road

Photo Credits: Matt Ankeny

A typical Daily Schedule for most racers at TOAD:

  • Wake up
  • ride with teammates for 45 minutes at an easy pace
  • relax with legs up
  • travel to race
  • warmup
  • race (around 5pm start time)
  • cooldown
  • Bedtime

Performing optimally takes discipline. In order to remain sharp and powerful each day, every racer is required to attend to their body’s needs.

I spoke with racers about their hydration strategies during the event; they explained not only what they drank, but also how they kept their bodies cool. Most days at TOAD ranged from 90-95˚F with hot pavement and humidity adding to the heat. Many racers put ice cubes in panty-hose or a sock, placing the make-shift ice pack between their jersey and back to keep them cool before and during the race.

PRO TIP: on a hot day put ice cubes inside of a panty-hose or sock and stuff it down your jersey or skinsuit before the race. If it slides too far down, use an extra safety pin to attach the sock where you want it.

cyclist_making_turn_on_a_road_course

Photo Credits: Daniel Steinle   www.yungpinephotography.com   @yung_pine

During the morning and afternoon before the evening race, racers sip on all kinds of beverages; water, non-calorie or low-calorie drink mix, lemonade, coffee, and tea. My favorite was lemonade with a teaspoon of salt. This drink tastes like a margarita and encourages me to drink liquids throughout the day. It also helps my body retain water in preparation for losing it during the race from sweat. This became a staple in my daily hydration plan leading up to the evening race. Drink mix blends with high-quality electrolyte ingredients are also a great way to prepare your body for an evening event or training session.


Going into an event hydrated is as important as staying hydrated during the event.

 

man_carrying_bike_for_athlete

Some racers use pre-load mixes; powders which have a high concentration of salt and other electrolytes. Laura Van Gilder, the winningest woman in the world with over 300 career wins, drank 24oz of water mixed with drink mix containing electrolytes and 87g of carbohydrates in the car on the way to the race and another bottle of the same formula during her warmup. Jennifer Sharp from Stages Cycling and ALP Cycles Coaching reported drinking 24oz of water containing a pre-load drink mix high in sodium and other electrolytes 30 minutes before the race.


Many racers will start the race with two bottles; one bottle to squirt through the holes of their helmets and down their fronts and backs, and one bottle to drink during the race. The national anthem felt like an eternity while our bodies baked on the pavement waiting for the start of the race.

tour_of_america_s_dairylands_start_line

Photo Credits: Matt Ankeny

I observed that most racers drank 50% or less of the fluid in their bottle during the race. The speed and technicality of crits make it particularly difficult to drink and eat during the race. Two hands are needed on the handlebars 95% of the time. Harriet Owen, UK crit specialist, and guest rider for Velo Classic p/b Stan’s NoTubes, who finished top five at four of the ten days at TOAD, was able to drink an entire bottle during most races. Owen’s bottle was filled with a 2:1 maltodextrin to fructose ratio and electrolytes formula.


Consuming fluids and carbohydrates throughout the race allowed her to retain a powerful sprint at the end of each day. Hypohydration (when the body is not adequately hydrated) detrimentally affects high-intensity muscular endurance1 (sprinting at the end of a crit) by up to 10%2. 5 out of the 10 days at TOAD resulted in a field sprint in which the entire pack of racers are all together during the final lap and everyone sprints for the finish line simultaneously. At this point, the odds are lower for winning than if a racer is in a breakaway of just a few riders, and every racer must be at the top of her cognitive and physical ability to place in the top 5.  Remaining properly hydrated before and during the event aided Harriet in her powerful sprints.

PRO TIP: Drink chocolate milk (provided for free) mixed with recovery drink powder while sitting in front of a fan and stuffing more ice down your jersey or skinsuit after the race. You will feel $1,000,000 better.

As is customary in the land of dairy, chocolate milk was served by event sponsor, the Wisconsin Dairy Council, at the end of every race to the racers. All the racers I interviewed said they took advantage of the free chocolate milk. My teammate, Cynthia Frazier, of Lexington, Virginia, filled a bottle with 2 cartons of chocolate milk and added a scoop of recovery drink mix to it after every race.

SOURCES

  1. Torranin C, Smith DP, Byrd RJ. The effect of acute thermal dehydration and rapid rehydration on isometric and isotonic endurance. J Sports Med Phys Fitness 1979; 19: 1-9.

  2. Judelson, DA, Maresh, CM, Anderson, JM, Armstrong, LE, Casa, DJ, Kraemer, WJ, Volek, JS. (2007) Hydration and Muscular Performance. Sports Medicine, 37(10), 907-921.

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Tour cycling group led by Frankie Andreu, text "Into The Mountains"

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Frankie Andreu with headset on, text "The First Week on the Tour"

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Up and at ‘em

Starting the Tour correctly is as important as finishing it correctly.


The first week of the Tour de France is always marred by crashes.  Many times it’s the first few days that end the dreams of many Tour riders. In years past the race started along the coast for the first couple days. The flat, fast roads are nerve-racking as the riders have to worry about many things.


To start with, the first stage is a road stage and the yellow jersey will be up for grabs. This means all 180 starters will think they have a chance for glory and they will fight for it tooth and nail.


Besides dealing with each other there is the insanity of the speeds, the fans, narrow roads, and they often have to deal with the coastal winds that could change the outcome of the race in a blink of an eye.

Frankie Andreu leading a peloton


By not having a prologue, to sort the general pecking order, the first day is as important as ever.


No one knows which team will control things, who will chase the breakaway, and who will start the lead out. It’s a huge list of unknowns including who will be able to get on the podium in Yellow and also for the KOM.  The final kilometer will be a straight flat run in and every sprinter will be counting on their team and their own legs to get them to the finish line first. It will be chaos and probably be one of the best stages to watch during the first week.
 

Twenty some odd years ago, in 1996, my Tour almost ended before it started.


The Tour started in Holland with a prologue, and stage 1 was a twisty convoluted circuit that went all over the Dutch countryside. Stage 1 started quickly and the amount of fans lining the road was incredible. There were plenty of crashes but not because the riders were taking each other out.


Veteran Cyclist Frankie Andreu when on the Motorola Team


The road furniture in Holland is everywhere and the narrow roads combined with constant roundabouts and dodging curbs took its toll on the peloton.


My crash took place about 50km from the finish as the peloton was strung out in one long line. We were right up on the edge of the curb, going 50km/hr and my radio chirped some information to me. I looked down to press the button to speak back and in the amount of time it took me to look down and back up I had piled into the wheel in front of me.


I slid across the road tearing open my skin, shredding my clothing, and somehow ripped a large hole in my ankle. My ankle was the big problem but I was bandaged up, put back on the bike, and sent off to make it to the finish. When a team starts with 9 riders they expect to have 9 riders on day 2. I didn’t want to climb off either but day 2 through 7 were hell as my body tried to race and recover from the injuries at the same time.

Frankie at the Tour


When you see the white gauze bandages on riders you should know they are struggling more than usual.
 

No one want’s to hit the ground at any point during a race but it’s especially important to start the Tour on a good note. This year's race will surely see plenty of bandages, and early on we will see a few lead changes to go along with the crashes.

Not every rider will wear yellow but every rider will have a cringeworthy moment during the first week of the Tour. Neck muscles will be tense, hands will be sore, headaches at night, and deep fatigue sets in because of the stress of trying to not crash.
 

Physically the first few days are hard but mentally it takes everything a rider has to make it to the next day.

 Frankie at the Tour


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Frankie Andreu Cycling at the front of a race, text "What it Takes to Tour"
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