Tarawera Ultra 102

Dan exceeded his pre-race, 90 gram per hour carbohydrate target by following a pre-planned strategy that utilised a variety of products. Dan used easily accessible PF Carb & Electrolyte Drink Mix in 500ml soft flasks, as well as PF 30 Gels which gave a more concentrated energy boost. He felt extremely comfortable for the majority of the race having trained with these types of products extensively. The only slight misstep came when he got a stitch after drinking some cola he picked up at a late aid station. The gut adapts to be able to specifically tolerate what it’s frequently exposed to. So, going forwards Dan could incorporate some cola (otherwise known as the “red ambulance” in endurance sports circles) into his training if he wants to continue using it in races without the discomfort. Happily, Dan made the right decision to allow his gut some time to process this by not eating or drinking for a bit, which meant he could maintain his 4:31min/km (7:16min/mile) average pace, before the stitch eventually subsided with about 6km (4 miles) to go.

Dan appropriately assessed the environmental conditions ahead of this race, which meant his race strategy supplied him with enough fluid to replace his sweat losses, while not carrying unnecessary weight. Proof of this was in his pre- and post-weights which showed just a couple of kilograms loss; which was unlikely to be enough to impair his performance through dehydration. Dan also replaced his sodium losses with PF Carb & Electrolyte Drink Mix, effectively diluted with some plain water and coke to achieve a relative sodium concentration of ~865m of sodium per litre of fluid for the race. This is slightly higher than his Sweat Test result, but didn’t negatively impact his performance. He can confidently adopt this same strategy in slightly warmer races when his sweat rate will increase and he’ll want to drink more plain water.

Dan used caffeine to his advantage during his imposing performance, by kicking the day off with a coffee at breakfast, before topping up with four PF 30 Caffeine Gels and some coke during the race. This meant he nailed the top end of scientific recommendations for someone with his body weight, to gain all of the performance benefits associated with the ergogenic substance.