Don Reichelt
Desert Solstice 24 Hour
Phoenix1stDon's headline numbers
Don's strategy
Fueling
T - 1-4hrs: Ate a carb rich meal (Low in fat & fibre)
T - 15mins: Took in a final dose of carb
"I really think I nailed this one nutritionally. I had no stomach problems or flavour fatigue and honestly I can’t wait for the next one."
Don has a relatively dialled nutrition strategy for 100 mile races, opting to keep things simple and relying on sports nutrition for the majority of the race. Like clockwork, he picked up a PF 30 Gel at half-past each hour for the whole race, never missing a single one. Thankfully he never struggles with ‘flavour fatigue’, having simulated this strategy in training for several months prior to each of his races. However, like most ultra-endurance athletes, he still enjoys ‘something different’ to offer a bit more satisfaction to his palette; this time opting for a few PF 30 Chews and two peanut butter chocolate bars for some ‘real food’.
Hydration
Taking on board an appropriate amount of fluid and sodium is essential to maintaining blood volume and supporting the cardiovascular effort needed to perform on race day.
Whilst the absolute amount of sodium and fluid consumed per hour is important, it’s critical to consider these in relation to each other. This is known as 'relative sodium concentration' and it’s expressed in milligrams per litre (mg/L). How much sodium you’re taking in per litre of fluid is more important than the absolute amount taken in per hour.
T - 60mins: Drank ~500ml of strong electrolyte drink
"I felt like I wanted more salt at times, but running round a track means unlimited crew access so this wasn’t an issue."
As with his fueling plan, Don’s hydration strategy was metronomic. His crew mixed three scoops of PF Carb & Electrolyte Drink Mix into a 500ml bottle, before splitting this into two 250ml soft flasks which he picked up every 30 minutes. This supplied the foundation of his hydration plan, with modest temperatures likely meaning his sweat rate was fairly low. Don is very aware of his body’s response to weather conditions, and on several occasions felt like he was falling behind on his electrolyte intake. When he perceived this, he asked his crew to mix up a bottle of PH 1500 electrolytes, which he did six times throughout the 24 hours. This on-the-fly adjustment was essential to maintaining his hydration status appropriately, especially considering a ~125ml deficit in fluid replenishment per hour would leave him >4% dehydrated by the end of the race.
Caffeine
Beyond the Three Levers of Performance (carb, sodium and fluid), caffeine is one of only a few substances that is proven to improve performance for most endurance athletes as it can help stave off mental and physical fatigue.
Consuming caffeine in the hours before the start may have increased perceived energy levels
Don delayed his caffeine intake until later on in this race like he’s done previously, in an attempt to really feel the ergogenic benefits when things started to feel tough during the night and his natural circadian rhythm made him increasingly drowsy. He prefers to keep his caffeine intake completely separate from the rest of his nutrition plan, opting to use low-dose caffeine mints as and when he feels the need. This stems from his previous experience of headaches and jitteriness from taking higher doses of caffeine in one hit from a gel.
How Don hit his numbers
Here's everything that Don ate and drank on the day...
Final thoughts
“It wasn’t a perfect day, but this was my third 24 hour race in 13 months and I’ve gone: 127, 144.5 and now 154.3 miles, so things are definitely improving! This one takes me close to securing my place on the US team heading to the 2025 24-hour World Championships.”
“Under and over-fueling are a leading cause of athlete DNFs in ultra endurance racing. Thankfully, Don has got a dialled in strategy and he stuck to his well-thought-out plan superbly, pulling all three levers appropriately and was rewarded with a solid run performance.”
PF&HDon's full stats
Data Confidence
We rate each of our case studies from 1-5 based on the level of accuracy, and our confidence in the data.
There is an adequate level of accuracy in the data collected and the numbers reported. The athlete manages to recall what they ate and drank including most specifics (brands flavours quantities plausible estimations of volumes). However there are estimations made within the data which affect the overall confidence level in the data reported.