Worst thing you could eat while cycling........

[TrekTheKaty]

OK, we'll carry this off of "50 miles?"

What is the grossest(?) thing you've ordered or watched another cyclist eat during a ride?

I ordered a bacon/cheese omelette and had to ride 15 miles back to the car! :o

I believe a corned-beef sandwich is what sparked this discussion!

[Biciclista]

a guy i know was doing a 200k (120+ miles) he sat down to a hamburger and a beer 1/2 way through the ride. He isn't doing big rides any more.

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

egg salad sandwich. Just ask my husband, he ate the thing. :(

[TsPoet]

Cycle Oregon specializes in spam at their rest stops. I once had spam and twizzlers on a cracker.
It was actually quite good. Only time I've ever had spam (can't say the same about twizzlers).

[rubywagon]

One of my club buddies ate an Italian sub when we were doing a century, in 90 degree heat. He had to pull off of the road multiple times on the way back. Spicy food and a century do not mix!

[bambu101]

I saw my partner eat a steaming 12" meatball grinder, complete with oozing tomato suace and melted cheese, on a 95 degree day. We were on a flat bike trail for a 22 mile ride. He usually has digestive issues or a sensitive stomach, but this time was fine!

[GLC1968]

Peaunt M&M's at my first century. :eek: I learned the hard way that chocolate does not mix with physical exertion for me AT ALL. EVER.

I did an organized ride once where for the 'lunch' rest stop, they served chili topped baked potatoes with cheese sauce. I didn't have one, but seeing others eating it definitely made me gag once or twice. Ick.

[Norse]

At an event ride for lunch they included a container of veggies with a mayo-based sauce. It tasted good going down. I passed on that salad the next two years.

Eggs. As much as I love them, I learned never to eat them before or during a ride.

[OakLeaf]

What's wrong with an egg salad sandwich?! :p I can't always get tuna!

[kenyonchris]

I think anything with mayo is out. Ever. Blech.

My ex husband ate a full Thanksgiving dinner then went on a MTB ride with me (not a ride on a mountain bike, a mountain bike ride, off road, on a technical, hard, climbing trail). At some point, he told me to go ahead. When he caught up with me, he said he felt a lot better, having enjoyed (his words) his meal again.

Sport blocks of any sort kill me.

[nscrbug]

My cycling buddy frequently has a custard-filled donut when we stop at a certain gas station that also has a Dunkin Donuts. He will usually down it with a bottle of GRAPE soda...yuck!!! That combo just makes me wanna hurl.

[staceysue]

I'm pretty sure a chili dog with onions, onion rings, and a sugary drink would be the worst thing you could possibly eat. That, or a peanut buster parfait. Those did me in when I was playing softball as a kid.

[JennK13]

Out riding with m DH earlier this year and we stopped for lunch at a cafe. He ordered this chili burger with a hot dog IN it!! complete with onion rings. He wasn't feeling so well on the ride home......can I say "I told you so!!!"

[chickabonita]

Baked Ziti. I don't know why I did it, but it was horrible. It was like 90 degrees out and a few miles into the trial (a rough off road mtb trail) my hubby was, um, holding my hair back so to speak. Then I felt better and continued the ride, I was glad it was not a heavily traveled trail. :eek:

[sfa]

I'm pretty sure a chili dog with onions, onion rings, and a sugary drink would be the worst thing you could possibly eat.

I'm pretty sure that's true on or off a bike. Yuck.

My only bad experience with food and biking was when I was about 11, gorged on jelly beans during the Easter break, rode my bike about five miles, then came home and threw it all up. I still love jelly beans, but I avoid them before cycling and I stay far away from Sports Beans.

Bananas also make me gag under any circumstances. I hate it that they're the standard food to offer at cycling events.

[OakLeaf]

Yeah, I like bananas (although I don't normally eat them, for environmental reasons), but I can't have anything with much fructose in it when I ride or run. Doesn't matter if it's whole fruit or HFCS.

I've gotten roped onto the committee that's planning our club's annual tour this year. It's given me some insight, I tell you what - when you realize that organized rides are mostly put together by people who don't ride, everything makes so much more sense...

[zoom-zoom]

I have a pretty iron gut...I haven't done any rides long enough to have to eat more than a piece of string cheese, crackers, and some sport beans. I will be interested to see what my first century ride does to me. I do know that my gut is not nearly as tolerate to most solids prior or during a run. First time I tried to eat a Clif bar mid-run I could barely choke down half of it and felt sick for about the next 5 miles.

[Bike Chick]

There is an an annual bike race held in our area called the Tour de Donut. Eating donuts isn't mandatory but you get 5 minutes off your time for every donut you eat at each of the two mandatory stops. It is always held during the week of the Tour de France and it is usually hot and humid. Needless to say, I have seen many donuts going down and coming back up!

Trek, I bet you've heard of this race.

[kacie tri-ing]

Zoom-Zoom, aren't you doing that doughnut race ^^^^ (I read your blog :rolleyes: )

[TsPoet]

There is an an annual bike race held in our area called the Tour de Donut. Eating donuts isn't mandatory but you get 5 minutes off your time for every donut you eat at each of the two mandatory stops. It is always held during the week of the Tour de France and it is usually hot and humid. Needless to say, I have seen many donuts going down and coming back up!

Trek, I bet you've heard of this race.

OMG!
As a (type 1) diabetic, i think that is abysmal. I'd still go watch, though ;)

[shootingstar]

Bananas also make me gag under any circumstances. I hate it that they're the standard food to offer at cycling events.

During a ride, I find bananas drying in the mouth. So it's always puzzled me why they are offered on organized, hot bike rides, though I realize about the healthy carbs.


They don't offer juiciness..so I have to drink water or juice with even part of a banana. I much rather take a tangerine or some other fruit that has juice.

Someone in TE did go on the Tour de Donut..which I don't understand the concept...except maybe as an experience to recount from slight grossiness.

I can eat abit of spicy food on a hot ride, but not much and with water, is a must.
I will eat things on a long ride if I'm desperate..but really want to avoid very oily or fatty foods.

[zoom-zoom]

Zoom-Zoom, aren't you doing that doughnut race ^^^^ (I read your blog :rolleyes: )

Not the same one she mentioned, but we have a race with a similar object (and name) here...I believe there are 3 stops and each doughnut subtracts 3 minutes from the finish time. I think I could do fairly well at this if I don't go balls-out (heh) on the bike and take advantage of the doughnut bonus. :D Luckily our race is late Sept., so it should be much comfier temps.

[zoom-zoom]

I should add that I am another one who doesn't really care for bananas. They give me horrible banana burps. I LOVE banana cream pie, pudding, and banana bread, though.

[TrekTheKaty]

There is an an annual bike race held in our area called the Tour de Donut. Eating donuts isn't mandatory but you get 5 minutes off your time for every donut you eat at each of the two mandatory stops. It is always held during the week of the Tour de France and it is usually hot and humid. Needless to say, I have seen many donuts going down and coming back up!

Trek, I bet you've heard of this race.

Yep, we discussed this last year! I haven't done it, and thank god I'm celiac (no gluten). However, DH has a plan--ride like h@!! then stop at the last stop and eat a dozen. They actually have presses, so you can eat multiple at once. However, if I participated I would require a doughnut per rest stop :-)

I picture this as a "sucker" ride--bring a friend who doesn't know to better, then stand back and watch the festivities.

As a kid, I hurled in the corner. When Mom asked if I ate a whole bag of starbursts, I tried to deny it, but "the proof is in the pudding" so to speak :eek:

[kenyonchris]

Bananas make my lips itch.

[Kiwi Stoker]

DH loves meat pies on long rides.

Just thinking about soggy pastry and minced meat makes me feel ill.

We did a 150km cycle challenge and he stopped for his pie (we were on the tandem). He cames out of the shop with TWO! He ate one and stashed the other in his bento box. 10km along the road he decides to eat the other while riding just as the camera crew on a motorcycle and the host (riding a bike- he's a great cyclist and was drafting the motorcycle to get up to people) arrived from behind and started to interview us while riding. Let's say HE was very surprised about DH's eating habits. I dreaded that this interview would make the TV show and DVD they produced about the race, but thankfully we didn't.

DH was very unhappy at a race he does solo 160km in which his half way pie shop was shut down- it was all part of his race plan. He especially liked riding up a steep hill while eating the meat pie and making the other people slogging it stare. Strange sense of humour DH!

[zoom-zoom]

Yep, we discussed this last year! I haven't done it, and thank god I'm celiac (no gluten). However, DH has a plan--ride like h@!! then stop at the last stop and eat a dozen. They actually have presses, so you can eat multiple at once. However, if I participated I would require a doughnut per rest stop :-)

Ooh, I think a combo of your plans sounds good. Perhaps I will do 1 donut ea. at the first 2 stops, then mow down as many as I can tolerate at #3. :p

[Owlie]

BF says that his favorite cycling food is Jack in the Box's French toast sticks (I think it's Jack in the Box), complete with syrup and a coke. Ick! Too much sugar!

[ivorygorgon]

I saw a lady at a recent ride pull a hardboiled egg out of her pocket and it. It looked pretty darn gross to me. But then again, I think a banana with some peanut butter on it was one of the things that made me feel the best.

[tzvia]

Being severely lactose intolerant, I would have to say frozen yogurt. I don't care how hot it is outside or how inviting the yogurt place is, that stuff is a disaster in a cup. If I know I am going to finish my ride near a strip mall with a yogurt place, I pack some lactose pills. But I will never ever eat that stuff on a stop during a ride. Ever.

I have heard of some people taking hard boiled eggs with a dash of salt on a ride; doesn't sound like a bad thing to eat, if you like egg whites (which I don't- stuff is like rubber, but I love egg yellow.) Citrus fruits are out- give me heartburn big time.

Once I had a big tuna salad at the half way point, oh that was a mistake. I belched tuna all the way back to the car. Lunch is one thing that I can't stand reliving as I ride.

Bananas, which I don't like, I will eat on a ride at the drop of a hat. They never cause me grief, other than the taste, which I tolerate. They digest easy and don't come back to haunt me, and force me to drink water, which is a good thing. But I will not eat them at any other time. I also like rice-cakes with peanut-butter. They don't get squished up like a bread sandwich can.

[rubywagon]

LOL! Between the yogurt and the meat pies, you guys are cracking me up!

[shootingstar]

I saw a lady at a recent ride pull a hardboiled egg out of her pocket and it.

:rolleyes: Must have been a wierd sight. The only time I will have a hardboiled egg would be if I stopped, went to a restaurant and knew the hard boiled egg was stored in a cool place at a restaurant/cafe.

For instance eating french fries during a long ride..is just ugh, not enjoyable to me. But then, I seldom order French fries off-bike at meals.

Anything that tastes "plasticky", like gummy bears, would not do much for me. It would sit like sludge in stomach.

A chocolate bar has saved me for energy out in a rural area but I don't stock /buy in advance for rides at all. Of course, I love chocolate off-bike, especially the quality dark stuff.

But I really, I prefer to be flexible palate-wise when cycling self-supported on long rides that take up nearly the whole day. I see it as necessary when travelling internationally, ..even off-bike.

[TrekTheKaty]

I can usually eat anything, but recently I gave up red meat. In a pinch, we were running late, and we swung through McDonalds on our way out to a long ride. I ordered a cheeseburger, small fries and soda--no problem AFTER a ride, in the past. However, my stomach spent most of the ride trying to figure out what to do with that cheeseburger :confused:

[limewave]

Ugh, hard-boiled eggs. I'm shuddering. I don't know what it is about 'em, but I can't stomach them.

Other than that, I have an iron stomach. I can eat just about anything and not have problems.

[PamNY]

I saw a lady at a recent ride pull a hardboiled egg out of her pocket and it. It looked pretty darn gross to me. But then again, I think a banana with some peanut butter on it was one of the things that made me feel the best.

I take hard boiled eggs on rides all the time. Why is that gross? I need some protein and I try really hard to avoid processed food like energy bars.

[TsPoet]

I take hard boiled eggs on rides all the time. Why is that gross? I need some protein and I try really hard to avoid processed food like energy bars.

I thought the same thing. It's an old backpacker's deal - many backpackers take hard boiled eggs and have for as long as I've been baackpacking (30 years).

[TrekTheKaty]

:o I take 'em. Grosses hubby out :o

Wrap them in foldable ice packs in my handlebar bag :D

[BikeDutchess]

I'm so relieved to finally find out I'm not the only person in this world who can't stand bananas! :D

[Norse]

I like when bananas are offered on event rides. I have no trouble digesting them - although I just eat 1/2 of one once or twice during the ride - and they stave off leg cramps. My favorite is when they offer peanut butter and banana sandwich wedges. :D

[Owlie]

I have an iron stomach--it's less about what than about how much. I doubt I could eat a whole cheeseburger during a ride. Half? Heck yes.

[kenyonchris]

I take hard boiled eggs on rides all the time. Why is that gross? I need some protein and I try really hard to avoid processed food like energy bars.

They look like eyeballs to me. I like scrambled, but that is not very convenient on a bike ride. Give me processed.

[TsPoet]

:o I take 'em. Grosses hubby out :o

Wrap them in foldable ice packs in my handlebar bag :D

Ice packs are unnecessary. I've taken them on backpacking trips and had them the next day, after hiking in 90+ degree heat.
(of course if you get GI issues from following my advice, I am not liable, I am not a doctor, nor do I play one on TV)

[kenyonchris]

Ice packs are unnecessary. I've taken them on backpacking trips and had them the next day, after hiking in 90+ degree heat.
(of course if you get GI issues from following my advice, I am not liable, I am not a doctor, nor do I play one on TV)

Make that warm eyeballs.;)

[ny biker]

Bananas make my lips itch.

Ever have any problems with latex? My sister has a bad latex allergy and she's been told to avoid bananas and avocado, since all three share the same allergy-triggering chemical.

[TrekTheKaty]

((snicker)) warm eyeballs ((snicker))

Maybe I'll try hard-boiled egg & banana sandwiches next--that's vegetarian!

[Bike Chick]

Ooh, I think a combo of your plans sounds good. Perhaps I will do 1 donut ea. at the first 2 stops, then mow down as many as I can tolerate at #3. :p

Zoom, that's what I did. I cruised through the first stop....you have to stop and get your number marked even if you don't eat a donut.....then at the second stop, I grabbed two doughnuts in each hand and smashed them together so I could eat them faster. DH won't even think of eating one but I think you need to because that's just part of the fun:D

[kenyonchris]

Ever have any problems with latex? My sister has a bad latex allergy and she's been told to avoid bananas and avocado, since all three share the same allergy-triggering chemical.

No...no latex problems, and I wear latex gloves when searching criminals and such. I don't like avacados. I can have stuff with banana in it, not the same reaction...but a pure banana does it.

[kenyonchris]

Zoom, that's what I did. I cruised through the first stop....you have to stop and get your number marked even if you don't eat a donut.....then at the second stop, I grabbed two doughnuts in each hand and smashed them together so I could eat them faster. DH won't even think of eating one but I think you need to because that's just part of the fun:D

I turn up my nose at hard boiled eggs, but I have never met a doughnut I didn't like.
Someone once said I had the worst diet of any skinny person. I do.

[TrekTheKaty]

Maybe I should start a knock off race where you get time knocked off for eating hard boiled eggs--I think I could win after seeing this "poll" ;)

[ivorygorgon]

I take hard boiled eggs on rides all the time. Why is that gross? I need some protein and I try really hard to avoid processed food like energy bars.

They are slimy, rubbery, and dry all a the same time. They smell really bad and taste and feel really bad in my mouth. Eating an egg that is warmed to at least 98.6 or probably more? Gross, Gross, Gross. I am just about gagging typing this, let alone eating one on a ride.

I am a pretty much a newbie and I am working my way though various substances trying to figure out what sits well with me on a ride. I haven't found much so far, but I really need to learn how to fuel my body for the longer rides.

[Skierchickie]

I've never tried eggs while riding. Hard-boiled is one of the few ways I actually like them. Scrambled is okay, with enough cheese (cheddar or something with a bite), and only if cooked HARD. Absolutely hated them as a kid - Dad likes them soft, so Mom makes them with cream cheese, and mooshes them so they're really soft & gross. I like the firmness of hard-boiled, and with salt & pepper & butter - yum. Not sure about the heat, though.

On a ride, I pretty much stick to Power Bars, Gu, & Heed. Plus blocks or gummi bears on a long ride. I did a 100 mile organized tour last year - cookies & yummy stuff at all the stops, but I knew better than to eat more than 1 or two for the whole ride (and regretted those), and stuck with my bars. That stuff just makes me feel wrong while exercising - indigestion which later triggers my exercise-induced asthma, and makes me feel like my windpipe is closing up. The last aid stop had some locally-made ice cream sandwiches, which I REALLY wanted, but knew by that time I'd hurl. After the ride, everybody was eating those & all kinds of wonderful stuff (including pizza!), but I couldn't eat anything (and thought I might hurl for a couple of hours after). I did eat a pasty on a 200K - ugh! It tasted really good at the time, but was not a good choice. The next year, I took one & carried it in my jacket for the next 60 miles, only to find out that evening that it was actually the worst pasty I'd ever eaten! I tried eating a Clif bar during a trail marathon - too hard & dry & felt like a rock in my gut.

I do have trouble with blood sugar drops, but do pretty well with the stuff I've found works for me, as long as I eat a few bites every hour or more. I did 80 last week on 2 bottles of Heed, 2 Gus, and 1 Power Bar (or was it 2? I don't remember now). It wasn't hot (upper-60s), or I'd have refilled my bottles.

[loopybunny]

My mom's cousin told me about riding his first century (ages ago!) and how he ran out of water. Someone gave him apple juice. He downed it then gave it back, so to speak.

I know a guy from Twitter that did a "Tour de Fritter" in the area. I kind of thought he was making it up. Doesn't really gross me out, but it seems like such a heavy thing to eat while riding.

As for myself, I've never witnessed anything gross first hand. I did try some grape First Endurance at Levi's GranFondo last year, but I only took a tiny bit to try it first. It was disgusting.