Environmentally Aware

[Veronica]

Barb's Race - my next HIM is going to have a cup free run. They are giving all the racers HydraPouches. It will be interesting to see how that works out. I usually get some water to dump on my head. Maybe I'll do the head dump and then get some to drink...

I really like the concept - less junk for the landfill.

Veronica

[snapdragen]

I've never seen those before, looks kinda like a sippy cup! Kinda cool. :cool: Let us know how you like it.

[rubywagon]

That looks very cool. I wonder how backed up it would get at the Hydrapour stations where they refill? Great idea though!

[rocknrollgirl]

I just went on their website, and they showed the runners still using cups at the water station to fill the pouch.

How do they plan for you all to refill?????

[Veronica]

Something called a Hydrapour that's suppose to deliver 6 oz of fluid in a second. It will be interesting. The water stops have not been super crowded the last two years, maybe 10 - 12 people at a time, but if you're all crowding around a couple of pouring stations...

It's a good thing I'm not overly concerned with lost seconds on the run. :D

I am glad they are trying it. Somebody has to be first and if it works well, it will be a good thing. Apparently it has been used at several running races. This is the first tri to do it.

Veronica

[OakLeaf]

I'm envisioning Daytona 200-style pit stops - dry break fuelers, stop signs on long bars, and most importantly a pit lane speed limit...

[Tri Girl]

that's great! I hope it catches on and becomes the norm. All the trash at races makes me so sad.
We started recycling at all our tris (that our club puts on) last year. We contacted the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) and they provide us with recycle bins and they come and collect it. With budget cuts I don't know how much longer they'll do it- but it's been a blessing. We still produce a lot of waste, but at least a good portion of it is being recycled.

Let me know how you like the hydrapouches from an athlete perspective. I'm on the committee that puts on an iron distance race in our city. If it works well, we might consider doing that in the future.

[GLC1968]

I saw that discussed on BT and I was amazed at how down on it everyone was. I think it's a good idea and I'm really curious to see how it works out.

This is a good video of how the refill thing works:
http://www.hydrapouch.com/cupfree/

I think that if you carry a flask, then you could fill the flask and the hydro pouch and use one for your head and one to drink...but what do I know, I've only ever raced a 5K. :p

[Trek420]

That sounds really great. Kind of like bringing my own coffee cup to the LCS (local coffee shop) on a massive scale.

Another program I like and wish more of our events did:

http://forums.teamestrogen.com/showthread.php?t=21165

[colby]

Way cool! It actually looks better than cups, too, if you want the water to go IN you AND you don't have to drink all your water at once. I would love to see this at more races.

As for the water in/on you, maybe if you carried two of them, or carried a single regular dixie cup that you could use to pour water on yourself, or as you said filled it once, poured it on, filled it again, carried it for drinking? I'm big on the water on myself during races, so I'll be curious to see how that works out. Actually, maybe if you filled/carried two of them, you could pour water on yourself periodically, which would be super awesome.

I have heard that a lot of races recycle the paper cups now, but it still seems wasteful.

[Veronica]

Just got an email that they will also have sponges on the run course. Something to splash on my head. :p

Veronica

[rocknrollgirl]

I think they look great just for a run...very cool idea.

[Grog]

Sounds fantastic! Especially for long races. For short events, I'm unsure about the balance between the number of paper cups versus the plastic sippy cup. Plastic is pretty bad environmentally speaking... I don't know how it compares.

[Alex]

That looks really interesting. The folks on the SlowTwitch forum are up in arms about it. I don't think I would like hanging something from my shorts for fear they would fall down!

I'm looking forward to your review. :)

[OakLeaf]

It doesn't look like it would weigh any more than a gel flask. The literature said 6 oz., most gel flasks are 5 or 6 oz.

Is it made of silicone?

[Veronica]

Sounds fantastic! Especially for long races. For short events, I'm unsure about the balance between the number of paper cups versus the plastic sippy cup. Plastic is pretty bad environmentally speaking... I don't know how it compares.

I think the theory is that you keep the sippy cup and use it from race to race. That's what I'm going to do if I like it. I don't know anything about the impact of creating the cup.

Veronica

[katluvr]

Great idea/cool!
On 1/2 marathons I carry a fuel belt w/ my hydration anyways so I can drink when I want. This would be great for refills. I do hate the mess/waste of cups!
I hope to see this at a race near me soon!

K