Turkey Bacon as a bike food?

[colorisnt]

So, I've talked on here about the difficulties I face with food on the bike due to nut allergies. I've learned to LOVE sunbutter in the past couple of months and am a huge fan but my body hates bread on the bike. I'm going to start making some rice cakes (some savory and some sweet) that friends have offered up recipes for here in town but I was also thinking about bacon.

So, I don't eat pork, which means my type of bacon is turkey bacon but man do I love it. The BF thinks it's an abomination but I do love it. I recently took some to eat on our long ride, kept it in a cool place, etc. because I wanted to make sure I didn't get sick. I also know of some rice cake recipes that call for it. I think it's a great way to get some sodium and protein on the bike (two things I struggle with) minus the bread that seems to be hard on my stomach. Still, would this be "safe" on a ride more then 4 hours long? The bacon is cured and smoked as well as salted, obviously. So, people tell me it should be safe but I'm still not sure.

Anyone take bacon on the bike?

[Crankin]

It would be good for me... I like salty and crunchy.

[Catrin]

I've used jerky and it worked fine. Turkey bacon probably wouldn't require as much chewing :D

[colorisnt]

Cool! Hahaha. Then, I'm gonna keep trying it, I think. It was fast and easy and super simple to make. Glad to know it isn't weird. The BF eats jerky (which I'm not a huge fan of) but thinks it's weird. That said, he still at half of my turkey, so clearly it's just fine.

[Crankin]

When my son ws racing, he ate jerky all of the time, especially on long, hot rides. So did all of the other people he raced with.

[Catrin]

I also tried mixing it up by mixing a bit of sliced jerky with dried cherries and nuts and have it in a little bag in my top tube bag. That can add up to a lot of calories fast, but is perfect for a long, hot effort. I did try sweet potatoes, but my stomach hates them on the bike. Considering what it tolerates I've always found that interesting :) It just takes a bit of experimentation to figure out what works for your body.

[Owlie]

Sounds OK to me! I liked taking jerky on rides. :)

[colorisnt]

My biggest concern isn't calories as much as it is trying to find what works. Jellies seem to be something I can tolerate but they don't have the protein I also find I need. I have a tendency to get hypoglycemic and crash when I ONLY have carbs but I also need to drink carbs from things like skratch and get enough sodium. I wouldn't take bacon on a ride of less than 40 miles or unless it was hot and I was really sweaty but the turkey bacon I have is basically 120 calories for 4 slices, so less than some of the jellies I use. Not too shabby.

[pll]

I put prosciutto and scrambled eggs in my rice cakes... love the saltiness (I have no nut allergies, so I also add crushed roasted/salted cashews and a little bit of almond butter as "glue"). For additional calories, you could take some dried figs, too. With the heat you produce while you ride, they'd get more pliable. :p

You should not have trouble with the cakes going bad in longer rides (unless the stuff was borderline bad already). It takes more time than that.

[colorisnt]

oooh figs. That sounds delicious!

Cool! Glad to hear it's not odd.