Pacing and Fueling Test

I did some pacing and fueling testing during thr 8hr race at Sparrow, and here's what I found:

I had a healthy breaky and lunch the day before, followed by a big pasta dinner.

I ate 5MJ of McBreakfast on race day, 2 * BE McMuffins, Banana Toast and an Apple Pie.

I drank 4 doses on Endura in 3L of water, 1.5MJ.

I ate 3 home made energy cookies during the race, 3MJ.

At the start of lap 7 I took a 3 minute break to eat a Powerbar, 1MJ.

Polar says I burnt off 7MJ during the race, roughly 1MJ per lap, as expected.

I had packed Ham Sandwiches (on Helgas), 1MJ each, but did not get to eat them.

Lap 1 felt fine, having had a big breaky, I did not eat at the end of that lap, which was a mistake, lap 2 was tougher and I felt low. Average HR dipped from 141 to 138. I popped an energy cookie at the start of lap 3 and found it kicked in in two stages, the sugar gave me an instant kick and I was off, but then I had a low, and then the oats and other low GI carbs kicked in and I was off again for the rest of the lap, average HR lifted to 144.

I popped an enery cookie at the start of laps 4 and 5, and my pace was maintained and HR at 142, I decided I was going well enough to not eat anything at end of lap 5 and pushed through lap 6 unfuelled and fatigue got a hold of me, I bonked and HR dropped to 136, the low point of the race. I got fairly depressed at this point and struggled up the hills, I started to seriously doubt the 24 was doable and wondered how I would finish. I rode with another solo guy and we chatted for a good 20mins and he was saying he took a mandatory 5min break every 2 laps, and he ate something every lap (interestingly, something diferent each lap; powerbar, porridge, even V drinks) and I thought that was a great idea.

At the start of Lap 7 I took a 3 minute break to eat a horrid power bar, unlike my nice soft energy cookies, these can't be eaten while riding. I felt the energy come in pretty quickly, while I stood there, it was like I was a car at the petrol pump, I took off and picked up my HR to 146, the highest in the race so far, and when I came across the line I felt strong and took off for what would be my last lap, Kylie had come out to cheer me on and it lifted me above any fatigue, I was a bit emotional, but pushed on, and feeling like I had spare in the tank, I decided to race this lap instead of pace it, so I went all out, average HR was 146 again, I got hung up behind more people and 10 minutes before the end of the lap, I ran out of energy again, my stomach was gurgling and I could feel the inevitable bonk approaching, so I stuck behind others instead of overtaking, but somehow still pulled my fastest lap of the event and felt great at the end.

Having the emotional support of Kylie and the kids there for the end was elating, and I'd come 36th, my first time in the top half of the field in any race!

So to summarise:

I think the big McBreakfast may have been a mistake, it only fuelled me for the first lap.

Powerbars deliver fuel cleanly and evenly for a good hour to hour an a half, but are hard to eat and you have to stop to eat them.

Energy cookies went well, lumpy energy delivery, but kept me going at an OK pace, powerbars were better though, I was able to go harder.

Although I packed 11L of Endura, I just couldn't drink that much, I drank as much as I can while out there, so it's only good for about 200kJ/hr (I had hoped it would give me 1MJ per hour).

The quandry: How do I get powerbar levels of energy withought stopping to munch on that flavoured carboard?
Gu? Bread? These are things to try at the upcoming 3 hour race.

UPDATE 01/08/07: After this I discovered Endura Energy Bars, which are soft and can be eaten on the move easily. They even taste quite nice! :) They have the perfect mix of 70g of carbs and 1MJ of energy too.