A little tip - maybe!

If you're using a Camelbak or similar with a plastic bladder, there is always a risk of contamination both in warmer weather and if the liquid is left inside for too long. To maintain both purity and a clean bag I use a small amount of baby sterilising product to clean my camelbak, either liquid or in sachets mixed with water ( MILTON is brilliant). I am well aware this might not be practical in out of the way places, but carrying a sachet or two is not too onerous. At the end of a days ride I empty what's left ( always bottled water with just a hint of orange squash if available) and fill the bag with tap water and a sachet or table spoon of liquid milton and leave overnight. Flush out next day and refill.

If you want to know how good Milton is at stain removal ( as well as sterilising), find a coffee/tea stained white mug, drop a little in ( or part of sachet) and top up with water and leave for a few hours. You won't believe it!

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Watneys Red Barrel hasn't been brewed for about thirty years.

When travelling across the US some years ago, I bought a wide necked bottle of Gatorade and tipped the muck away. Each morning I filled the bottle with ice from the motel's ice maker, topped it up with water and it was drinkable right into the mid-afternoons. I think Gatorade was/is like Lucozade hence my reluctance to drink the stuff.

Just finished a Argentina-Alaska- Florida trip, bottled water during the day, plenty and a great deal of whisky most nights, adds to the cost but keeps you fit and healthy............

Beer contains everything a body needs... fats, proteins, carbs... it is sterile, tastes good and makes you feel good (for a while) and makes you invincable

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hi here very hot i do not drink tea here but i take some orange juice...

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This is why your average manual worker before last century drank gallons of the stuff. The thing to remember (and forgotten on an infamous canal trip I once went on) is that this small was about 1% strength. More sex-in-a-canoe than even Australian shandy.


Andy

That's a pretty good routine! I like it. I do a variation. At stops I also do stretching. On a 12 hour riding day, this can help. I DO use a Camel Back and in hot weather I could not live without one. I also carry an extra liter or two of water on board.

I DO drink some Gatorade ... it helps prevent dehydration and provides some needed minerals and salts in high heat or stress. Good in severe heat ... but only very small amounts. Water is BEST. I do about 90/10 Water to Gatorade.

As you say, constant small sips. No big gulps. In heat over 40C while riding I'm sipping every 3 to 5 minutes from Camel Back. I stop about every two hours, and find Shade. I never hang out in AirCon places. Best to get into the heat and embrace it. You can't escape. Zen through it. In heat I don't pee much as I'm sweating it out quickly.

In high heat I keep my jacket closed and face shield DOWN to prevent dehydration. A closed jacket means you sweat ... then air flow cools you down. Riding naked or with TOO MUCH venting can dehydrate you quickly in very high heat at high speed. You want to FEEL that Sweat cooling you. If you don't feel it ... close up some vents, zip up or whatever. (I average about 70 mph on highways) Best keep the sweat IN ... to help cool you. Drink constantly. Be happy!

I learned some of this from a Tri-Athlete friend ... a crazy person who loves pain, but knows how to survive in severe conditions. His methods worked well for riding motorcycles ... even though i'm mostly just sitting there doing nothing.

I've modified a few things. The stretching part was his idea ... and man, that really helps me on long riding days. Adds a lot of time before I'm sore and have to get off the bike and I feel better at day's end and much better in the morning STRETCH it out!

Off road can be much tougher, especially riding deep sand or rocky tracks in high heat. Here I need to be very careful and remember to keep drinking ... and not to crash! ... and always breath and relax.

On my last trip through Sahara I would dress like it was winter to insulate myself from the heat - I had it far better than those that didn't.

Another important thing is to make sure that the temperature of your drink isn't cool... however appealing this may seem at the moment, big gulps of cool liquid can very quickly mess with your stomach severely. Not only is it a PITA, but it severely dehydrates you if you get Montezuma's revenge.

Dousing yourself and your clothing in water significantly reduces dehydration through the cooling of body temperature through evaporation. There are evaporative liquid cooling vests constructed for bikers for this specific purpose. Some needs to be precooled in a freezer/refridgerator, while others work by soaking in water and evaporation. I've never really found the urge to buy one as it would add to the clutter - but if I was commuting back and forth every day in a hellishly hot place like Tierra del Fuego or Death Valley, I would probably get my hands on one

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As much as I like , it is difficult to carry around: bottles break easy and you can't keep it cold enough! It also makes you more thirsty! And carrying enough for a day leaves no room for other luggage.

I find my ability to ride may increase (in my mind), but my ability to ride gravel is greatly diminished, even though drinking eliminates the bad habit of looking right in front of your wheel and looking up. However, you are looking up to the side of the road to find a place to pee, rather than watching the shifting conditions of the road. Or perhaps Im getting old!

A flask of good malt whiskey is a better power/weight ratio at the end of a day!

While riding I stick to water in a camel back, or water slightly diluted with oros when it is very hot, which is an orange drink. Not full strength as it is too sweet and makes you thirsty. The slight dilution removes the horrible taste of plastic tasting warm water.

Cool drink I avoid, especially Coca-Cola. Horrid stuff and only drinkable if mixed with brandy!

I saw a show on TV saying americans consume over 600 tins of coke per capita per year It is certainly evident where the store it all!