RickBetterley

I am looking for suggestions for performance drinks at the track.
Or am I, in my typical Porsche owner way, over-thinking this and should just stick to water?

chopperzz

I vote water

Veloce Raptor

If it's really hot, 50-50 water + GatorAde or similar. If G2, go 25% water.









Professional Racing and Driving Coach

bauerjab

I have tried them all : Red Bull (with and w/o sugar); espresso; 85% cocoa. Nothing seems to make me faster. Ultimately, it comes down to conditioning. I think (IMHO) you need to be in good shape and rely solely on water. (I'm in crappy shape) Maybe a sports drink that has electrolytes if you sweat alot. But not a drink that is loaded with sugar.

VERBOTN

Water for me, especially in the car so I can dribble out the first 3-feet of hot water onto my suit before I get the ice-cold stuff. Memo to self insulate the water line to bottle

mrbill_fl

C, try to blow the fluids back into the bottle after a drink!

for enduros I had 2) .5 gallon igloo drink bottles w/ clear hoses. one with cold water, the other gatoraid. (or something with sugar) (both ziptied to the passenger side rollbar)

w/ camelback bite valves on each hose.

if using only 1, cold water.


YMMV.

bauerjab

Do you have a hole drilled in your helmet to accomodate two hoses. And how do you maneuver two different hoses during a race.

Chaos

Absolut Citron chilled,oh before the race. Former + Gatoraid G2

jakermc

Throughout the day I alternate between Gatorade and water, and usually one bottle of my new favorite - H2O Overdrive

multi21

Water and Vitamin Water - 3 to 1 ratio

Eat nuts during the day. I prefer almonds

After each heat or qualfying, the best thing is chocolate milk..... really.

ervtx

I've tried gatorade, G2, electromix, and plain old water, and can't distinguish between them very much. But on the advice of a friend who is an endurance cyclist, I tried cytomax this past weekend. During the course of the day it didn't seem to be any better or worse than anything else, but later in the evening, there was a huge difference in my overall energy level. IMO, cytomax has an edge when it comes to the dehydration recovery phase.

Note: There are several cytomax products. Most are for protien and muscle building, but the one I'm referring to is for hydration and is called Cytomax Performance Drink. http://www.cytosport.com/products/cy...ctomax-powders

Not sure what nuts/almonds do, but perhaps it's no different from saltine crackers. Eat these throughout the day to maintain a robust desire for water intake.

LDadrenaline

I use a 50/50 mix of gatorade and water in the car in anything 30 minutes to an hour. If I will be driving for over an hour then I throw an energy drink in. There are a lot of vitamins that help with mental focus. For a 30 minute race I sometimes drink half an energy drink before I go to grid. Throughout the day I probably drink 3 waters to every gatorade. I also really like the bolthouse farms protein drinks (either mocha cappuccino or vanilla latte, the pure chocolate one is soy protein which I don't want). Can find them next to the orange juices in your supermarket. They have a very good blend of sugars/carbs, calories, protein, and potassium.

mrbill_fl

I had clear long hoses,(from home depot), both running behind the seat, and thru the shoulder harness (one on each side) ending up in my lap. I'd reach down, pick one up, and insert them into my closed face helmet. Then blow back what I hadn't drank into the bottle so it wasn't 150degrees. (also had a radio setup, and it was no problem).

-car was a sedan, but maybe in a open cockpit car you'd want to drill the helmet... but it seems like more to catch if you needed a fast exit.

(I also liked the sugar, but can understand why some wouldn't)

-YMMV.

Mahler9th

I try to stay hydrated primarily with water all of the time... but on hot days I tend to add some G2 into the mix. Hydration is an interesting topic... what to drink, how much to drink and when to drink it...

I studied this topic extensively at a very high level... consulting with the world's experts. Physicians and physiologists. There is a lot of great research out there and a small circle of experts. Larry Armstong at UConn is an expert and a great guy. In the NFL, Rick Burkholder the trainer of the Eagles is pretty advanced in his thinking on hydration... In major college football Mark Coberley at Iowa State...

I also spoke with experts in the military, the first responder space, mining, forestry and even racing.

I was doing marketing/fundraising for a company working on the world's first easy-to-use device to measure human hydration status: Cantimer. See cantimer.com If you want a super-simple approach, use Larry's validated urine color chart... you can download it on the UConn web site. I have the papers which describe validation if anyone wants them.

It is hard to separate out facts in terms of what to drink... I tend to rely on the more objective, peer-reviewed literature.

Funny story about this... a few years ago, the Eagles attributed an early season victory against the Cowboys in Dallas on a really hot day to.... pickle juice. Started a craze for a short time... and I am pretty sure you could buy a form of pickle juice as a drink for hydration.

Also note that CytoSport makes Cytomax, and is owned and run by Scott Sharp's father-in-law and long time TransAm racer Greg Pickett. Greg runs an Porsche RS Sypder in ALMS... I'd guess that team does not drink Gatorade at the track.

Did you know: many/most NFL and major college football games feature tons of IV bags hanging in the locker room at halftime?

Did you know: Hyponatremia is a health risk in marathons... google hyponatremia and marathon and read the NEJM article. Water is not enough... especially too much water.

TR6

The important thing is maintaining the appropriate sodium intake along with water. It is possible to make yourself sick by drinking too much water in an effort to stay hydrated without taking in any sodium with it. That's where products like Gatorade come in to play. But you can also just drink plain water and eat something salty. When on long hikes, I use salted dry roasted peanuts along with water. Works great. Protein and sodium. At the track on a hot day, I alternate between water and gatorade (about 2 or 3 waters to 1 gatorade). Seems to do the trick.

My opinion on energy drinks is that lack of energy is a conditioning issue, not a drink issue. If you find yourself worn out and tired, taking in chemical stimulants in the form of an energy drink is merely masking your real problem. On a hot track day, I have one cup of coffee very early in the morning and then I don't touch caffiene the rest of the day. Caffiene and heat/dehydration conditions are a bad mix.