[OldZaskar]

Last year was the first time our club had support for the club century. This was great. But, it added an unexpected hiccup - "I need a bottle... a white one... with the greenish mix... it's got a 'D' on it... No, that's David's... that one's Doug's..."

This year, we've got 14 guys on the ride, one truck sagging... wondering if it'd be easier if we standardized - just a cooler full of bottles, several gallons of premixed drink... Keep it simple.

Tips? Thoughts? Or is this so obvious - yeah, standardize.

 

[DonDenver]

I don't think the bottles will mind standardizing...

I think the issue remains with people standardizing...

Typical responses:

"what's in that bottle that tastes funny?", "In my brew I have...", "my stomach is very sensitive after the second hour so I add...", "I'm big on a protein blend, but I like a 1:2", "my riding sucked today and its all because of that swill you gave me", "yuck, it tastes like plastic", "Is it filtered water?"

 

[DonDenver]

Tips? Thoughts? Or is this so obvious - yeah, standardize.

...but to your question. Yes this ^

 

[DonDenver]

...oh...and then you have the "crushed ice is a must" rider or two.

 

[nOOky]

We don't often have supported rides, but unless it's a race we all stop and take our own bottles from the support vehicle. The vehicle just meets us halfway somewhere. It doesn't hurt to stop for a few minutes or so.

 

[OldZaskar]

I guess it comes down to how the ride is sagged...
1. Truck stops at predetermined point(s), everyone (EVERYONE) swaps bottles, mixes, grabs food - takes off
or
2. Truck follows riders (leap frogs) and meets specific demands, e.g. rider calls out "need a bottle"... truck moves up a mile, sorts out requests - hands off bottles as riders pass. Other than the ID'ing bottles issue, that actually worked surprisingly easy.

#2 was how it went last year. On the plus side, it's really nice to carry only two bottles, minimal food and get handoffs like a pro. On the negative side, the sagger can be run ragged trying to find the damn bottles

 

[mikerp]

I'd standardize.
My response if there were an issue would be real simple, there is no "I" in team. If someone wants to do it differently they are more than welcome to taking over.
I've played "company dad" to large groups, they tend to take as much as they can get from you, you are better off drawing the line early and keeping it short or you will be wiping noses and a$$es before you know it.

 

[OldZaskar]

I'm not fighting a "take as much as they can get" issue - it's a great (!) group of guys/friends. It's more of an issue of not realizing how much of a hassle it can be keeping up with 15 riders' bottles, mixes, food, etc. can be - on the fly... on the side of the road...

Maybe a hybrid approach will work, e.g. there will be standard bottles (in the "Standard" cooler) and you can put your own stuff in "Personal" cooler. Riders are more than welcome to stop and grab their personal bottles at the predetermined stop points, or when they see the sag truck stopped - handing out standard bottles.

 

[Kerry Irons]

...but to your question. Yes this ^

But the problem is that sometimes drinks that work great for one person cause stomach problems for the next.

It seems that if you have more than one "D" person then Dave and Doug need to spell out their names. For things other than drinks, each rider has a large Ziploc with their stuff in it, labeled with their name on the bag.

 

[JoelS]

But the problem is that sometimes drinks that work great for one person cause stomach problems for the next.

It seems that if you have more than one "D" person then Dave and Doug need to spell out their names. For things other than drinks, each rider has a large Ziploc with their stuff in it, labeled with their name on the bag.

THIS!

And pro teams don't standardize. They get the stuff that works for them. Some folks are sensitive to certain products, some to other products. You can't go feeding everyone the same thing (unless it's straight water) and expect it to be ok. It won't.