Today is Cinco de Mayo.
So, of course, I am going to ride--and eat Mexican food. Which Mexican food(s), I haven't decided yet.
But I think this T-shirt might influence my choice:
Showing posts with label energy foods. Show all posts
Showing posts with label energy foods. Show all posts
05 May 2023
06 March 2022
Food For Thought
Definitions of a good cycling diet have changed and diverged during my nearly-half century of dedicated riding. Around the time I first started taking rides more of more than an hour from my family's home, Eddy Mercx broke the hour record in Mexico City on a day when he downed toast, ham and cheese--all of which he brought from his native Belgium--for breakfast.
Over the years, we've been told not to eat meat or dairy during a ride, or at all. We've also been advised that we should consume carbohydrates and everything from GORP (good ol' raisins and peanuts) to Himalayan foxtail millet cakes slathered with yak butter touted as the ideal cycling foods.
Deep down, though, we all know there's one food all cyclists--in fact, all people--love:
Aside from showing a woman eating a slice while cradling a box of pizza on her exercise bike, this photo is funny in other ways. For one, it could only be from the '80's: When else would someone wear sport an outfit or hairdo like hers? Or wear a waist pack on an exercise bike?
But eating pizza: That's always permissible. It's one of the few things that never goes out of style, among cyclists or anyone else!
16 September 2018
Follow That Diet
When I first became a dedicated cyclist, the term "energy foods" didn't exist. During rides, we ate granola, GORP (good ol' raisins and peanuts), bananas--or, perhaps, other fruits or chocolate.
Of course, some made ridiculous claims for some food or another--usually one that wasn't widely available. One was "Tiger's Milk". The joke was, of course, that you don't need to drink Tiger's Milk: Instead, you should find out who milked the tiger and eat whatever he or she eats.
I would say the same for whoever harvested this:
After he was stripped of his 2006 Tour de France victory, Floyd Landis tried to claim that the unusually high testotsterone count found in his blood was "natural" and not the result of consuming any substance. Then he tried to blame it dehydration caused by drinking whisky. Maybe he should have told the anti-doping agency he'd been eating Shark Balls.
Of course, some made ridiculous claims for some food or another--usually one that wasn't widely available. One was "Tiger's Milk". The joke was, of course, that you don't need to drink Tiger's Milk: Instead, you should find out who milked the tiger and eat whatever he or she eats.
I would say the same for whoever harvested this:
After he was stripped of his 2006 Tour de France victory, Floyd Landis tried to claim that the unusually high testotsterone count found in his blood was "natural" and not the result of consuming any substance. Then he tried to blame it dehydration caused by drinking whisky. Maybe he should have told the anti-doping agency he'd been eating Shark Balls.
09 April 2017
How Many Bananas?
Last week, while out for a ride, I stopped at a Halal cart for a falafel. It got me to thinking about how much the definition of "street food" has changed here in New York.
In addition to falafel, hummus and those tasty chicken-and rice or lamb-and-rice dishes the Middle Eastern street cooks/vendors offer, it's possible to buy tacos, pizza, curries, waffles, sushi, various kinds of sandwiches, fried chicken, lobster rolls, crepes, salads, meat-on-a-stick and cupcakes as well as familiar fare like ice cream and almost anything based on coffee or tea from various trucks and carts all over the city.
It wasn't so long ago that "street food" in the Big Apple meant "dirty water" hot dogs (with mustard and barbecued onions), knishes and pretzels that were baked dry, then burnt on the hot plates the vendors used to warm them up.
Ruminating about such urban delicacies (as if I don't have better uses for my brain cells!) led me to recall the days when "energy bars" hadn't been invented. Back then, we carried "trail mix" or other combinations of dried fruits, nuts (and, for some of us, chocolate) as well as other fruits--especially bananas.
In fact, when I was co-editing a club newsletter, we had a five-banana rating system for rides. The most difficult rides, of course, got five while the easiest rides were marked with only one.
That system would have been entirely useless had someone shown up to ride in this:
In addition to falafel, hummus and those tasty chicken-and rice or lamb-and-rice dishes the Middle Eastern street cooks/vendors offer, it's possible to buy tacos, pizza, curries, waffles, sushi, various kinds of sandwiches, fried chicken, lobster rolls, crepes, salads, meat-on-a-stick and cupcakes as well as familiar fare like ice cream and almost anything based on coffee or tea from various trucks and carts all over the city.
It wasn't so long ago that "street food" in the Big Apple meant "dirty water" hot dogs (with mustard and barbecued onions), knishes and pretzels that were baked dry, then burnt on the hot plates the vendors used to warm them up.
Ruminating about such urban delicacies (as if I don't have better uses for my brain cells!) led me to recall the days when "energy bars" hadn't been invented. Back then, we carried "trail mix" or other combinations of dried fruits, nuts (and, for some of us, chocolate) as well as other fruits--especially bananas.
In fact, when I was co-editing a club newsletter, we had a five-banana rating system for rides. The most difficult rides, of course, got five while the easiest rides were marked with only one.
That system would have been entirely useless had someone shown up to ride in this:
 |
| From Extreme Mobility |
11 February 2017
What Would You Eat If....
In this blog, I often talk about foods that I eat--and have eaten--before, during and after rides.
I got to thinking about that while reading something that appeared in my mailbox: The Worst Foods To Eat In Every State.
Now, even for someone with my refined sensibilities (Yes, I typed that with a straight face!), such a title is "click bait". I am sure that Wil Fulton, the author of that article, or the editors of the "Thrillist" website know as much.
Of course, "worst" can be interpreted in all sorts of ways. Mr. Fulton seemed to use the term to mean "whatever looks or sounds grossest to someone who's never eaten it before". And, I have to admit, I probably would have to be stranded in North Dakota before I'd try lutefisk. On the other hand, Illionois Gravy Bread doesn't sound any different from what I've eaten during, or at the end of, many a meal: bread used as a sponge for gravy or meat drippings. Nothing wrong with that. But people actually have it delivered?
Anyway, I've eaten a few of the items in that article--yes, before, during and after bike rides. Interestingly, even though I lived in Brooklyn until I was twelve--and have lived in New York City since I was twenty-five--I have eaten the Garbage Plate proper (Is that an oxymoron?) only twice in my life, both times during bike trips upstate.
One food I often ate during rides, as well as devant and apres, is Pork Roll. No one in my family, or I, had even heard of it while we were living in Brooklyn. But, after we moved to New Jersey, it became a staple of our diets. Of course, I didn't see it when I was living in France, but even after I moved to New York during the mid-80s, no one in the Big Apple seemed to know about it--or they thought it was something pornographic.
Now stores in this town are selling it. I think people here were introduced to it a few months ago, when Dunkin' Donuts offered a "limited-time special" sandwich that included it. When I was living in The Garden State, I often had the "Jersey Classic"--a sandwich of pork roll, egg and cheese--at diners, coffee shops and roadside stands during rides.
What does pork roll taste like? Some might say it's a better version of Spam, or a milder version of their favorite ham. It really tastes better than it sounds: It's pork with a nice combination of sweet and mild spices with salt.
Is it "healthy"? Of course not! (Well, as a "comfort food", perhaps it's good for your mental health.) But I have eaten all manner of pizzas and baked goods during rides, not to mention chili, burgers, tacos, take-out Chinese foods and such delicacies as the jambon-beurre.
By the way: I have eaten scrapple, the Pennsylvania Dutch-country "mystery meat". It's actually pretty good--though, I confess, I prefer good ol' Jersey Pork Roll. Or jambon-beurre.
I got to thinking about that while reading something that appeared in my mailbox: The Worst Foods To Eat In Every State.
Now, even for someone with my refined sensibilities (Yes, I typed that with a straight face!), such a title is "click bait". I am sure that Wil Fulton, the author of that article, or the editors of the "Thrillist" website know as much.
Of course, "worst" can be interpreted in all sorts of ways. Mr. Fulton seemed to use the term to mean "whatever looks or sounds grossest to someone who's never eaten it before". And, I have to admit, I probably would have to be stranded in North Dakota before I'd try lutefisk. On the other hand, Illionois Gravy Bread doesn't sound any different from what I've eaten during, or at the end of, many a meal: bread used as a sponge for gravy or meat drippings. Nothing wrong with that. But people actually have it delivered?
Anyway, I've eaten a few of the items in that article--yes, before, during and after bike rides. Interestingly, even though I lived in Brooklyn until I was twelve--and have lived in New York City since I was twenty-five--I have eaten the Garbage Plate proper (Is that an oxymoron?) only twice in my life, both times during bike trips upstate.
 |
| This is what you eat during a ride in New Jersey |
One food I often ate during rides, as well as devant and apres, is Pork Roll. No one in my family, or I, had even heard of it while we were living in Brooklyn. But, after we moved to New Jersey, it became a staple of our diets. Of course, I didn't see it when I was living in France, but even after I moved to New York during the mid-80s, no one in the Big Apple seemed to know about it--or they thought it was something pornographic.
Now stores in this town are selling it. I think people here were introduced to it a few months ago, when Dunkin' Donuts offered a "limited-time special" sandwich that included it. When I was living in The Garden State, I often had the "Jersey Classic"--a sandwich of pork roll, egg and cheese--at diners, coffee shops and roadside stands during rides.
What does pork roll taste like? Some might say it's a better version of Spam, or a milder version of their favorite ham. It really tastes better than it sounds: It's pork with a nice combination of sweet and mild spices with salt.
Is it "healthy"? Of course not! (Well, as a "comfort food", perhaps it's good for your mental health.) But I have eaten all manner of pizzas and baked goods during rides, not to mention chili, burgers, tacos, take-out Chinese foods and such delicacies as the jambon-beurre.
By the way: I have eaten scrapple, the Pennsylvania Dutch-country "mystery meat". It's actually pretty good--though, I confess, I prefer good ol' Jersey Pork Roll. Or jambon-beurre.
02 October 2016
If The Milk Is Free...
Just over a week ago, I wrote about Pop Tarts and other seemingly-improbable energy sources for cyclists.
I also confessed that I fueled myself through France on jambon beurre sandwiches. Turns out, I was closer to eating a diet of champions than some might expect: In 1972, when Eddy Mercx set a new hour record (which would stand for 12 years) in Mexico, he started his day with a breakfast of toast, ham and cheese he brought from Belgium.
Today, many hard-core cyclists--racers in particular--would disdain such a diet. Many are vegans or vegetarians; others eschew certain categories of foods they believe are harmful. Dairy products gather particular scorn from such riders.
But, as Mercx's "breakfast of champions" shows us, dairy products were considered a perfectly acceptable part of a training regimen. In fact, not so long ago, most athletes and trainers believed that milk was beneficial for, even vital to, cycling.
Cyclists weren't the only ones who shared the faith, if you will. When I was growing up, our science textbooks told us that milk was the "perfect food". Athletes were even recruited to promote milk:
In the 1930s and 1940s, Joyce Barry did a number of record-setting rides in her native Australia. Now, while the image of Ms. Barry might have made milk seem like a good training beverage , her story is an even better testimony to the health benefits of cycling.
In her early teens, an attack of pneumonia left her with weak lungs. To build them, and the rest of her body, up her doctor recommended cycling.
Three years after taking up cycling, she found a mentor. Hubert Opperman--"Oppie"--was himself a record-setting cyclist who found fame in England and France.
In case you were wondering what he ate:
"The health food of a nation" indeed. I wonder what he (and Ms. Barry) were paid.
I also confessed that I fueled myself through France on jambon beurre sandwiches. Turns out, I was closer to eating a diet of champions than some might expect: In 1972, when Eddy Mercx set a new hour record (which would stand for 12 years) in Mexico, he started his day with a breakfast of toast, ham and cheese he brought from Belgium.
Today, many hard-core cyclists--racers in particular--would disdain such a diet. Many are vegans or vegetarians; others eschew certain categories of foods they believe are harmful. Dairy products gather particular scorn from such riders.
But, as Mercx's "breakfast of champions" shows us, dairy products were considered a perfectly acceptable part of a training regimen. In fact, not so long ago, most athletes and trainers believed that milk was beneficial for, even vital to, cycling.
Cyclists weren't the only ones who shared the faith, if you will. When I was growing up, our science textbooks told us that milk was the "perfect food". Athletes were even recruited to promote milk:
 |
| Joyce Barry, in an ad for the Australian Milk Board, September 1939 |
In the 1930s and 1940s, Joyce Barry did a number of record-setting rides in her native Australia. Now, while the image of Ms. Barry might have made milk seem like a good training beverage , her story is an even better testimony to the health benefits of cycling.
In her early teens, an attack of pneumonia left her with weak lungs. To build them, and the rest of her body, up her doctor recommended cycling.
Three years after taking up cycling, she found a mentor. Hubert Opperman--"Oppie"--was himself a record-setting cyclist who found fame in England and France.
In case you were wondering what he ate:
 |
| Hubert Opperman enjoying, er, his training food, 1936 |
"The health food of a nation" indeed. I wonder what he (and Ms. Barry) were paid.
23 September 2016
Is It A Junk Food? Or An Energy Bar? Or A Performance-Enhancing Substance?
Sometimes I give advice in topics about which I have absolutely no business advising anyone. Sometimes I'm pressed into it: Someone thinks I know something about some topic on which I'm about as well-versed as Hon. Dana Rohrabacher is on atmospheric science. Other times, I think I know more about something than I actually do, or--believe it or not ;-)--lose sight of that (very thin!) line that separates my opinions from facts.
When people assume I know more than I actually do about something, they ask--and I give advice--about dating, family relationships, how to deal with co-workers and bosses, love, education, politics, fashion, careers or the existence of God(s). When I think I know more than I actually do, I find myself giving advice about any and all of those topics, as well as health and almost any academic subject. (I hope my department chair isn't reading this!) And, of course, when I start conflating my opinions with knowledge, I start advising people about cycling equipment!
There is, however, at least one area in which I never have given, and do not plan to give, advice.
Even when I was skinny and in excellent condition, I never presumed to tell any cyclist--or anyone else--what or how he or she should eat. It's not for lack of knowledge: I know, probably, as much as any layperson about nutrition--current notions as well as almost any from the past 40 years or so. Nor is it from any noble desire to do good or not to do harm. Rather, my reticence about proffering nutritional advice has more to do with the fact that I would have trouble doing such a thing with a straight face.
No matter what kind of advice I might give on the subject, I would be a hypocrite. Even when my body-mass index was lower than my age, my diet would have appalled just about any nutritionist--whether of the orthodox, holistic or any other variety. Not only did--do--I eat pretty much whatever I liked, whenever I wanted it, I gulped exactly the things we were told not to touch when riding, or ever.
Now, in my defense, I'll say that while I was on bike tours, I was more interested in sampling the local fare than I was in maintaining a regimen that would keep me at my maximum efficiency. (You would be, too, unless you were in a race!) So, while in Europe, I downed lots of bread and cheese and dark chocolate--though, to be fair, I also ate plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables I picked up from roadside stands and farmers' markets.
So..when I should have been gnawing on Power Bars or downing Energy Gels, I munched on jambon-beurre all over France. In fact, one j-b I ate in a truck stop between Menton and Frejus--more than thirty years ago--remains one of the best sandwiches I've ever had. Hey, if a place like that can elevate something with three ingredients--a demi-baguette, ham and butter--to an art-form, why in the world would you want a Clif Bar?
But my food choices while cycling have not always been even that elevated. I was reminded of that today when, before starting a ride to Coney Island, I ate something I haven't had in a while: Pop Tarts.
Yes, I admit it! In fact, for a time, I never left for a ride without tucking one of those packets with two 'tarts into my jersey pocket or Camel Back. My riding buddies were doing the same, especially when rumbled up and down the trails in Vermont and upstate.
What made them so popular with our sub-segment of the mountain biking community in those days--about two decades ago--was the "rush" we got practically the second we swallowed a bite of one. Especially from frosted brown-sugar cinnamon Pop Tarts: I think they contained every kind of sugar ever concocted in a food processing plant!
Today I ate two cherry 'tarts'. I was always partial to them, and to the blueberry and strawberry ones. Then again, it's hard to go wrong with any of those fruits. But coming up with the brown-sugar cinnamon tarts was a real accomplishment. As far as I know, neither the UCI nor the Olympic Committee has banned them!
I hear that now there's a whole-grain version. Does that assuage your guilt?
When people assume I know more than I actually do about something, they ask--and I give advice--about dating, family relationships, how to deal with co-workers and bosses, love, education, politics, fashion, careers or the existence of God(s). When I think I know more than I actually do, I find myself giving advice about any and all of those topics, as well as health and almost any academic subject. (I hope my department chair isn't reading this!) And, of course, when I start conflating my opinions with knowledge, I start advising people about cycling equipment!
There is, however, at least one area in which I never have given, and do not plan to give, advice.
Even when I was skinny and in excellent condition, I never presumed to tell any cyclist--or anyone else--what or how he or she should eat. It's not for lack of knowledge: I know, probably, as much as any layperson about nutrition--current notions as well as almost any from the past 40 years or so. Nor is it from any noble desire to do good or not to do harm. Rather, my reticence about proffering nutritional advice has more to do with the fact that I would have trouble doing such a thing with a straight face.
No matter what kind of advice I might give on the subject, I would be a hypocrite. Even when my body-mass index was lower than my age, my diet would have appalled just about any nutritionist--whether of the orthodox, holistic or any other variety. Not only did--do--I eat pretty much whatever I liked, whenever I wanted it, I gulped exactly the things we were told not to touch when riding, or ever.
Now, in my defense, I'll say that while I was on bike tours, I was more interested in sampling the local fare than I was in maintaining a regimen that would keep me at my maximum efficiency. (You would be, too, unless you were in a race!) So, while in Europe, I downed lots of bread and cheese and dark chocolate--though, to be fair, I also ate plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables I picked up from roadside stands and farmers' markets.
So..when I should have been gnawing on Power Bars or downing Energy Gels, I munched on jambon-beurre all over France. In fact, one j-b I ate in a truck stop between Menton and Frejus--more than thirty years ago--remains one of the best sandwiches I've ever had. Hey, if a place like that can elevate something with three ingredients--a demi-baguette, ham and butter--to an art-form, why in the world would you want a Clif Bar?
But my food choices while cycling have not always been even that elevated. I was reminded of that today when, before starting a ride to Coney Island, I ate something I haven't had in a while: Pop Tarts.
Yes, I admit it! In fact, for a time, I never left for a ride without tucking one of those packets with two 'tarts into my jersey pocket or Camel Back. My riding buddies were doing the same, especially when rumbled up and down the trails in Vermont and upstate.
What made them so popular with our sub-segment of the mountain biking community in those days--about two decades ago--was the "rush" we got practically the second we swallowed a bite of one. Especially from frosted brown-sugar cinnamon Pop Tarts: I think they contained every kind of sugar ever concocted in a food processing plant!
Today I ate two cherry 'tarts'. I was always partial to them, and to the blueberry and strawberry ones. Then again, it's hard to go wrong with any of those fruits. But coming up with the brown-sugar cinnamon tarts was a real accomplishment. As far as I know, neither the UCI nor the Olympic Committee has banned them!
I hear that now there's a whole-grain version. Does that assuage your guilt?
29 June 2016
Waffles And Mud
If you are a cyclocross racer living in Belgium, today is your day.
Now, you might be thiking that if I could write that previous sentence, I must have waaay too much time on my hands. Well, that is a matter of debate, I guess. But l swear, I wasn't web-surfing when I came up with the information that allowed me to come up with such a statement.
You see, this morning, I turned on a local community-radio station. The host of one of those crazy programs one finds on such stations mentioned that today is International Mud Day. I didn't catch his name, but I did hear him add, a few minutes later, that today is Waffle Iron Day.
Thus, in writing the opening sentence of this post, I have performed a creative act and a public service. Just imagine: If those two bits of information hadn't found my way, perhaps no one ever would have connected them. The world would be this much (she holds her forefinger and thumb a hair's breadth apart) poorer.
(How's that for grandiosity?)
Anyway, I found out tht neither holiday was created by, well, people with too much time on their hands and possibly-legal (or not) intoxicating substances. Turns out, Mud Day originated in Nepal, in an attempt to enrich the lives of orphans by getting them to spend more time outdoors.
Someone noticed that kids' attitudes and moods improved after spending time wallowing around in the mud. Like so many things "primitive" people in places like Nepal have observed for centuries, Western science has discovered this fact and confirmed it with empirical data. Actually, even some beauticians have beaten those scientists to their discovery: Why do you think salons offer mud treatments for the face and other areas of skin?
As for waffle irons: A while back, I read that waffles evolved, if you will, from the making of communion wafers. In those days, they were made individually by pressing the batter between--you guessed it--two heated irons. Patterns, and sometimes even images, were engraved into the irons, so the wafers came out embossed with with grid patterns (like most current waffles) or, perhaps, the seal of a particular saint or church.
Later, someone got the idea of adding wine, beer and other things with yeast to leaven the batter and make it rise. Then , people discovered that those patterns--especially the grid--trapped air inside, making a treat that's crispy on the outside but fluffy on the inside.
Anyway...I'm sure that plenty of cyclo-cross riders have consumed waffles before and after (and during: they fit well in jersey pockets!) races or training ride. I've carried waffles with me on all sorts of rides--except when I was in Belgium because, there, they could be found in just about any store or stand.
So...Happy Mud Day and Happy Waffle Iron Day. Belgium and the world should celebrate!
Now, you might be thiking that if I could write that previous sentence, I must have waaay too much time on my hands. Well, that is a matter of debate, I guess. But l swear, I wasn't web-surfing when I came up with the information that allowed me to come up with such a statement.
You see, this morning, I turned on a local community-radio station. The host of one of those crazy programs one finds on such stations mentioned that today is International Mud Day. I didn't catch his name, but I did hear him add, a few minutes later, that today is Waffle Iron Day.
Thus, in writing the opening sentence of this post, I have performed a creative act and a public service. Just imagine: If those two bits of information hadn't found my way, perhaps no one ever would have connected them. The world would be this much (she holds her forefinger and thumb a hair's breadth apart) poorer.
(How's that for grandiosity?)
Anyway, I found out tht neither holiday was created by, well, people with too much time on their hands and possibly-legal (or not) intoxicating substances. Turns out, Mud Day originated in Nepal, in an attempt to enrich the lives of orphans by getting them to spend more time outdoors.
 |
| It's therapy! Really! From Cyclocross magazine |
Someone noticed that kids' attitudes and moods improved after spending time wallowing around in the mud. Like so many things "primitive" people in places like Nepal have observed for centuries, Western science has discovered this fact and confirmed it with empirical data. Actually, even some beauticians have beaten those scientists to their discovery: Why do you think salons offer mud treatments for the face and other areas of skin?
As for waffle irons: A while back, I read that waffles evolved, if you will, from the making of communion wafers. In those days, they were made individually by pressing the batter between--you guessed it--two heated irons. Patterns, and sometimes even images, were engraved into the irons, so the wafers came out embossed with with grid patterns (like most current waffles) or, perhaps, the seal of a particular saint or church.
 |
| Wouldn't you love to see this first thing in the morning? |
Later, someone got the idea of adding wine, beer and other things with yeast to leaven the batter and make it rise. Then , people discovered that those patterns--especially the grid--trapped air inside, making a treat that's crispy on the outside but fluffy on the inside.
Anyway...I'm sure that plenty of cyclo-cross riders have consumed waffles before and after (and during: they fit well in jersey pockets!) races or training ride. I've carried waffles with me on all sorts of rides--except when I was in Belgium because, there, they could be found in just about any store or stand.
So...Happy Mud Day and Happy Waffle Iron Day. Belgium and the world should celebrate!
31 May 2016
At Least It's Not Electrical
Maybe I am old. After all, I can recall a time when we didn't munch on "energy bars" or anything with the word "energy" in its name. In fact, such terms--let alone the often-inedible snacks they denoted--hadn't yet been invented.
At least, not as such. You see, there were other high-calorie bites that became our foods of choice when we needed a boost--and could be easily stowed in bike jersey pockets, tool bags or backpacks.
One was "gorp". Upon hearing of it for the first time, most people weren't sure of whether it was the sound of an alien swallowing or vomiting. But the word was actually an acronym for "Good Ol' Raisins and Peanuts"--not, as some believed, a synonym for "granola" or "trail mix", though gorp is certainly a type of trail mix. In time, people started mixing the raisins and peanuts with M&M's or other bits of chocolate. (I have always liked miniature nonpareils--milk chocolate in those days, dark chocolate now.) Often, almonds, pistachios, walnuts and other nuts were substituted for peanuts--which are legumes, not nuts--and dried cranberries, cherries, blueberries and other fruits for raisins.
We used to pack a couple of fistfuls of gorp, or other trail mix concoctions, into fold-top sandwich bags like the ones made by Glad. (If I recall correctly, Ziploc hadn't been invented.) We did the same with granola: Back then, nobody had thought to make grainy candy bars out of it.
Aside from those concoctions, the most popular proto-energy snack was probably the banana. In those days, I was riding with the Central Jersey Cycle Club and the Century Road Club. One--or both, perhaps?--used to designate their rides with bananas: a five-banana ride was long and/or involved a lot of climbing or other difficult conditions, while a one-banana ride was a "social" Sunday afternoon ride.
While granola and trail mix had more calories and could keep you feeling full until your lunch or dinner stop, the banana was easier to eat and swallow, especially if your mouth was dry. Also, although food allergies weren't as well-known, we knew that some people had trouble digesting, or simply ingesting, some of the concoctions I've mentioned. (Who knew that one of the most common allergies was to peanuts?) On the other hand, while banana allergies have been documented, they don't seem nearly as common. At least, I've never known anyone who couldn't eat bananas for that reason.
Bananas have one problem, though: While they're easy enough to stash, they're even easier to trash. And, in the process, they can trash whatever you stash them in. All right, that's a bit of an exaggeration. But if you're of my generation, you might have had a banana "explode" or "implode" in the pocket of your wool jersey. Needless to say, it made a mess.
Perhaps such a memory inspired the creator of this:
I mean, really. But, hey, it's versatile, right?:
Would this be allowed in states with a concealed-carry law?:
Then again, it's not that difficult to get a banana stain out of a pair of Levi's 501s. Trust me, I know!
Do you think this is a joke? Well, here's the real joke: the price.
At least, neither the bike--nor the banana--is electrical.
At least, not as such. You see, there were other high-calorie bites that became our foods of choice when we needed a boost--and could be easily stowed in bike jersey pockets, tool bags or backpacks.
One was "gorp". Upon hearing of it for the first time, most people weren't sure of whether it was the sound of an alien swallowing or vomiting. But the word was actually an acronym for "Good Ol' Raisins and Peanuts"--not, as some believed, a synonym for "granola" or "trail mix", though gorp is certainly a type of trail mix. In time, people started mixing the raisins and peanuts with M&M's or other bits of chocolate. (I have always liked miniature nonpareils--milk chocolate in those days, dark chocolate now.) Often, almonds, pistachios, walnuts and other nuts were substituted for peanuts--which are legumes, not nuts--and dried cranberries, cherries, blueberries and other fruits for raisins.
We used to pack a couple of fistfuls of gorp, or other trail mix concoctions, into fold-top sandwich bags like the ones made by Glad. (If I recall correctly, Ziploc hadn't been invented.) We did the same with granola: Back then, nobody had thought to make grainy candy bars out of it.
Aside from those concoctions, the most popular proto-energy snack was probably the banana. In those days, I was riding with the Central Jersey Cycle Club and the Century Road Club. One--or both, perhaps?--used to designate their rides with bananas: a five-banana ride was long and/or involved a lot of climbing or other difficult conditions, while a one-banana ride was a "social" Sunday afternoon ride.
While granola and trail mix had more calories and could keep you feeling full until your lunch or dinner stop, the banana was easier to eat and swallow, especially if your mouth was dry. Also, although food allergies weren't as well-known, we knew that some people had trouble digesting, or simply ingesting, some of the concoctions I've mentioned. (Who knew that one of the most common allergies was to peanuts?) On the other hand, while banana allergies have been documented, they don't seem nearly as common. At least, I've never known anyone who couldn't eat bananas for that reason.
Bananas have one problem, though: While they're easy enough to stash, they're even easier to trash. And, in the process, they can trash whatever you stash them in. All right, that's a bit of an exaggeration. But if you're of my generation, you might have had a banana "explode" or "implode" in the pocket of your wool jersey. Needless to say, it made a mess.
Perhaps such a memory inspired the creator of this:
I mean, really. But, hey, it's versatile, right?:
Would this be allowed in states with a concealed-carry law?:
Then again, it's not that difficult to get a banana stain out of a pair of Levi's 501s. Trust me, I know!
Do you think this is a joke? Well, here's the real joke: the price.
At least, neither the bike--nor the banana--is electrical.
07 February 2015
Eating Right During The Ride
I'm trying to eat more fresh fruits and vegetables and to season them with fresh herbs--especially when I'm riding.
When I was younger, I used to feel as if I could eat or drink damn near anything during and after a long ride. Truth was, I could: I am still amazed at how often I ate rich, fatty foods, how much pasta and bread I scarfed down and how unhealthy some of what I ate was (PopTarts, anyone?) yet lost--or, at least, didn't gain--weight.
But I'm going to be good--or, at least, try to do better. I'm going to pack fruit and nuts in my Brevet bag if I'm doing rides of more than a couple of hours, and one or the other if I'm going to be out for a shorter ride.
If I want fresh herbs or wheat grass to go with my other snacks, I could always grow them:
Hmm... Mini-planters on a bicycle? What will they think of next?
When I was younger, I used to feel as if I could eat or drink damn near anything during and after a long ride. Truth was, I could: I am still amazed at how often I ate rich, fatty foods, how much pasta and bread I scarfed down and how unhealthy some of what I ate was (PopTarts, anyone?) yet lost--or, at least, didn't gain--weight.
But I'm going to be good--or, at least, try to do better. I'm going to pack fruit and nuts in my Brevet bag if I'm doing rides of more than a couple of hours, and one or the other if I'm going to be out for a shorter ride.
If I want fresh herbs or wheat grass to go with my other snacks, I could always grow them:
Hmm... Mini-planters on a bicycle? What will they think of next?
01 August 2014
Going Bananas
Back in the day, when dinosaurs roamed the Earth and we raced on bare rims, shoeless, in three feet of snow, we didn't have energy bars. Therefore, most of us carried things now relegated to the shelves of your local Whole Foods (a.k.a. the store with the most unhealthy-looking healthy customers). I'm talking about things like granola--and bananas.
Bananas are still one of the best foods for cycling. But on warm days, they ripen. So, when you pull one out of your bag--or, worse, your jersey pocket--you're liable to have a mushy mess squooshing through your fingers and, possibly, oozing through the seams of your bag or jersey.
It seems that a San Francisco company called Biken has come up with a solution to the problem:
Will the Banana Holder become this year's must-have accessory?
Bananas are still one of the best foods for cycling. But on warm days, they ripen. So, when you pull one out of your bag--or, worse, your jersey pocket--you're liable to have a mushy mess squooshing through your fingers and, possibly, oozing through the seams of your bag or jersey.
It seems that a San Francisco company called Biken has come up with a solution to the problem:
Will the Banana Holder become this year's must-have accessory?
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