Stay Hydrated

[Astrobob]

Wow, I went on a beautiful 425 mile ride to and along the Gulf Coast of Florida yesterday witnessing beautiful aquamarine colors in the water and did not realize that I needed to take in more water/fluid. It was an uncharacteristically cool day with a front having moved through and the cool Gulf breezes  lured me into a false sense of being. Last night was a rough one and I felt over-temped all night and did not quite figure it out until early this morning. I had not had enough fluids! After drinking a bunch of water and even some Gatorade, I am feeling better. Anyway, the take home message is, make sure you get plenty of fluids on longer rides. I know we hate to have to stop to offload some of that fluid but hey, it is not worth feeling crappy Bob

[Pfloydgad]

Being a Diabetic, it is very important to stay hydrated. An easy way to check is to look at the color of your urine. The brighter or more vivid color of yellow means you are dehydrated to a certain degree.
 The lighter or thinner, your hydration is ok.
You gotta water the horse eventually, so look while you drain.
Ride safe all.
Greg

[timsatx]

Wow, I went on a beautiful 425 mile ride to and along the Gulf Coast of Florida yesterday witnessing beautiful aquamarine colors in the water and did not realize that I needed to take in more water/fluid. It was an uncharacteristically cool day with a front having moved through and the cool Gulf breezes  lured me into a false sense of being. Last night was a rough one and I felt over-temped all night and did not quite figure it out until early this morning. I had not had enough fluids! After drinking a bunch of water and even some Gatorade, I am feeling better. Anyway, the take home message is, make sure you get plenty of fluids on longer rides. I know we hate to have to stop to offload some of that fluid but hey, it is not worth feeling crappy Bob

As you mentioned, it was a cool day. When driving through a place such as Texas during the summer you need to stay hydrated. You already lose fluids from the heat, now add in the wind if you are wearing a mesh jacket or even more sweating when wearing a more substantial jacket and I think you can see that 14 hours of that could be harmful to you if you do not hydrate.

[Astrobob]

I was wearing a mesh jacket. I did not get much of a sense of the moisture being wicked off as I rode. My serious error.

[lt1]

Wow, I went on a beautiful 425 mile ride to and along the Gulf Coast of Florida yesterday witnessing beautiful aquamarine colors in the water and did not realize that I needed to take in more water/fluid. It was an uncharacteristically cool day with a front having moved through and the cool Gulf breezes  lured me into a false sense of being. Last night was a rough one and I felt over-temped all night and did not quite figure it out until early this morning. I had not had enough fluids! After drinking a bunch of water and even some Gatorade, I am feeling better. Anyway, the take home message is, make sure you get plenty of fluids on longer rides. I know we hate to have to stop to offload some of that fluid but hey, it is not worth feeling crappy Bob

Amen.  Here in AZ, you have to be careful about staying hydrated.  I went camping in nice cool weather, and then rode back into the heat.  I was just enough over-heated that I was waking up every couple of hours and drinking Gatorade all night long.  By the next day I was okay again.

As stated, it is real easy not to notice becoming dehydrated wearing mesh on a warm (as opposed to a hot) day.

The sad part was that I was wearing my Camelback, but just didn't feel the need/have the sense to keep sipping from it.

[gPink]

Do to my work, I keep some of these on the bike.

http://www.grainger.com/Grainger/SWIFT-Electrolyte-Tablets-3EWN4

[Steve D]

Yeap, I learned my lesson big time last summer.  After 1200 miles riding over a couple days in Louisiana and Mississippi last summer and not staying hydrated I ended up in the emergency room with a horrendous pain in my side that I learned was kidney stones.  After multiple procedures and if it were not for my health insurance, nearly $100,000 in medical bills I had them removed the hard way.   Very unpleasant experience to say the least.
So you don’t have to tell me twice.  Drink plenty and if you gotta stop before you really want to, it’s just what you gotta do.

[Stasch]

I got dehydrated once on a bike trip, and never want to feel like that again.  You feel terrible all over for quite a while until you can recover.

Cooler weather can fool you, especially when you're wearing Mesh.  You're losing a lot of water, but you just don't realize it.

Now I drink lots of water from the camelback in the tankbag when on the road for more than a couple of hours.  Have to stop more often for potty breaks, but it sure beats the very unloving feelin' of being dehydrated.

[Vic Salisbury]

Wow, I went on a beautiful 425 mile ride to and along the Gulf Coast of Florida yesterday witnessing beautiful aquamarine colors in the water ........

so right about hydration, I use a Camelbak with a 90 degree mouthpiece, works great!

Bob, where are you located at on the gulf coast? I'm in the Bradenton/Sarasota area.

[martin_14]

not much to add here, Hydration is definitely crucial to keep well. Fortunately for me, I get headaches when slightly dehydrated, so that's my "hey, you, give me water" reminder.

[BS-in-KS]

When I went out to California to pick up my bike last March/April, the owner was surprised at how much gear I'd brought.  My intent was to carry my camelback in my tank bag but I was having a difficult time getting my old outdated tank bag attached.   He said "Aw, you don't need it there.  Just strap it to the back.  You have to stop every couple hundred miles for gas anyway, you can get a drink then."  After I mentioned that I was diabetic and always carried water within easy reach he stopped arguing. 

I've had a few times when I forgot or didn't want to be bothered with it and wound up dehydrated.  I'd like to say that I've learned my lesson but though I try to carry water often, there are still times when I do dumb things. 

Brent S.

[graham downunder]

Wish I had seen this last week ,I just road 17 hours on monday and did not drink enough water . I just was not thirsty.
Normally I drink some water before I ride as it is proven that it is hard to rehydrate once you have dehydrated .