We talked to Tord Asle Gjerdalen and Emilie Fleten, Team XPND Fuel, about their race plans regarding energy.

The importance of getting enough energy during a race has always been a crucial part of long-distance skiing. Compared to running and cycling, there are several challenges.

In cycling, for example, you can easily carry a fair number of sports drinks on the bike, and you take a sip almost whenever you feel like it, with a free hand. You can even fill your pockets on the back of your jersey with bars and gels. 

THE RISE OF THE TUBE BELTS

Traditionally, long-distance skiers have relied on their service team. Many Pro Team athletes have aimed to have staff every five kilometers. In addition, some have used a bottle belt, which can hold a separate water bottle (usually 0.5 to 1.0 liter) on the back of their waist. 

In 2015, we saw a paradigm shift. The Aukland brothers and some other skiers started to use tube belts, a type of water belt that few had worn before. You carry your liquid around your waist, and you drink through a tube that comes up on the front side of your body.

Today, almost everyone in the peloton uses a tube belt to a different extent. The including clip is insufficient on most models, so you need to add Velcro tape. You put one part around the tube and the other on the bib. If the glue isn’t strong enough, you might need to complete it with holding pins. 

One important part when using a tube belt is to drink often; otherwise, the liquid in the tube freezes in cold temperatures. That is something many Pro Team athletes have experienced during a race. 

A LITER IN THE BELT

Emilie Fleten used a tube belt a lot last season. 

“I truly like the tube belts. I can drink often and whenever I want to. Of course, it adds some extra weight, but I don’t think that is a major disadvantage, at least not in events that aren’t that hilly. Usually, I fill my belt with about a liter.”

“I try to mix the sports drink a little stronger than recommended, but I still haven’t found the spot where it is too much for my stomach to handle. I don’t count carbohydrates per hour. Since I have only been a long-distance skier for a short time, I guess I still have lots to learn,” Fleten says.

100 GRAMS PER HOUR

Studies show that you need about 60-100 grams of carbohydrates per hour during long-distance racing. Someone who is counting carbs is Tord Asle Gjerdalen. 

“I try to get 100 grams per hour, but it is difficult. It is hard to drink while skiing when the pace is high, you are panting, and you are not thirsty at all. I try to drink every time the pace in the peloton is a little lower. Since lots of things tend to happen in the latter part of the race, I strive to drink a lot in the beginning.” 

To get up to 100 grams of carbs per hour, Gjerdalen mixes his sports drink 2,5 to 3 times stronger than recommended. 

 “It depends on the race how much I fill my tube belt. If it is a short race and I have good service, I can race without a belt.”

FIBRILLATION IF TOO MUCH CAFFEINE

A way to enhance your performance during a long-distance ski race is to consume caffeine through sports drinks and, more commonly, gels. The amount of caffeine in a gel differs vastly. Some contain 25mg, whereas others contain 100mg. As a reference, you get about 75mg in a cup of coffee.

“I need to count my intake of caffeine since I can get heart fibrillation if I overdose. It has not happened for me in Visma Ski Classics, but as a traditional skier in earlier years. In a race like Vasaloppet, I aim for about 200mg. I take it through gels, partly because then it is easier to control. I have noticed that I tolerate more caffeine if I get sufficient carbs and liquid,” Fleten says. 

Gjerdalen is more aggressive about his caffeine intake.

“In Vasaloppet, I try to get about 400mg, and it might end up at 300mg. I also take two 100mg caffeine gels before the start.”

UNFORGETTABLE BONKINGS

Planning is one thing; reality is another. Both Fleten and Gjderalen have bonked several times during practice and racing, even though both state that it happened more often back in the days. 

“In Engadin La Diagonela in 2020, I totally bonked. The pace was high, so I didn’t take time to drink. In combination with altitude, that made me go from feeling okay to feeling totally exhausted in a second. I had suddenly no power left, and I got dizzy,” Fleten says.

Gjerdalen’s best, or worst, memory from totally running out of energy is from the World Cup, 50km freestyle individual start in Holmenkollen in 2006. He was in 17th place after 33km and ended up in 49th place.

“I skied in the last uphill towards Frognerseteren when I got a drinking feed. A little later, on the same hill, the same person asked me, ‘do you want a little bit more?’ I looked up and saw Thomas Alsgaards. It was during his time as staff in the Swedish National Team. He had walked up the hill beside me at the same pace that I was racing,” concludes Gjerdalen.