Poppin' Bottles

This year I bonked twice on long rides (100 miles +). It is not a great feeling to go through. The mental and physical pains are extremely unpleasant. What did these two rides have in common? In both of them I was using water bottles. Take a look at any pro cyclists, they are never sporting a camelback. I am sure that they have trained themselves to be efficient by using bottles alone. I can see the benefits of using only bottles; easier to clean, no weight on your back, you can use different supplements (nuun, GU Brew), and they can easily be swapped out on a supported course. However my main drawback to them is ease of use. I just can't get myself to reach down, grab a bottle, use it, and then worst of all, put it back. It is a process in mountain biking that I do not wish to go through. They can easily be dropped or shaken loose and when I get to a flat area I really want to hammer down and can't find a good time to "rest" and drink. Uphills are tough as well because your breathing goes up makes drinking more difficult. And who wants to drink on a downhill? On my mountain bike I am more than willing to add the extra 3 pounds to my back to make drinking easy as well as easy access to food and tools. Where the problem really comes in to play is in my ever increasing gravel rides. I don't want to wear the camelback for 100 miles if I don't HAVE to. At this time of year it is not a problem, my body does not require much water and I can just grab a drink at every few stop signs. But for limited support races like Ragnarok and Almanzo, you have to carry an ample supply of water at all times and be properly hydrated throughout. It is going to take more effort on my part but as this season comes to a close I am going to try this off season to get myself to rely more on bottles and less on the camelback. I am sure that for long races I will still go with the camelback for 2012, but as my confidence and more importantly by discipline increase, hopefully I can rely solely on bottles.