The nozzle info helps a lot - thank you. The 150 and 250ml versions come with different nozzles as it seems. Which version is the one you mentioned? https://www.bike24.de/p11008818.html?origin=SRP or https://www.bike24.de/p11008817.html?origin=SRP
Is it the “GEL NOZZLE”?
Thank you!
So it sounds like it perfectly replicated Maurtens gel.
I haven’t tried the gel nozzle yet, but it looks like it wouldn’t be as easy to clean as the flip cap. This flask should have it: HydraPak Softflask 250ml
From the side, it looks just like the version without the silicone valve. The difference is that liquids don’t run out if you hold it upside down with the cap flipped open.
BTW here’s a close-up of the flask threads. Hydrapak on the left, Salomon (made by Hydrapak) on the right.
I’ve made my own Maurten type gels in the past. The calcium is needed as the alginate only gels in the presence of some calcium ions. It also only gels properly with a slicing or chopping type of blender (I’ve no idea why) I used one of those hand held soup blender things, a whisk doesn’t do the job.
That said I rarely bother with the gelling agent, it’s only for mouthfeel/texture, the babble about it from Maurten is probably nonsense.
A recent meta-analysis suggested maltodextrin with fructose was better for gastric emptying than glucose/dextrose and therefore reduced gut upset and a hypotonic mix was better for hydration than isotonic. The Hydrating Effects of Hypertonic, Isotonic and Hypotonic Sports Drinks and Waters on Central Hydration During Continuous Exercise: A Systematic Meta-Analysis and Perspective - PMC
I buy the fructose in a local shop and the maltodextrine online. That works out to €0,21/40g of CHO for the DIY gel (not including shipping), or ~80% cheaper than SiS Beta Fuel Gel.
Another benefit for me is the amount of carbohydrate per volume unit. For my DIY gel its almost 1:1 (60ml of DIY gel contain ~57 grams of carbohydrates) versus 40gr of CHO per 60ml of SiS gel. That means I can carry much more carbohydrates in my back pockets for long and hard rides.
I’ve had the same Flow Formulas flasks for a few years now and the silicone caps do not leak/spill and are easy to clean with a straw brush (don’t remember if they came with the brush or not).
I’ll be following along closely here! I haven’t experimented too much with gels yet, primarily with higher-carb drink mixes in a standard bottle, but I’ve been really pleased with the results this year.
Full disclosure: my job is literally buying almost all of these ingredients, albeit in an adjacent field to sports nutrition, so learning the science and the ratios behind the sports nutrition side has been interesting.
Someone upthread mentioned their maltodextrin was extremely fine. One tip when looking at any of these ingredients in powder form would be to identify the mesh size - it’s a standard which correlates directly with particle size and can be useful to keep track of if you’re trying to troubleshoot a formula or achieve a specific texture in mixing. 100 to 200 mesh is pretty common for this type of powder.
Can you talk about your freezing (and unfreezing) process? Do you break them into smaller batches before freezing or the whole batch? How long to unfreeze? Do you unfreeze the night before?
I want to give this a try but I’m not sure how best to manage this part. Thanks!
It’s not super DIY but I have been using Skratch High Carb for custom gels. 2 scoops and water into a 250ml bike valve flask. I’m also going to try Hummingbird Fuels new gel mix. I should probably look into fully custom but I have been getting Skratch on pretty good discounts.
I’ve frozen all kind of quantities: individual soft flasks plus 500ml and 1,5ltr bottles.
The gel seems to have a really low freezing point as it never fully solidifies in the freezer. It doesn’t seem to expand at all when frozen, so I fill soft flasks and bottles to the same level as I would when not freezing the stuff.
I take whatever I need out of the freezer the night before (if I ride in the morning) as any quantity seems to need at least 4 hours to get to a consumable temperature.
The longest I’ve had gel frozen for is 2 weeks, and didn’t get sick when eating it.
The longest I’ve kept de-frozen gel in the fridge is a couple of days, again without issues.
Thanks! That is super helpful!
Anyone have any ideas how to make lactate gels? I’ve taken my raspberry choc gel mix and bunged 20g of sodium lactate in there, added a bit of lemon juice and I’ll see if my stomach falls out tomorrow..
I have some calcium lactate coming too as I’m worried about the sodium consumption having too many of these, will try that out in a probably 60/40 split next batch.
+1 for cooking it down. Just put your sugarwater mix in a pan and slowly reduce it at low heat. Remember that it will cool down thicker than what you see in the pan, I accidentally made chewy gels my first couple outings.
These days I don’t bother though, FYI you can use an immersion blender to mix 180g of 1:1 malto/fructose into 180ml of water and that fits in a 250ml soft flask (use one with a locking spout, not the ones with only a membrane)
I make my drink mix with a protein shaker cup, or just drop the blender ball directly in my bottle if Im feeling lazy (mostly for trainer rides, it rattles like crazy outside). If Im making a really thick mix I’ll use an immersion blender (in the shaker cup).
just bunged in 25g sodium lactate into 100g of my gel mix and it went down fine
