• What could possibly go wrong? •
[2 MIN READ]
My past DE (Running Festival) Marathon put me in a quandary when I arrived with none of my usual race fuel (‘Of course it’s all in my running bag, where else would it be?’ How about: ‘At home in a different bag’?). Many long runs and races have confirmed the role of good fuel for a successful effort. What’s a competitor to do without their usual stash? Marathon rudder bunny had his own and a little extra, but it was certainly not enough for me: I would have to use what the race stations had to offer.
At mile 9, when it was my normal fueling time, I found the usual water and Gatorade and…potato chips. I grabbed a bag and started debating the implications of consuming it. As fuel goes, potato chips have salt and carbs that convert quickly to glucose—plus. The biggest concern was dry mouth—negative—but I usually fuel with granola bars anyway. Letting potato chips sit in my mouth to moisten would actually be easier than granola and the idea of the quick fuel made sense to me. Down they went.
Other racers have had bad experiences taking a brand of gel that they’ve never tried before and experienced leaden stomachs. My own experience of using caffeinated goos beginning from the start race (vs. just the end) made me take my first unhydration break ever in a marathon (Caffeine is a diuretic, so it functioned as billed.). As for potato chips, some online research, after the fact, points to their value as marathon recovery food and ultramarathon mid-race fuel. They all seem to agree never to try anything new during a race.
Guess what? Mission accomplished. The potato chips went down great not one but 2 times. And the race performance? Ten-minute negative splits and my first sub-4-hour marathon in 3 years. Sure, the course, weather, and race strategy were all phenomenal, but I might now have found a new race fuel. It’s at least one I won’t be afraid to use the next time I see them in a race.
Read also: Race Report – DE Running Festival Marathon
-CtCloser (Calvinthe) #negativesplitorpositivesplat” #dothedue
FINE PRINT ¶Text by Calvin Wang (Wäng), CC BY-NC-SA 4.0. ¶Cross-published: Facebook Shawmont Running Club (ZY Weekly Newsletter 5/10/25), Shawmont Running Club website, Ruminations by CtCloser. ¶This website posting: Rumination with added caption and image.
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