Tomorrow is the big homemade gel test run. We’ll be putting in 21 miles on the trail. I bottled the batches of gel I made yesterday in some thrifty little finds from Walmart:
97 cent reusable shampoo bottles - travel size.
Each bottle is 3 oz. I marked the bottles in 1/3 fo easier measurement. Then, using a small funnel, I filled each 2/3 with gel and the rest with my juice choice for flavor: cran-apple juice.
I also filled my gel flask: before mixing.
after mixing
Oh, and I added one more ingredient: caffeine. I bought Walgreen’s brand caffeine tablets, crushed them into a powder and mixed them in the gel.
Gu brand gels have about 20 mg of caffeine per oz. Some flavors have double caffeine. I went for about 30 mg per oz.
So, @markicksass: the gel batch I make is unflavored. Then, I can flavor each bottle differently if I like. Flavors are endless. Lemonade, apple, grape, vanilla, chocolate, caramel, etc. @whatisupwithtrish says she makes apple cinnamon gu with apple cider as the base and a little cinnamon.
@ontherunmama: Gu brand gel comes out of the flask well if you thin it with water. I made my gel to a consistency that, once you add juice to flavor, comes out of the flask especially well.
