You can’t eat THAT on the bike!

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Despite having been away from the US for more than two decades, Thanksgiving is still a holiday I celebrate.

And my wife, who is not even American, has cooked many turkeys over the years and seems to enjoy the holiday as much as I do – or at least that’s how she makes it look!

The morning after Thanksgiving this year, I had a long ride planned with a few friends. So why not bring a turkey leg or some corn on the cob as my ride fuel?

That might be a bit ridiculous, but here’s something also ridiculous, but actually feasible: Bring mashed potatoes and gravy.

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Neighbor, American, and fellow Westerner Dan Hughes (I’m from E. Oregon, next to Idaho, and he’s from Utah, so it’s impossible for either of us to not be potato-eaters) chanced upon Idahoan brand instant mashed potatoes and McCormick Mushroom Gravy seasoning mix.

He found that they had all the right nutrients to rival any lab-tested, pro-endorsed endurance fuel.

Yep, the humble potato, under a bit of gravy, was going to go up against my Hammer, UCAN, and Precision Hydration.

Mixing it up was all pretty easy. I boiled a few cups of water, poured the instant mixes in (separately, of course) and put them in bottles.

I diluted the potatoes to make them liquidy enough to be consumed through a standard bidon. They ended up tasting more like potato soup than anything.

I poured the gravy into a small flask from Hammer, normally used to hold gel. That was perfect.

Then I brought one other food – was it corn, cranberries, apple pie, or turkey? Watch the video above to find out.

Overall, it worked. I did 158 km and this was sufficient. Here’s the breakdown of the potatoes and gravy:

Idahoan Butter and Herb Mashed Potatoes
440 calories
2080 mg sodium
76 g of carbs

That’s the same as:
4 gels + 3 PH 1500s or 7 UCAN Hydrate sticks

McCormick Mushroom Gravy
60 calories
1010 mg of sodium
15 g of carbs

That’s fewer calories and carbs than any gel but more sodium than any single sodium dosage of any endurance product.

Now if only I can figure out how to mix up a bottle of turkey meat…

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