Long ride nutrition

[richie_b]

I'm starting to plan a 100 mile a day for 9 or 10 day ride next year.
Some details will start to appear here
My question, having never done anything like this before, is about food: what & how much?
I'm going to be out in the back side of nowhere & riding 100 miles a day. How much am I going to need to eat on a daily basis? & are there any hints or tips on what can be eaten easily before/during/after ride? I'm going to be away from population centres, so easily available things are far more preferable.
In case it's not complicated enough, I'm Type I diabetic too, so anything sugary is a complete no-no....

Thanks in advance

[bob_summers]

i wouldn't know where to begin re. the diabetes, but i'll follow this thread as i'm doing a long tour (off road) in september and similarly thinking about what food to take.
i had a quick look at your blog and it looks like a tough but wonderful 10 days.

[Simon E]

richie, not being an expert the two things I can suggest are:
1. get some specialist nutrition advice.
2. do some long rides.

Don't rely on anyone who isn't familiar with your condition, and as you know not all diabetics respond similarly. However, velonews.com's Feedzone sometimes has useful articles, like this one. I'd also do some looking for info and riders' experiences on sites such as http://forum.ctc.org.uk/ http://www.cyclechat.co.uk/forums/ and nuggets like this forum thread. There's even a US race team with Type 1 riders, http://www.teamtype1.org/

If you get some distance rides done beforehand you should begin to understand how your body responds in those circumstances - what kinds of foods it tolerates well, and which ones you can still manage to eat 4 hours into your ride. And don't forget when you're doing multiple day rides you're fuelling for the next day even before you finish the current day's pedalling.