I wanted to throw this out there to see if anyone else had been thinking about finding a way to design a larger volume “integrated” hydration solution for their bike. I got a new bike recently so it got me thinking about this again (previous bike I just used one frame and two x-lab rear cages). My new bike frame is smaller (not as tall of stack), and I’ve found it difficult to use the “taller” bike bottles in it (they fit but are difficult to get back in without some creative angling).
Specifically - my issue is the ability to have something on your bike that is easy to refill on the fly, easy to drink, etc. I know there are plenty of options out there and people seem to be doing just fine with them - but nothing that I’ve seen has the capacity for greater than 40 ounces. If you are like me and need 60 ounces or more per half ironman distance and carry your own nutrition versus race-provided, then if you have something that holds 40 ounces then you still need to have a second way to carry that last 20 ounces.
The current SpeedFil 40 ounce one seems like the best design, but then I would STILL need to attach another bottle. I also don’t really want something installed on or under my aerobars. Tri bikes are already squirrely with handling because we put a lot of weight on the front.
My thoughts were that if the current triangular SpeedFil were taller - it might fit 60+ ounces (but could make difficult to refill similar to my issue with taller water bottles). I thought you might be able to get around that problem by having the system have a “refill” tube which is attached to an assembly that sits between the aerobars (this assembly would not be meant to hold fluid but just provide a means to refill the lower reservoir without needing the opening to fit within the frame triangle.) Then the “drink” tube would exit where it currently does.
Why not carry 3 bottles? You can fit 2 behind saddle, 2 on bike tubes and one BTA…you just need to figure out which 3 of those 5 spots works best for you. And you can fit 28 ounce bottle BTS. Or do 2 concentrated bottles and one water from the course at aid stations. You are overthinking this.
My new bike frame is smaller (not as tall of stack), and I’ve found it difficult to use the “taller” bike bottles in it (they fit but are difficult to get back in without some creative angling).
Look for a side-load bottle cage to help with that.
The current SpeedFil 40 ounce one seems like the best design
Said no one ever.
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I am not overthinking - I stated that I’ve used three bottles in the past, with two behind the seat and one on the frame. While that works, adding an x-wing adds weight and let’s face it - sitting up to grab bottles repeatedly versus having a nice convenient straw where you don’t have to mess around with things is preferable.
For me between the aerobars is a no-go.
I want a single reservoir that fits 60 ounces. Why is this such a far fetched ask?
Its the only bottle out there that looks like what I was thinking of - a large volume reservoir that fits in the frame triangle. But I know it won’t work for me because I’m not going to bother putting that thing on when I STILL need an x-wing for an 3rd bottle. Plus I doubt it would even fit properly in my frame.
Which bike and size did you switch to? I’m not sure adding 1 bottle between your aerobars will make you any more squirrely. Especially if you go with an option that doesn’t add surface area for the wind to play with. I am easily able to carry 60 ounces and if I need more, I just grab a bottle from an aid station.
I used a 50-ounce bottle years ago. It made by bike feel like a tank. Sport quest brand maybe??? I think there is a product called never reach that might be 100 ounces but since you are concerned about weight I’m not sure strapping one enormous bottle makes much sense. But you can google it; may be able to find one on eBay or something.