Originally Posted by cyclinrunt
What is the average lenth of a bottle exchange station? I'm talking about from the time one grabs a bottle, to the point at which it is still legal to throw one's empty. I'm practicing refilling my neverreach system, and I want to know if I'm hitting the mark.
I have never use the system you have - but bottles have worked fine for me.
Depends on the race, but a good guess would be 40-yards for the exchange area give or take.
I tend to enter the zone slowing to about 15 mph, pitch the empty (keeping one full bottle on board at all times) and with my cycle jersey zipped about 1/2 way I quickly grab 1 bottle of Gatorade and 1 bottle of water - stuffing them into my jersey. This technique allows me to focus on bike handling and other riders. I then get back to near race speed and grab the water drink some and dump some over me to keep cool. Then place the other bottle on the bike and get back to racing.
Good luck