Latin America's oldest and most traditional MTB marathon — since 1993, held every September in the historic iron-mining mountains around Mariana, Minas Gerais.
Build Your Personalized Race Fueling Plan — $19Three windows shape every endurance result: what you eat in the hours before the start, what you take in on the bike, and how you recover once you cross the line.
1–4 g/kg carbohydrate 2–4 hours before the gun, from familiar low-fiber, low-fat foods. A 154 lb rider targets 140–280 g CHO. Pão de queijo + banana + honey or arroz + mel are proven Brazilian options — no experiments on race morning.
Fuel BEFORE entering technical sections and IMMEDIATELY after exiting them — never force intake with both hands on the bar. Set a 15-minute alarm on the head unit as a backstop. On climbs, sip constantly and take a gel every 20 min.
Within 30–60 minutes of the finish: 1.0–1.2 g/kg carbohydrate and 0.3 g/kg protein, plus 150% fluid replacement. Iron Biker's 3-day format means recovery nutrition on day 1 (Friday warm-up) shapes day 3 (Sunday marathon) — do not skip it.
| T-4 h | Wake, coffee, first breakfast (1–2 g/kg CHO) from familiar low-fiber, low-fat foods: pão de queijo + banana + honey, arroz + mel, or oatmeal + fruit. Hydrate 17 fl oz with sodium. |
|---|---|
| T-2 h | Second small feed (~50 g CHO) — fruit + sports drink. Chamois cream, sunscreen SPF 50+, kit on with morning layer. |
| T-90 min | Bike check — tire pressure, brakes, chain lube, dropper, computer, bottles loaded (pre-mixed), top-tube bag stocked. Layer for 50–59 °F start. |
| T-45 min | Ride or drive to the start venue. Sip 7–10 fl oz sports drink. Restroom. |
| T-20 min | First caffeine dose (100–200 mg if used). Final sunscreen check. Confirm HR / power start plan with yourself. Warm layer over kit until 5 min out. |
| T-5 min | Half a gel. Breathe. Commit to a conservative first hour (do not chase early surges). |
| Gun | Rollout. Cap effort in the first hour — the deciding sections come at hours 3–5, not in the opening rush. |
A practical race-week checklist: carbs, hydration, sodium, caffeine and race-day supplies — print it or keep it on your phone.
Every athlete is different. FTP, finish time, body weight, sweat rate, weather, nutrition preferences and race goals all change what you should eat and drink.
FuelQ Pro builds a personalized race fueling strategy tuned to your ride — carbohydrate, hydration, sodium, caffeine and recovery, mapped to the course.
A Race Fueling Plan gives you a personalized strategy for this event. The free checklist helps you prepare the basics first: race-week setup, 48-hour prep, race morning, hydration, sodium, caffeine, aid stations, and backup calories.
