How To Fuel 110km Gravel Race – Winning Insight From Damien Clayton

Damien was a full-time professional road cyclist for three years before returning to a career in architecture. During his time as a pro he could boost wins like UCI race Grand Prix des Marbriers, so he’s no stranger to getting his hands in the air.

Despite some impressive results already, Damien is still relatively new to gravel racing, having only really given it a proper go at the Dirty Reiver early on in 2025. He actually only really signed up to that because his partner was doing it, but I absolutely loved it—and it definitely left him hungry for more.

In June, he took on the 300km Frontier event, winning it in a time of 10 hours 23 minutes, averaging 28.8km/h with only around 50 minutes stoppage time. And then he only went and rode 288km home the next day. Madness!

For this article we asked Damien about his win at Dalby Grit and how he fuelled the win.

How did the race pan out?

‘On the day, I felt comfortable throughout and was able to push hard: 351 NP / 305 AP for 3h 20m. I attacked to thin the group with a 5-minute effort at around 470W, and after dropping my breakaway companion, I rode solo at 360W for 50 minutes to build a 10-minute lead.’

How was the Dalby Grit course?

The course was a great mix: fast sections, singletrack, flowing descents, steeper loose climbs, and just a touch of tarmac—really well designed to avoid overlap between groups. It was 110km with 1442m of climbing. I averaged 33km per hour finishing in 3h 36 minutes.

I aimed for 150g of carbs per hour,  but ended up consuming 660g of carbohydrates in total. Due to consistently taking onboard carbs throughout,  I never felt like I had a dip in energy. I total I burned around 3700kcal so it was definitely important keep on top of fuel supple.

The products I used were 5 x Super Gels, 2 x Duo Bars, 2 x Energy Chew, 4 x Super Carb Sachets & Hydro Tabs. This was spread evenly over the 3.5 hours.

Top Nutrition Tips:

• Personally, I like getting as much as possible in my bottles—it’s hydration + energy in one, and easier to take on board without needing to reach for gels.
• For longer events, I’ll often put hydration tabs in my pack too. I believe in packing generously—you don’t want to be wishing for more food out there.
• Training with race-day nutrition is also key, so your gut is well adapted to taking on higher volumes of carbohydrates.