Where Do Ultrarunners Buy Gels? Inside the Stores Elites Trust

Running 100 miles in a single effort breaks down your body in ways most people never think about. Your muscles burn through glycogen stores. Your stomach turns against you somewhere around mile 60. The gel that tasted fine during training suddenly makes you gag at 3 a.m. on a mountain trail. For ultrarunners, finding the right fuel becomes a personal science project, and where they shop for that fuel says a lot about what actually works when the stakes are highest.

Courtney Dauwalter knows this better than most. In 2023, she became the first person ever to win Western States 100, Hardrock 100, and UTMB in the same year. Three iconic 100-mile races. Three wins. One summer. That kind of performance does not happen by accident, and it certainly does not happen without getting nutrition right.

So where does someone like Dauwalter go to stock up on gels, chews, and waffles? She shops at The Feed. And she is far from the only elite who does.

The Tour de France Connection

Matt Johnson started The Feed in 2013 after spending years as President of Slipstream Sports, which operates World Tour cycling teams including Garmin, Cannondale, and the EF Pro Cycling Team. Working at the Tour de France level showed him something that most recreational athletes never see up close: better nutrition was giving professional riders a real advantage.

The gains were specific and measurable. Riders who dialed in their fueling got more out of every training session. They performed stronger in the last 20% of races and maintained form through the grueling final week of 3-week stage races. Johnson saw this firsthand, and the idea for The Feed came from a simple question: what if everyday cyclists, runners, and triathletes could access the same fueling knowledge and products that World Tour riders use?

He co-founded the company with professional cyclist Bryan Smith. Their approach was different from typical sports nutrition retailers. The Feed hand-picks and curates products, then delivers them with guidance on when and how to use them. The company offers personal service from experts alongside a full shopping experience where athletes can browse on their own.

Why Courtney Dauwalter Chose The Feed

Dauwalter explained her partnership with The Feed in simple terms. "I am excited to partner with The Feed because they're a one-stop shop for nutrition & recovery tools, and are focused on helping all athletes train & perform at their best," she said.

She also mentioned something that matters a lot to ultrarunners: the ability to experiment. "I have been playing around with my race nutrition the past few years and while I dialed in my hydration with Tailwind Nutrition Endurance Fuel, I am always trying different combinations of gels, chews & waffles to see what works the best for me. The Feed is perfect for all the mixing and matching I love to do!"

In early 2024, Dauwalter won the Transgrancanaria Classic for the second consecutive year, finishing in 15:14:54. That time put her more than an hour ahead of second place. Her favorite products are marked on The Feed's website, giving other runners a window into what fuels one of the sport's best performers.

The Single-Serving Difference

Here is a problem most runners know well: you buy a box of 24 gels, take one on a training run, and realize you hate the flavor or the texture or the way it sits in your stomach. Now you have 23 gels you will never use sitting in a drawer.

The Feed solves this by letting athletes buy individual servings. One gel. Two chews. A single waffle. You can test a product before committing to a whole box. This sounds like a small thing until you consider that ultrarunners often consume 200 to 400 calories per hour during races. Finding the right combination of products that your stomach will tolerate for 20 or 30 hours requires a lot of trial and error.

The platform carries more than 300 brands, including over 15 that are exclusive to The Feed in North America. Science in Sport Isotonic Gels, for example, are sold only through The Feed in North America. That level of selection means runners can compare products from dozens of manufacturers without visiting multiple stores or websites.

Taylor Knibb and the Multi-Sport Connection

Ultrarunning shares a lot of nutritional demands with other endurance sports, which is why it matters that The Feed has built relationships across multiple disciplines. Taylor Knibb became part of The Feed's High Performance Team, and her credentials speak for themselves.

Knibb won the Women's Ironman 70.3 World Championship in 2022, 2023, and 2024. She also qualified for two sports at the 2024 Summer Olympics: triathlon and the cycling time trial. Under her partnership with The Feed, she receives access to the full product range plus personalized nutrition guidance from the company's coaching team.

"The Feed offers me access to products I can't get from other places, and I also get support and education from a team of expert nutrition coaches," Knibb said. "Nutrition is a critical aspect of my training and performance and something I'm always trying to improve on and dial in."

Her current go-to product is Science in Sport Isotonic Gels. The coaches at The Feed help her develop tailored nutrition plans for each race, addressing the specific demands of different distances and conditions.

Free Coaching Changes the Equation

One feature that separates The Feed from typical retailers is free nutrition support from Feed Coaches. This service is available to anyone who shops there, from beginners working on their first marathon to seasoned ultrarunners preparing for 100-mile efforts.

The coaches can help with race day planning, training nutrition, and troubleshooting problems like stomach distress during long efforts. They are available to chat live, which means athletes can get answers to specific questions rather than reading generic advice articles.

For ultrarunners, this coaching matters because fueling for races lasting 20 to 30 hours involves variables that do not come up in shorter events. Temperature swings from day to night, altitude changes on mountain courses, sleep deprivation effects on digestion, the point where you stop being able to stomach sweet foods and need something savory: all of these require planning and often require adjustments based on personal trial and error.

USA Triathlon Partnership

The Feed's credibility extends to institutional partnerships as well. USA Triathlon announced a partnership that kicked off in 2024 and provides members with an $80 credit to The Feed when they join the USA Triathlon program. The partnership also supports USA Triathlon's high-performance team as they prepared for the 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games in Paris.

USA Triathlon had previously worked with The Feed in 2022 and 2023 through a smaller collaboration. Based on the value the partnership provided to members and the early success of the program, both organizations extended the relationship through 2025.

For context, USA Triathlon serves as the National Governing Body for triathlon, duathlon, aquathlon, aquabike, winter triathlon, off-road triathlon, paratriathlon, and indoor and virtual multisport events in the United States. Founded in 1982, the organization sanctions more than 3,500 events and connects with over 300,000 active members each year, making it the largest multisport organization in the world.

When an organization of that size chooses to partner with a nutrition retailer, it signals something about the quality and reliability of that retailer.

The 2025 High Performance Team

The Feed unveiled its 2025 High Performance Team, a group of world-class athletes from various sports and backgrounds. The purpose goes beyond standard sponsorship arrangements. The company aims to build a community where top athletes become "teammates" to everyday athletes looking to improve their own performance.

The concept gives recreational runners and triathletes access to information about how elite performers approach training, nutrition, racing, and recovery. Instead of guessing what works or following generic advice, athletes can learn from people who compete at the highest levels in their sports.

For ultrarunners, this kind of access has practical value. The sport is still young enough that best practices are not fully established. Learning what works for athletes like Dauwalter provides a starting point for developing personalized strategies.

Behind the Operations

The Feed operates from Boulder, Colorado, which puts the company in one of the world centers for endurance sports. The company has been growing 60 to 70% annually and is building robotics systems to increase speed and capacity in their warehouse.

This operational side matters because endurance athletes often need products quickly. A race is coming up in two weeks, you realized your usual gel brand is out of stock at local stores, and you need to find an alternative fast. Reliable shipping and a well-stocked warehouse become important practical considerations.

The company is also exploring brand acquisitions, which suggests they are looking to deepen their product offerings and possibly bring more exclusive products to their customers.

What This Means for Ultrarunners

Covering distances that exceed 100 miles in a single effort puts demands on the body that few other activities can match. Having access to hundreds of brands, the ability to buy single servings for testing, and expert coaching support addresses one of the sport's most difficult variables: finding fueling strategies that work under extreme conditions.

The endorsements from athletes like Courtney Dauwalter and Taylor Knibb point to practical value that elite performers find in this approach. These are athletes who have won at the highest levels of their sports, and they have chosen The Feed as their nutrition partner.

For recreational ultrarunners trying to figure out what to eat during a 50-mile or 100-mile race, that kind of validation from proven performers offers a useful signal about where to start shopping.

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