Sharkies Energy Chews are a new quick energy solution from the organic food company that was started in 2003 by a triathlete. All the products are made in the USA with Certified USDA Organic and Non-GMO ingredients. They are also vegan-friendly and free of gluten, soy, wheat, dairy, tree-nuts, eggs, and peanuts.
Seattle Backpackers Magazine Gear Manager, Isaac Tait, sat down with ultra-runner Chad Lauterbach to discuss the merits of this new product.
SBM: So I guess the biggest question is, “How do they taste?”
Lauterbach: They taste good. They do taste like sugar chews but not in a bad way. I found all the flavors pleasant and was happy to eat them on the trail or road. The texture is very similar to other chews when at room temperature or warmer. One thing that bugs me about all chews, though, is that they get stuck in your teeth and it takes a bit of an effort to get them down. The Sharkies Turbo Energy Chews were no different.
SBM: What was your favorite flavor?
Lauterbach: I would probably say Berry Blast, but I liked them all though.
SBM: Did you have any noticeable results? For example, did you notice an increase in speed, decrease in recovery time, etc.?
Lauterbach: This product is about getting high-density calories into you fast. They worked for that. If I had any hunger, it went away and I never bonked while using them. So yes, I did find them effective. Their selling point, of course, is that they are far more natural/organic than other options that are packed with chemicals. So to that end, I liked the fact that I was eating organic brown rice syrup for energy rather than who knows what, which one tends to find in a lot of the other “energy supplements” on the market.
SBM: Would you recommend them to a friend?
Lauterbach: Yeah I would, especially to a friend who is concerned about getting their energy from an organic source.
SBM:Were there any downsides to the Sharkies Chews?
Lauterbach: I had two concerns: First, I could find no information on the Sharkies website about some of the ingredients – namely Pectin, “Natural Flavors”, Colors Added, or Carnauba wax and why they are used. Certainly there has to be something not 100% natural about them to be in the form they are in, right? The second issue is that these chews got harder when cold than most I’ve used. This made them a bit challenging to eat. Normally, they would not be cold as I wear them in my waist pack when running so they stay warm. However, if someone were on a cold trip and was keeping them, say, in a backpack, they would need to warm them up to comfortably eat them.
SBM: Any final thoughts before we wrap up?
Lauterbach: Overall, I liked them. The flavor is enjoyable and they are slightly smaller in size than the other offerings out there, which makes them easier to eat – at least for me. I mostly ingest gels on my runs but these chews do have their place and, for what they offer, they certainly have their uses and benefits for training and racing.
Sharkies Turbo Energy Chews are available in Strawberry Turbo Caffeinated, Fruit Splash, Berry Blast, and Watermelon flavors.
Ingredients: Organic Tapioca Syrup; Organic Dried Cane Syrup; Organic Maltodextrin; Pectin; Citric Acid; Green Tea Extract; Natural Flavor; Potassium Citrate; Colored with Carrot, Blueberry, and Black Currant Juice Concentrates; Sea Salt; Organic Sunflower Oil; Carnauba Wax.
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