Why did Maurten gels never become popular in USA?

Limited distribution channels and expensive. And to be fair, how many foreign brands are successful in then US?

Actually Maurten is the nutrition sponsor for Boston Marathon and Chicago Marathon. They also have been immensely growing in popularity for elite U.S. distance runners and the popularity is rising in the NCAA. I know NAU and UNC uses it quite frequently. Check your facts, Maurten is growing in the U.S. and will be even bigger leading into 2028 Olympics.

Doesn’t the top american runners use them?

I thought every single middle/long-distance runner at the top level was using them. The european runners like ingebrigtsen/almgren/narve as well as african runners like Kipchoge/cheptegei for sure use their products. It sounds very strange that american mid/long distance runners wouldnt want to stay competitive.

I don’t think the masses like them due to their elitist marketing approach. A gel in jet black packaging for $4? This is fun running, not a CIA black ops mission. I know they have some science, but people like their fun purple GU gels for $1.

It’s to do with US obsession with track and anything road related gets forgotten, why would a non US company promote something that no one will buy

Toyota?

Carbon plated racing shoes cost double what a decent daily trainer does and have measurable performance benefits.

Maurten gels cost double what other gels do and give you the exact same molecules of glucose and fructose.

I switched to Maurten a couple of years ago (turned on to it at the BM). They have a good diversity of products that did wonders for me. Was a CLIFF fans for a long time. The coloring in the CLIFF Double Expresso turns my pee brown and kinda scares me. Never know if its the coloring or I'm bringing on a case of rhabdomyolysis.

Many people (including myself) find that Maurten lets then consume much more carbs/hr than GU without GI issues.

There certainly are other more reasonable priced options, though - SIS Beta Fuel seems about as good and costs much less.

Price. Americans love discounts and low prices so they will buy loads of inferior crap because success means owning more stuff rather than having a few high quality things.

They’re my favorite, but so expensive I only use them for races and race specific training where I’m practicing race day nutrition.

I don’t understand the drinks though. I got a box a few years ago in a combo package and a few years later still have almost all of it. Not a fan of drinking that volume of carbs. It probably works for really long runs but I can’t get my head around it.

How many american runners / walkers have even heard of them?

How many 'runners' / marathon finishers even use gels?

We sell GU at our shop and get a fair number of Boston qualifiers asking about Maurten. The Boston charity runners that we sell to typically do not use gels and are using beverages or even carrying actual food (bananas, sandwiches, etc..).

Price. They cost at least twice as much as the alternatives. I don't mind paying up for a better product but liquid GUs are fine.

Price .... plus maurten only sells them in packs of 10, so lots of people don't want to drop $50 for 10, but might be more likely to buy one or two at a time.

Don't get me wrong, if money were no object they'd probably be my go-to all the time. But I don't think they're twice as good as GU, for example.

But even GU, or any other brand, is too expensive for what you get when you can make your own for a fraction of the cost.

SIS is only available through The Feed in the US where as Maurten is more available. Most marathoners that are somewhat experienced use Maurten.