Umm..I want to join the nut brigade

[Veronica]

Jo did great in spite of feeling crummy and she was quite chipper!

My advice - figure out your nutrition plan. You have to make sure you stay fueled on your ride.

I don't like to eat solid food on a long ride. It took a while for me to figure that out and come up with what would work for me. On yesterday's 90 mile ride I only ate two bags of Cliff Bloks and two bags of Sport Beans. But I drank two full bottles of my Sustain/Gatorade concoction. If we had continued riding I would have switched to a Hammer Gel every hour, plus the beans and bloks. On a long ride I am very obsessive and regimented about my eating and drinking.

V.

[jobob]

Jo did great in spite of feeling crummy and she was quite chipper!

You're so sweet, V. But we were riding a tailwind for the most part. It's easy to be chipper in a tailwind. If I rode back with you, you would have been towing a whimpering whining blob of snot.

[SadieKate]

The power of the mind meld demonstrated half a world away . . . .

I'll echo some of the same questions. What is the longest ride you've done and how about the climb factor? I already had centuries under my belt with some climbing. As you may know over the last couple years, I've been incorporating more climbing into my rides and I had to learn how to eat all over again. Gel flasks (thanks, MP) and careful selection of solid food: P&B sammiches, CC fritos, Haagen-Daz bar, it has to agree with you (V-8 yuck!). Sometimes you won't know until you see it in the corner store and everyone's take on food is different. I think you just need to approach it the way you approach bumping up to each longer distance. Just come up with a plan for increasing your distance and pay attention to martialling your resources.

Depending on how much you need to carry in the way of clothing, lights, etc. (based on weather, expected riding pace vs daylight hours, support), a larger saddle bag is nice. I have a Gilles Berthoud much like the Riv banana bag. However, I felt I lost a lot of time digging around in it for stuff. Since it is floppy and angled downward, all the small items migrated to the bottom. It's nice looking and usable but drove me nuts trying to find things.

Hubby has a Moots Tailgator coming. MP used one for the 400K brevet and it looked like it would solve the problem but it is expensive.

I'm thinking of a Detours High Tail (also available in black if pink is too girly for you ).

My first 200K was a supported ride and I didn't carry anything extra. My 2nd was a brevet and I added an extra tube, plus carried lights and a reflective vest in a bar bag. I could have gone without all of those but 1) I was with a group so could share tubes and 2) daylight hours were minimal so major mechanicals could have put us into dusk if not dark. You have to make your own decisions about this.

One last thing, a map case. I don't use a GPS and the Bar Map OTG worked very well. It is both small enough and mounted far enough forward to not hit my legs when climbing. Space for your brevet card, a pencil and money. It could cover up your computer but a FSA control center extension worked great for that. Depending on your route, you may be able to memorize the entire thing and not need a route slip right in front of you.

Good luck, great goal and keep us up to date with developments.

SK

[Fredwina]

i use a Topeak Beam rack with an expandable bag. works great. sometimes it's a little small, but I'd think it makes pack smarter
I carry tow or tubes and a patch kit. Unlike NorCal, we have to put with goathead thorns and Cactus spines.
Take a look at the route - does it have services? The 300K i did in March had no services on a 100K stretch.I had to laugh when I look at the Cue sheet for the Arizona 300K I'm planning on doing Saturday. The RBA (regional Brevet Administrator) had on her cue sheet "limited Services" . there's a store about every 50-60k. The San Diego series had water and stuff at their controls - You were on your own at Cayucos.
How long will it take you? and when does it start? That should tell you if you need lights and reflective stuff.
I also a have Bar Map OTG - I'm not sure if it's available "down Under". I also have light on my helmet that I use to read the map and Computer at night;
Here's my Brevet bike. I've put a different handlebar on it:

and here's my "night rider" helmet:

[SadieKate]

I carry tow or tubes and a patch kit. Unlike NorCal, we have to put with goathead thorns and Cactus spines.

Whachu been smokin'? Goatheads all over inland northern California. And this nasty creeping vine that seems to grow mostly along bike trails and throws thorns at you as you ride by. Plenty of prickly pear but it seems to keep its thorns under control.

BTW, whoever asked. The bar map that Fredwina photo'd is actually larger than the Bar Map of the Gods. The OTG is the "queen" because it folds up and has pockets, but the profile of the folded map on your bars is smaller.