Thank you thank you thank you!
Yes, I have been running through- are the brakes grabbing? Do I not have enough air in the tires? Am I pathetic?
I love the idea of the bike computer for her! I bet she would love that. She spent the bulk of winter studying field guides so she could identify birds, trees, plants, flowers while on the back and that's exciting to her, she's quite the pro now.
One tip we have found to help on the long days is we got speakers that mount on the bike that hook up to our Mp3 player and I have some of her favorites on there, some recorded book readings, sing along songs, etc. and that really helps. Nothing to make me feel hot like toodling along on the bike with the Sound of Music blaring!
We did get the camel backs this year- as yes, reaching for the bottles can suck and land us up dehydrated quickly- we both drink a lot more with the packs on the back.
We keep the nuts and dried fruits etc. around for anytime snacking- neither of us feel very good with refined sugars in our system but I do have her drink a gatorade type drink at rest stops when on tour for the sodium- but more than one a day and she has a stomach ache... not cool!
Thanks for sharing your pain, it really helps a lot- I felt really defeated today after a ride yesterday..