Century nears!!

[latelatebloomer]

I've got 4 weeks until the rubber meets the road at the Seagull Century (Oct 7). This is all your fault. I never heard of a century before this forum, and I caught the 4-step madness. (1- what's a century? 2- you have to be crazy to ride 100 miles 3-it must be kind of cool to be that crazy 4- I want to be that crazy)

Most of you know that I'm a newb & a big woman rider, this is my first year on a road bike, I had to get over a crash in the spring, and heck, a year and a half ago I could barely do 3 miles on my hybrid. Cycling has taught me something I never knew about myself. I apparently don't know the meaning of "quit."

The last 2 weekends, I rode 50 & 60 miles. Flattish roads since this event is flat, trying to get my speed up. It's working, I'm cruising flats at 16, sometimes I feel really strong and hit 18 for a bit. (what a thrill!) Unless my food energy bottoms out, then I can go down to a struggling 9 or 10. I apparently need a lot of fuel (200lbs, working hard.) Right now I have 3 questions. As the time nears, I know I'll be running to you with more.

1)You larger riders who do endurance rides and also need a lot of fuel, what has foods have worked best for you? I'm alarmed that the 2nd stop (the 40 miler) will only have water and toilets. I bet that's when I'll be wanting lunch! DH offered to wear a backpack. I will have gels and bars, but I want the security of some real food, too. I still have a couple weeks to experiment.

2) Is it too much to try to do 70 miles this weekend? At the end of 50 & 60 mile rides, I had some gas left in the tank. My main problem at the end of 60 was some crotch soreness, and after the endorphin rush died down, I felt pretty wiped out and strained for about 24 hours, though no real back or joint pain. I would like to train up to 80 miles before the event.

3)Does it sound to you like I'm ready? I veer between confidence and utter terror. When I set this goal of a century before my 47th birthday (10/10, the timing's perfect) during the winter, I kind of imagined a different person actually doing it, maybe someone sent in from Central Casting.. Now the time approaches, and it's clear that it'll be me, in the fleshy flesh, warts and all. I don't think my psyche has caught up to the changes the rest of me has been making.

Thanks for your help.