congrats on your first race!! i did my first race in '98 and was totally hooked!
Still unsure whether or not preriding was the best approach!
i not much into pre-riding... i personally don't do anything but spinning the day before a race - and usually NO RIDING at all.
i have only pre-ridden courses a few times and usually it has been more than a week or so before the race - often the course is not deifinite so i kind of "guess" what the route will be.
i excel at technical sections so i rarely encounter a course that i need to practice or anything. i usually study the course map paying particular attention to the vertical profile, noting big climbs and downhills (for example in my last race with 1600m of vertical, i noted that after km 32 there were no climbs more than 100m long so i knew i could push strong from km 32 till the end at km55). i usually memorize a few key points by elevation/distance as well as marking any feeding stations. since i have been in Europe where the courses tend to have more vertical (usually 1500-3000m vertical - that's 5000 to 10000 ft vertical) i often see guys who print out the profile and tape it to their handlebars which is a good idea but i've always been too lazy (or rather busy repairing and tuning my bike and whatever)
i think some of the pros will either walk the course or i've heard that some people (not my style) ride a motorbike over the course...
in general, i think pre-riding the day before will bring fewer benefits b/c you won't be rested and recovered and in top form