Originally Posted by berts
my couple of cents:
the only long distance ride i did recently was about 600 km at 200 km a day, 3 days straight. i agree with cyclintom when he said "Sitting in the saddle for that amount of time day after day will be a bigger challenge judging from your present strength. Here's something to think about - the first three days will be hell. After that your body will become adjusted.."
My first day was tough especially on the upper body, shoulders, neck and saddle, 2nd day was a bit easier and on the third day I was really beginning to enjoy the ride. Mind you each day we had a fair amount of climbing (2-4 K ft vertical).
Bring sun tan lotion, hydrate sufficiently, keep the energy level up and sounds like you're gonna have a nice ride - wish I could come.
Wow! Bert is right.
I'd forgotten all about the sunscreen. If you don't use this you get Vitamin D poisoning and also a lot of skin damage all of which saps energy out of you on a long ride. A LOT of energy.
ALWAYS wear sunscreen if you're over 40! Even on overcast days in the summer.
As for hydrating - a sip of water every 5 minutes is better than a slug every 15. A small amount of water can be absorbed directly into your blood stream through your stomach lining but larger quantities wash down into your small intestine where it is absorbed much slower. Your large intestine at the end of of the process is where water is normally extracted from your food and water.
If you're riding at 80% of your max heart rate or more, you have to eat powerbars or gel every 1/2 hour through the effort. If you're below that output you can rely on normal meals if you keep yourself hydrated and eat on a normal schedule. Once you start feeling hungry you can't recover. If you bonk entirely it normally takes two to three days before you feel right again. So it's important to remain aware of your physical condition.