I'm all for perfecting technique, and the bike setup. Last summer I did my first metric in July, two more at the end of July, then one more in late August. Several things enabled me to get beyond 40 miles. One was saddle selection and positioning, a Selle Anatomica, following their setup instructions - Tom Milton did have some excellent insight into saddles. Another was using my HRM to help me remain aerobic, reducing my speed and adjusting gearing when I was about to go anaerobic. Yet another was getting a front storage setup that steers decently, though in my last metric I rode my go-fast with a small saddlebag. I'm not in any particular plan with eating and drinking, and maybe the water-timer idea is something I should try.

I carry nearly the same tools every ride, not because things generally break, but because as I've come to this point I've done a lot of on-road adjustments. Front of knee hurts: raise saddle 2 mm, left inner thigh chafe: rotate saddle 1 mm toward pain, sliding forward with excess perineal pressure: raise saddle nose 2 mm and slide saddle forward 2 mm, too much hand presssure: slide saddle back a bit to reduce weight on hands ---- on and on and on. But I needed very few fixes on the metrics - I'm pleased about that!