I'll never understand some people -- those that are riding ONLY so they can do something else.
To the OP -- try slowing down about 1 mph, and as I wrote somewhere on BF a few years ago: "Enjoy the ride. Ride for the enjoyment."
I'll add two things:
1. At approx 145-miles into my first 300k, which was a solo ride btw -- it was a brevet, but I fit into a "hole", anyway, at ~ 145-miles, hands hurt, my feet hurt, my butt hurt, each calf had cramped at least once and each leg hurt, I knew that IF, repeat IF, I managed to finish the ride ... I was NEVER EVER going to get on a bicycle again, PERIOD.
Five or ten miles later, dusk turning to darkness, a warm spring sprinkle-rain falling onto and cooling my overheated quads, my feet no longer hurting, my hands no longer hurting, my butt no longer hurting, ... I heard myself thinking, "man, you can do this !" I was not referring to that 300; I was referring to the 400 and the 600 !
I've met people that have had a similar experience. I've read of similar experiences.
I did not complete the SR in 2010 -- my first year of rando. I've mentioned why elsewhere.
2. Last year, all the SR rides were MUCH easier than in 2010. Even the 600 was "easy", but for a reason. My buddy Robert -- the only person I've recruited to randonneuring -- wanted to go to Paris; I had no ambitions along those lines. Due to "life issues", and a failed 400 in Texas (which is an interesting story in itself), Robert had no legs, repeat NO LEGS (in the usual rando usage -- not "impaired"). The easiest way for him to qualify for PBP was to do the local 600; he planned to use my legs.
Blah, blah, blah ... Robert and I rode that entire 600 together at a pace to allow his "no legs" to finish. Three others had planned to ride with us, but I had two flats at about 50 and 54 miles into the ride, so we waved them on -- only saw them at controls thereafter. One person joined us for most of the ride en route, and ... he went to Paris. Several others joined for various parts of the ride.
I was tired after the ride, but it had been easy. I was in better mental and physical shape than a year earlier, but I think the main reason that
it seemed easy was because I was concentrating on someone else, and not on any issues I might have had.