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Inspecting the whole course in person is generally overkill. Try to understand the hard points of the course in advance by using strava & google maps. If at all possible, try to inspect the final 2-3km of the course by riding it and know exactly where the finish line is – not knowing the finish, or precisely where the finish line is has been the undoing of many people in their first (second, third etc.) race, even if they are strong and in good position!
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Road races i’ve done always have a lot of standing around prior to starting, particularly when there are other grades ahead of you. I’ve never warmed up for them, but everyone is different. I do go for a 5mins spin to make sure my bike is together and working properly though!
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Saddle bag, yes. Some people carry everything for a repair in their pockets, or nothing at all (and hope that a car will pick them up if they flat). Personally, I hate having the weight in my jersey pockets and don’t like the thought of it going into my back in the case of a crash. So for me, a saddle bag is the most compact solution to carrying everything for a repair. It may get poo-poo’d by the odd traditionalist, but whatever…
Some people also cite fast access as a reason for putting it in their pockets, but I don’t think this is really a problem, as if you flat it is just race over - you’re not going to get back to the bunch.
N.B. The possible variation to this would be if you’re running tubeless and you only carry a plug/plug insertion tool, 1x CO2 and a CO2 head… I might just put an elastic band around that and throw it in my pocket…