All the above shows just how different we all are!

I'm definitely in the less water 'corner' and I'm fairly sure that carrying water is more of a psychological need than a physiological necessity to most runners. As others have pointed out; there's plenty of water on this course. You certainly shouldn't need more fluid before the first drink station, it's only 8 miles. As for calories, any simple sugars such as jellybabies will work fine as long as you stick to little and often.