Originally Posted by
glowrocks
I may be a wimp, but I'm in my mid-50s, have only been riding since June, and I don't think I would enjoy 4-6 hours on my bike (yet).
And I've ridden around 400 miles since June, not just 40!
All that to say, good luck to you and your friend. I will say that I would have a better time riding with someone, but 4-6 hours will be tough on this guy if he's never even ridden for an hour at a time before.
I gotta agree. I think OP's plan is apretty aggressive for someone with only 40 or so miles under their belt this summer. If I didn't know better, the physical description you gave fits me pretty well. I rode the GAP this summer for the first time and I was knocking off 25 miles on MUP trails with ease. I hit the wall at 40 miles and still had 14 more miles to go before reaching our first night's stop. I could keep my spin rate high, just had no horsepower left (I've never riden in such low gears over what to the eye appeared flat terrain). I was beat.
The temps will help, but if your friend finishes in the allotted time, I'll be surprised. He's going to be whipped the next day for the retreat.
Is there anyway you can shave off some of the miles by altering your start point?