I did the Death Ride in 2005, and while it was difficult, and I did train for it . . . the Death Ride itself was easier than I thought it would be from looking at the profile and reading the reports of other riders.
Having all the other riders to talk to as I ascended at my ave. climbing pace of 6 mph really helped pass the time too. My worst enemy on The Death Ride was the tedium, and the conversations helped battle that.
Of course, there's no way I could talk on the descents!
Plus, keep in mind that my time was pretty slow: 11:45 for all 5 passes and back to the park. Don't know when (or if) I'll be inspired to do it again!
Rick / OCRR