Yea, my ride last Saturday was similar. It was an organized ride and the listed elevation gain was 5,500 feet. Seems about right given the terrain, it was pretty much flat then straight up.
Garmin Training Center gave me 11,846 ft
Motionbased rounded that down to 8,932 ft.

That's a good idea to convince your husband that he needs the Edge. The deals are really great, especially with the rebate. (Thanks for that!)

Anne