I lead a beginner ride on Saturday mornings. After the storms Fri. night only one other rider showed up Sat. morning. He is in his late 50s early 60s and fairly overweight (even more than me ). Since it was the two of us I asked if he was up for riding some hills. To my surprise he was! So we rode to the bottom of this monster hill (to me it's a monster anyhow). It's actually a stepped hill - about 3 hills in one. So, I tell him to ride at his pace and that I'll come back to him. So I ride to the first crest and then back to him and up again. Then to the top of the 2nd crest and back to him and then the 3rd crest and back to him. We then ride a flat stretch for a couple of miles, turn around, ride back down the hills and back up. It was 26 miles in all but took nearly 2.5 hrs. I was pretty please with myself but I was really proud of Bob. He never quit and actually enjoyed the ride. I think it really helped that he could go at his own pace and not feel like he needed to keep up. That was one of the most enjoyable rides I have been on! I actually felt pretty strong. I liked it so much I did it again on Sun. by myself. It was tougher the next day...but I did the same ride in 2 hrs. Not exactly hill repeats, but kinda, sorta like 'em.