It looks a terrific event. A couple of friends went about 4 years ago and thoroughly enjoyed it but, being of 'advanced years' they did the 'mid' distance ride which they considered was hard enough. As far as I know they still haven't cleaned the dust or taken the numbers off their bikes yet!
Trouble is that it is a long way to drive and air travel is a pain in the backside these days especially with bikes, hire cars etc. If it was nearer I'd love to do it.
There are some great photos on the website. How some of the guys got round on the very old bikes I'll never know! Great admiration!!