Originally Posted by
Machka
No, probably not the afternoon ...
Strangely enough a 4 am start has a certain appeal....
DC Randonneurs starts their 400's and 600's at 4am. Usually that means that by lunch-time you've got a hundred miles or more, done. I usually get to the overnight around 2 to 3am, usually around 400km into the ride. That makes for a 5am or 6am start on the second day with a bit over 200km to go.
I think your idea of pretending that you're riding a 1000 or 1200 is a good one. It seems like you've got somewhat of a "block" about the 600, partly based on painful past experiences.