Cankelcat, my sleep experience is the same as yours. For decades I was 6 hours and out riding on the way to work. Now I need 8 hours of sleep to feel rested, and ost nights I get the hours, too. This week I knew that Friday was going to be a scorcher and super humid so I rode four days straight and took today off. I feel really good getting one or two off days every week.
Old dogs can learn new tricks!