Yeah, but neither of you guys are remotely average riders… it took us just over four hours the other week via Hollins Cross and including a 15-minute break while we chatted with a lass with a space blanket on Rushup Edge. I’d have been a little quicker on my own, but it depends on conditions, exact route, what your idea of an ‘average rider’ is etc.
Climbing up to Hollins Cross is fine in the current conditions btw. The grassy bit after the footpath/bridleway split is much better than you’d think and the left-hand descent from Hollins Cross while not exactly dry and dusty, is/was also far more amenable than you’d think. Stuff dries quite fast round here when the wind gets on it ime etc.
I am, of course, an average rider 🙂