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@DarrenFranks
There are a few things you'll only learn after x hours/days on the bike, so I think it's valuable to have experienced similar, under as close to race conditions as possible. Digestion, conditioning, fit issues, old hidden injuries, equipment.
Having never ridden big distances or done a multi-day ride I decided to do London-Bilbao and London-Edinburgh, both of which taught me useful lessons.
Those kind of rides are for learning though, not for fitness. They take a lot out of you, so don't go mad on those. From a fitness perspective it's better to be consistent and stick to relatively typical training.
I'll include the usual caveat that riding speed isn't the biggest factor.