Why this race is not like the "Cape Epic"

One of the riders doing the non competitive 6 day "Ride to Rhodes" asked me if I thought he could do the "Epic".
My answer was that if one could do "Ride to Rhodes" then one could manage the "Epic" on a unicycle. Obviously an exaggeration but was meant to highlight the absurdity of the comparison. Neither is for sissys.
The best way of describing the differences is to say that the "Epic" is a mountain bike race suitable for roadies, while the "Freedom Challenge" is more suited to adventure racers.
Self navigation and the terrain are marked differences resulting in much slower average speeds.
Which is better? Depends on how much leave you have!!