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Hit me up if you get to Salida this summer - I'm up there much of the year these days. I've ridden the Crest 30+ times - to be fair, it doesn't get any easier as you get older. I've got the whole thing divided into 45 min segments -- makes it mentally easier. Always a fun day out!

Good strategy. Out here it is now almost 50/50 on bike vs. e-bike and it feels like the shops are primarily selling e-bikes, so the regular bike base is stagnant to shrinking. But with 2-3000 feet of climbing, it's reasonable to consider a motor. I swapped from 32x50 to 30x50 and it was a nice little upgrade. My hardtail is 32x42 is a bit of a push on most trails. I think you'll find the lighter bike with the more aggressive gearing will be a significant upgrade for you. I think you'll do fine on Monarch Crest with your new bike, a lightweight XC bike should do fine.

At 67 years old and with much younger friends getting into eBikes, it would have been logical for what should be my last bike purchase to be an eBike. Instead, I decided on a lightweight, performance-oriented race bike. Monarch Crest is a true test, and the one time I rode it (27 mi with more climbing than I ever expected given the elevation we started at), I was on an 11-spd with 30X42 being my lowest gearing. I was in pretty good shape, but it was sheer punishment on the climbs. This bike will definitely help, and I may even try to get back to Salida in Aug or Sep this year to test it out. I'll definitely swap out the 34t chainring for a 30t though to give me the full advantage that I need, i.e. 30X52 = 19% efficiency gain over the 30X42 that I've been riding for the last 9 years. So I guess that I'm viewing this as my form of an eBike, and at 24lb, it will be SUPER fun to rocket around on.   

Glad to hear you are back on the right path. Heart/circulatory stuff is never fun. Was flying from LAX to ORD this afternoon and the alert came on "is there a doctor on the plane..." Interestingly, there was a convention in Chicago and the plane was full of cardiologists, so everything worked out. I have to be more careful based on my cholesterol. My cardiologist has me on a strict regimen, and since I moved to CA the post ride beers have dropped substantially, it's different out here. Stay healthy and remember that the key is being able to ride again tomorrow.

Congrats on the new bike! Glad to hear you’re back riding again- it’s amazing how fast you can start feeling really shit if forced to be inactive, without adding anything else in life being stressful. Once you start feeling like you’re rotting it can be tough to escape that feeling. Hope you’re fitness keeps coming back!