I don't like getting started to early myself but one thing I have learned in 10 years of BB.
Everyone is on vacation, Herding cats is easier than getting the groups in the right spot at the right times, everyone wants to hang out and BS all the time, everyone wants to stop and look at the scenery, I could go on and on.
It doesn't matter what time you start the trail runs someone will be late, someone will just have to stop for gas, someone will just need to run the the grocery store real quick, Trucks will break, scenery will be looked at and the trails will go slow.
As you can assume I like to move quick on the trail, so a late start is fine with me but IMO you loose a good part of the reason everyone comes, BS'ing, scenery, and a bit of wheeling in the middle. Late starts make it to where you have to move quick and not waste time cause I also like to eat dinner at someplace other than Dennys at midnight. The brewery at 6:00 is much better
So in short I am in full support of 8:30 meeting times and 9:00 at the latest departures. If you get back into town you can do all the maintenance, fueling etc. in the evening not the next morning.